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Hassan, Shaheen join push to fix Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program

By Staff | May 7, 2021

U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen joined their colleagues in calling on the Biden administration to strengthen the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program and to ensure that America’s teachers, social workers, public defenders, service members, and community health care workers, along with many other public servants, receive the student loan forgiveness that they have earned.

“Especially now, as our nation works to combat COVID-19 and build back better from this pandemic, the federal government must fulfill its promise to our public service workers who placed themselves in harm’s way to serve their community during this unprecedented time,” the lawmakers wrote. “The [U.S. Department of Education] has an opportunity to uphold the promise to our public servants by taking administrative action to provide them with relief.”

The lawmakers continued: “We urge you to take action to waive or modify counterproductive restrictions, barriers and donut holes in PSLF… We also urge the Department to take proactive steps to simplify the process, provide more transparency and bolster oversight of the program and loan servicers to ensure that the PSLF program is implemented in accordance with congressional intent.”

The lawmakers concluded: “We stand ready to work with you on this important issue. Now is the time to fix PSLF and finally allow the program to benefit the millions of dedicated teachers, nurses, first responders, service members and other public servants who have depended on this relief.”

Senators Hassan and Shaheen are working to provide public servants with the federal support that they deserve. Senators Hassan and Shaheen joined their colleagues in introducing the What You Can Do for Your Country Act of 2019, which would overhaul the PSLF program in order to ensure that public servants will qualify for loan forgiveness. Last week, Senator Hassan joined Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) to introduce the bipartisan Recognizing Military Service in Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Act, which would allow service members who pause their student loan payments while deployed or on extended active duty orders to count that period of time toward their student loan forgiveness – which is currently not allowed.

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