Stacy Cowley

So even before Trump comes back to power, the plan that Biden introduced, the SAVE plan, got caught up in court. A group of Republican-led states challenged it, said this exceeded the president's authority, and that has been prevailing in court, which left about 8 million borrowers who had signed up for this plan kind of in limbo, waiting to see what was going to happen with these court cases.

So even before Trump comes back to power, the plan that Biden introduced, the SAVE plan, got caught up in court. A group of Republican-led states challenged it, said this exceeded the president's authority, and that has been prevailing in court, which left about 8 million borrowers who had signed up for this plan kind of in limbo, waiting to see what was going to happen with these court cases.

So once Trump returns to office, it becomes clear that the plan is doomed.

So once Trump returns to office, it becomes clear that the plan is doomed.

Exactly. Either the courts are going to kill it or the president and his administration are going to kill it. But it's going to go away. Which is pretty whipsawish. Yeah. And those 8 million borrowers are all still just on pause right now. But for all these other tens of millions of borrowers, the message is you need to be paying.

Exactly. Either the courts are going to kill it or the president and his administration are going to kill it. But it's going to go away. Which is pretty whipsawish. Yeah. And those 8 million borrowers are all still just on pause right now. But for all these other tens of millions of borrowers, the message is you need to be paying.

Biden had set it up so that payments were going to resume right after the election, kind of no matter what happened. That meant that Trump gets elected, he's coming into office just as this years of not really having to pay ends and as the government gets serious about collecting on these debts. However...

Biden had set it up so that payments were going to resume right after the election, kind of no matter what happened. That meant that Trump gets elected, he's coming into office just as this years of not really having to pay ends and as the government gets serious about collecting on these debts. However...

People have been warning for years that getting people to start paying again after years of not paying was going to be really tricky. It was going to require a lot of resources and a lot of attention. And that is not what is happening. The student loan servicers who are supposed to be collecting these debts are pretty hammered and overwhelmed.

People have been warning for years that getting people to start paying again after years of not paying was going to be really tricky. It was going to require a lot of resources and a lot of attention. And that is not what is happening. The student loan servicers who are supposed to be collecting these debts are pretty hammered and overwhelmed.

And they have been struggling to get guidance from the education department.

And they have been struggling to get guidance from the education department.

Exactly. And one of the things borrowers are now confronting is not only do you have to start paying this bill again, but you also have to navigate what's the best way to pay it. And that's been one of the areas where borrowers have been running into challenges. They have been trying to get themselves back into repayments. And there is currently an enormous backlog at the education department.

Exactly. And one of the things borrowers are now confronting is not only do you have to start paying this bill again, but you also have to navigate what's the best way to pay it. And that's been one of the areas where borrowers have been running into challenges. They have been trying to get themselves back into repayments. And there is currently an enormous backlog at the education department.

A lot of people have already left, either by being fired or retiring or just deciding to opt out. So that agency is currently very hollowed out. One of the offices that has really been decimated over there is an office that handles student loan borrower complaints.

A lot of people have already left, either by being fired or retiring or just deciding to opt out. So that agency is currently very hollowed out. One of the offices that has really been decimated over there is an office that handles student loan borrower complaints.

One of the people who was fired last month from that office said in court filings that she left behind a backlog of 16,000 complaints that are piled up and unaddressed. The education department also has more than a million borrowers who have applied for income-driven payment and are stuck in limbo. They're waiting for their applications to be processed.

One of the people who was fired last month from that office said in court filings that she left behind a backlog of 16,000 complaints that are piled up and unaddressed. The education department also has more than a million borrowers who have applied for income-driven payment and are stuck in limbo. They're waiting for their applications to be processed.

There's a huge backlog, often stretching for months. So those people are also kind of stuck right now.

There's a huge backlog, often stretching for months. So those people are also kind of stuck right now.