NJ joins lawsuit against US Dept. of Ed over public service loan forgiveness restrictions
The restrictions are set to go into effect in July.
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State Attorney General Matt Platkin announced that he has joined 21 other attorneys general to file a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education for “unlawfully restricting eligibility for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.”
The program allows government and nonprofit employees to have their federal student loans forgiven after 10 years of public service.
[twitter] https://twitter.com/NewJerseyOAG/status/1985397798850666610 [/twitter]
Platkin says that under a new federal rule, certain state and local governments or nonprofit organizations could be ineligible for PSLF “if the federal government determines they have engaged in so-called 'substantial illegal’ activities – a vague standard that the Administration has defined as sweeping in activities that are disfavored by the administration and do not align with this administration’s policy agenda.”
“Since taking office, President [Donald] Trump has denigrated hardworking public servants who make tremendous sacrifices every day for their communities. At a time when the cost of higher education continues to skyrocket, limiting access to public service loan forgiveness is a shortsighted, reckless, and illegal attack on public-minded employees who keep us safe and provide our residents with critical services,” Platkin wrote in a statement.
Platkin says that an organization’s illegal activities could include “support for immigrants, political protest, and support for lifesaving gender-affirming health care.”
The rule is set to go into effect in July.
