US Education Secretary Linda McMahon attends the International Women of Council Awards ceremony in the State Department in Washington, DC on 1 April 2025.
Brendan Smialowski | AFP | Getty images
Jason Kolier, a special education teacher in Virginia, often needs to wait till payday to fill the gas tank. his car – And meanwhile, he is expected to run out.
“When you are tight you are tight A teacher“Coliere, 46, said.
Now he is afraid that the US Education Department will garnish soon 15% of their wages Because he is behind his student loan payment. Kolier said that he has not been able to meet his monthly bill for years, while two children and the expenses of increasing the medical expenses from the diagnosis of cancer.
If his salary is garnished, “it would be more than just a pinch,” said the colir. “If I need to repair the car, or something comes up, I may not be able to do those things.”
The results are punitive and sometimes tragic.
James Kewal
Former education department
after a Half decades of collection activity Federal student loan, trump administration Announced On April 21 that it will once again confiscate the federal tax refund, paychek and social security benefits of the default borrowers.
According to the Department of Education, more than 5 million students loan borrowers are currently default form, and it can swell to about 10 million borrowers within a few months.
The Biden administration focused on expanding relief measures to the struggling borrowers in view of the Kovid epidemic and helping them to achieve the present. The aggressive collection activity of Trump administration is a sharp twist from that strategy.
“Borrowers should pay loans that they take,” said US Education Secretary Linda McMahon Video Posted on X on 22 April.
More than 42 million Americans Conduct students loans, and collectively, outstanding federal education loans more than $ 1.6 trillion. Education Department may garnish up to 15% of the disposable income and federal benefits of default borrowers, as well as their entire federal tax refunds.
Nancy Neerman, Assistant Director of the Education Loan Consumer Assistance Program in New York, said, “In an environment where the cost of living is very high, such a return from your income can fulfill real problems when it is trying to meet, and forced people to choose among important expenses,” said Nansey Neemon, Assistant Director of the Education Loan Consumer Assistance Program in New York.
Most people who are default on their student loans, “really can’t take the risk of paying them,” James Kewal, who served as an educational former president who served as an educational education for Biden, said in an April interview with CNBC.
“The results are punitive and sometimes tragic,” Kewal said.
A retiring that can no longer go home
Marsline Paul and his grandchildren
Courtesy: Marsline Paul
Marsline Paul is Homxic.
But if the Trump administration starts increasing its social security benefit next month, there is no way to return the journey to Trinidad. She moved to the United States from there in the 70s.
“I need to go home,” 68 -year -old Paul said, who worked for decades in the health care industry and retired during the Kovid -19 epidemic to take care of her ailing mother.
The student taken for that student was the last thing in his mind during that time, he said: “I could not focus on anything else.”
She got nervous when she recently received notice from the Education Department. Can be offsetAlmost all his income comes from about $ 2,600 from his monthly social security benefits. Social security benefits to repay the student loan by default can usually be reduced by up to 15%, so the beneficiaries are left with at least $ 750 per month.
“When I saw that email, it made me sick in my stomach,” said Paul.
Already on a tight budget in retirement, the garnishment will force him to cut his everyday expenses, leave the necessary repairs at his home in Maryland and travel to his country.
“I don’t know that last time I was a holiday,” she said. “I have paid in the system and I must be able to retire.”
More than 450,000 borrowers are likely to get their federal student loans and social security benefits by default 62 years and above, Consumer Financial Security Bureau found earlier this year.
Collection activity begins despite chaotic time
Over a period of about five years, during which the Education Department suspended its collection of federal student loans, there have been changes and disruptions in the borrowing system.
Millions of borrowers who sign up for the new repayment scheme of the Biden administration, known as Save, were trapped in Limbo after managing a valuable education program, saving on a valuable education program. To block the plan In the summer of last year. Many of the borrowers will now have to get out of the payment stagnation of a biden-era and join another repayment plan that will increase their monthly bill.
But in recent months, the Trump administration has End About half of the education department employees, many of whom included helping borrowers.
Now some student loan borrowers are waiting for hours on the phone before being able to reach anyone about their loan, yet the Trump administration asked the borrowers to contact the borrowers to get the present.
A education department spokesman said in an email statement, “Not only the department expanded the servicing call hours, but we also released new equipment – such as an updated loan simulator and AI assistant – to help bring back to good condition,” an email statement by an education department spokesman.
Borrowers try to get the current on their debt and fail
Kia Brown, who works as a management analyst in the department of veteran cases, wants to repay her student loan again – but she said she is participating in many challenges trying to do so.
Brown, 44, said, “I have the biggest issue lack of information.”
When she signed up for Biden’s Save Plan, she could spend her monthly student loan bill $ 150. But now that plan has been blocked and she is worried that she will not be able to make her new payment.
He got conflicting information on whether his student loan servant was Mohela or Naviant (there are millions of people Their accounts were transferred among companies In recent years.) When she tried to reach anyone in the Navy about her student loan, she was in hold for more than two hours.
Meanwhile, a representative in Mohela could not tell him what his new student loan payment would be, although he was quoted by the company’s automatic phone system $ 319.
Mohela and Navin did not respond to the remarks request.
Brown is still not certain which company is managing its account.
“The story is that people are dodging their payment,” Brown said, but he said that he does not think it is true for many borrowers. “I really believe that many people will be blinded due to lack of guidance on how to repay.”
If he is not able to reach anyone in the Education Department, his payment is garnished on his payment and his wages are garnished, it will be a significant difficulty for his family, he said.
“We are living salary for Pcheche,” he said. “I’m lucky if I can keep $ 100 separate for myself.”
