Consumer Agency Condemns Abuses in Loan Forgiveness Program

Consumer Agency Condemns Abuses in Loan Forgiveness Program
The program’s rules are unusually complicated, and require borrowers to have a specific kind of loan (a direct federal loan), to make monthly payments under one type of plan (income-driven repayment)
and to work for a qualifying employer (generally a public sector organization, or a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization).
Many borrowers “point to a range of student loan industry practices
that delay, defer, or deny access to critical consumer protections,” Seth Frotman, the bureau’s student loan ombudsman, wrote in an introduction to the report.
“The bureau is committed to monitoring the industry for key issues
and illegal practices affecting borrowers who are trying to access key consumer protections so they can continue to give back to their communities.”
The Education Department, which oversees the program, encourages borrowers to file certifications to verify
that their employment qualifies and to help them track their progress toward meeting program requirements.
By STACY COWLEYJUNE 22, 2017
The government’s consumer watchdog is adding its voice to a growing chorus of warnings about problems with a federal program
that permits people who take public service jobs to have their student loans forgiven after a decade.
But more than 250,000 of those borrowers had not made one qualifying monthly loan payment toward the 120 required
to have their loans forgiven, according to an Education Department presentation at a conference last year.