In recent years, law enforcement officials have issued warnings about an employer certification system that leaves borrowers vulnerable to the whims of individual student loan company personnel and Education Department staff, with little recourse when borrowers encounter trouble. Since the Employment Certification Form process launched, borrowers have had their employers rejected by the Department of Education over 50,000 times for being “ineligible” for PSLF. Since 2012, the Department of Education has administered an “employment certification” process through which the principal PSLF loan servicer, the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency, evaluates information provided by borrowers in an Employment Certification Form and determines whether a borrowers’ employer qualifies under PSLF. In order to receive loan forgiveness through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, borrowers must be employed in a public service job. “Policymakers should immediately implement new reforms to better protect borrowers working in public service and demand justice for those harmed by years of mismanagement and abuse.”

“Today’s investigation offers new evidence that borrowers may have been wrongly denied their right to loan forgiveness, and tens of thousands more are being confused or misled, or are currently in jeopardy because of government mismanagement and industry abuse,” said SBPC Executive Director Seth Frotman. But, thousands of educators, nurses, military veterans and other public employees have been counting on the promise of Public Service Loan Forgiveness since 2007, and this report is yet another example of how this administration continues to create roadblocks at every corner to keep the promise of PSLF from becoming a reality.”

“Nearly everything that is wrong with the department’s process of certifying employers could be fixed with simple administrative steps, but she has refused, with constant excuses that make things worse for borrowers and better for servicers.Īs a union, we’ve taken this administration to court, and through our Summer debt relief program, have come up with “right now” solutions for our members who need help managing their loan payments as soon as possible. “Mismanagement on the scale reflected in these documents is exactly why we have sued Betsy DeVos and the Department of Education over their failed stewardship of this program,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. The new report, “Broken Promises: Employment Certification Failure,” is available at: The AFT and the SBPC are also encouraging watchdogs and researchers to explore the new trove of documents released through the investigation. The organizations issued new recommendations to strengthen this key component of the federal program as part of a joint ongoing effort to design a road map to restore the promise of PSLF. These breakdowns can confuse or deter PSLF applicants, deny borrowers their right to relief, and jeopardize loan forgiveness for the millions of public service workers being forced to leave and re-enter the workforce at this time.

A joint investigation found routine errors, poor recordkeeping and conflicting policies throughout the process for determining whether borrowers’ employers qualify them for federal loan forgiveness. Aug| WASHINGTON, DC - The American Federation of Teachers and the Student Borrower Protection Center today released an investigative report exposing new instances of mismanagement and abuse in the scandal-plagued Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.

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