Millions of student-loan borrowers could soon face higher monthly payments. Democratic lawmakers want to give them more time to prepare.
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On Tuesday, a group of lawmakers, including Sens. Jeff Merkley, Elizabeth Warren, and Tim Kaine, called on Education Sec. Linda McMahon to extend the timeframe borrowers have to transfer out of the SAVE plan.
SAVE was created by former President Joe Biden to give borrowers cheaper monthly payments and a shorter timeline to loan forgiveness. It was blocked by litigation in 2024 and then eliminated in March. President Donald Trump’s administration announced that beginning in July, the 7 million enrolled borrowers will have 90 days to switch to a new plan.
The lawmakers wrote in their letter that moving borrowers to a new plan over a short timeframe would “result in millions of borrowers seeing drastically higher monthly student loan bills amidst an ongoing affordability crisis.”
“These borrowers deserve to have the time, critical information, and support necessary to successfully enroll in another affordable repayment plan and continue to pay down their loans,” the letter said.
They requested that the department provide additional information on its process to eliminate SAVE, including how the department will ensure that borrowers are placed into the correct repayment plan and what options will be provided to borrowers who cannot afford their new monthly payments.
The department said in a March press release that the 90-day period “provides borrowers with ample time to explore repayment options that best suit their needs and plan accordingly.” Nicholas Kent, the department’s undersecretary, added that eliminating SAVE will give borrowers clarity on their repayment options.
“For years, borrowers have been caught in a confusing cycle of uncertainty, but the Trump Administration’s policy is simple: if you take out a loan, you must pay it back,” Kent said.
Borrowers who do not select a new plan will be automatically placed either in the new Repayment Assistance Plan or a standard repayment plan. RAP is less generous than SAVE and is expected to increase some borrowers’ monthly payments by hundreds of dollars.
In addition to the elimination of SAVE and the new repayment plans, borrowers will face new borrowing caps that will limit the amount they can borrow for advanced degrees. The caps could lead some of them to forgo their programs or turn to the private lending market, education policy experts and Democratic lawmakers have said.
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