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The Department intends to amend regulations related to the authorities granted to the Secretary under 20 U.S.C. 1082(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), to provide relief to Federal student loan borrowers who have experienced or are experiencing hardship.  This regulation was included in the Student Debt Relief Rulemaking process.  This included a virtual public hearing on this topic on July 18, 2023, where the Department heard from 72 speakers including parent and student borrowers, higher education organizations, and other stakeholders who shared their views on this regulation.  In addition, there were 4 negotiated rulemaking sessions on October 10-11, November 6-7, December 11-12, 2023, and February 22-23, 2024, which also provided an opportunity for virtual public comments from an additional 83 public speakers to share their input during the rulemaking sessions. There was a 30-day public comment period once the notice of proposed rulemaking published from April 17-May 17, 2024 where the Department received 148,567 public comments on the proposed rule.

Statement of Need:

This rulemaking is necessary to provide debt relief to the numerous student loan borrowers who are likely to default within two years and are experiencing financial hardship.

Summary of the Legal Basis:

We are conducting this rulemaking under the authority in 20 U.S.C. 1082(a).

Alternatives:

We have limited information about the alternatives at this time.

Anticipated Costs and Benefits:

We have limited information about the costs and benefits at this time.

Risks:

We have limited information about the risks at this time.