FORTUNE
President Joe Biden’s administration announced that more than 150,000 borrowers will receive $1.2 billion in student loan forgiveness under a program unveiled in January seeking to provide relief for Americans who had been making payments for at least a decade.
The move – which benefits those enrolled in the government’s Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan – wipes out loans for those who borrowed less than $12,000 for their higher education. Other income-driven repayment plans also forgive balances, but only after 20 or 25 years of repayment.
Biden plans to address the college debt relief announcement — a major 2024 campaign issue for young voters — during a speech Wednesday in Culver City, California, according to his advisers.
“With today’s announcement, we are once again sending a clear message to borrowers who had low balances: If you’ve been paying for a decade, you’ve done your part, and you deserve relief,” said Education Secretary Miguel Cardona in a statement.
The latest round pushes the total relief approved by the Biden administration to nearly $138 billion, benefiting 3.9 million borrowers. That number could grow as more people become eligible for forgiveness under the SAVE program, which has 6.9 million people enrolled. Administration officials have declined to estimate how many borrowers will eventually see loans forgiven under the program.
