President Trump has signed an executive order directing administration officials to change the forgiveness program for students for public employees to exclude non -profit organizations that participate in activities that have “a great illegal purpose”.
Its order to restrict the program seems to target groups that support uncomfortable immigrants, diversity initiatives, or the assurance of the sexes of children, among other things, as the Trump administration has sought to eliminate federal support for the efforts that attracted the right.
This matter, which was announced on Friday, is the latest attempt to reform the loan remission program, which often made borrowers who changed judgment and bureaucratic obstacles.
The program, known as the “Public Service Loan”, was created by Congress in 2007 and cannot be canceled without taking action in Congress, but the Ministry of Education has some space to determine how it works. The executive order of Mr. Trump has ordered education secretaries and the treasury treasury to amend the program to exclude workers to organizations that support illegal procedures, and to include several categories of examples, including “assistance or incitement” of the Federal Immigration Law.
The Trump administration has taken a wide vision of what it considers supporting illegal activities. The matter was martyred as martyrdom as organizations that support “illegal discrimination”, which the administration previously mentioned the diversity and inclusion initiatives.
It seems that it is targeted for groups that support gender assertion care. She said that she would exclude from the loan -forgiveness program, that is, an organization that supports “child abuse, including chemical and surgical specialization or distortion of children.”
Also, Mr. Trump comes out of organizations that participate in a “pattern” of state laws against “infringement of the property of others, inaccurate behavior, public inconvenience, sabotage, and obstruction of highways”, a language that can be used against groups that supported political protests. Another item targets those who support “terrorism”, a sign used by Trump officials to describe the anti -Israel protests.
These changes must usually pass an official rules process, which often takes months or years to complete and include a period of public suspension. But the Trump administration has often acted in Challenge the clear legal limits – Who is likely to start waves of anxiety for those who depend on them The complex program.
The administration of President George W. Bush enacted the loan program, which aims to encourage people to work in the government and to qualify non -profit organizations by reducing the burden of university debt. After paying 120 monthly loan payments – which require at least 10 years of service in qualified jobs – borrowers become eligible to provide the remaining federal loans.
The program has become a notorious quagmire, with bureaucratic wires and issues of performing loans The rate of rejection is 99 percent For those who sought forgiveness. The administration of President Joseph R. Biden Junior exemptions and exceptions to cancel the barriers, allowing more than a million people to use the program to cancel debt, which total $ 79 billion.
and Estimated two million people They made the payments against their commitment to be eligible to alleviate through the program. These borrowers often come up with anxiety in the months until they reach 120 required payments.
The program is open to borrowers who work in government jobs-at the federal, governmental or local levels-and those who work in non-profit-exempt organizations under the Law of the Internal Revenue Department 501 (c) (3). Some other non -profit organizations are also qualified, but many are exempt, including trade unions and party political organizations.
At different points in the history of the loan program, there was confusion As for the form of “public service”. In 2019, three lawyers He won favorable rulings After considering it is not eligible.
It seems that Mr. Trump’s order is aimed at famous organizations in a way that reflects a draft law that was passed last year at home Allowing the government to cancel the tax exemption One of the non -profit groups accused of supporting terrorist entities. Democrats are afraid that the bill is exploited by Mr. Trump to target his political enemies. The draft law was stopped in the Senate.
Ron Lieber and Erica L. Green The reports contributed.
