On Monday, July 17th at 2:00 pm ET, NCHER will hold a webinar to discuss the U.S. Department of Education’s final rule implementing the new Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Plan for Direct Loan borrowers that was published in the Federal Register on July 10, 2023. The new plan, dubbed the “Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan,” would replace the current Revised Pay-As-You-Earn (REPAYE) plan and borrowers who are currently in REPAYE will automatically be enrolled in SAVE. The plan would increase income protection (whereby a borrower whose income falls under a certain percentage of the federal poverty line would have a zero dollar payment) from 150 percent to 225 percent; halt interest capitalization so loan balances would not grow due to unpaid interest; reduce monthly payments on undergraduate loans to five percent of income that is not protected (i.e., that is above the 225 percent federal poverty line); and provides loan forgiveness to borrowers with original principal balances of $12,000 or less after 120 payments. The final rule would automatically enroll those borrowers who go 75 days without making a payment into SAVE if they have previously provided approval for disclosure of their tax information to the Department. 

During the webinar, industry experts will review the details of the final rule on SAVE, compare its provisions with other IDR plans, and discuss the impact that the plan is expected to have on the FFELP borrowers and the industry. A question-and-answer session will follow the discussion. Members can register for the webinar on the NCHER website.