November 20, 2023
Biden’s Student Loan Fraud Check - Editorial
The Editorial Board writes: Did the Biden Administration learn anything from the massive fraud in pandemic spending programs? Apparently not judging from a new Government Accountability Office report that found the Education Department failed to implement basic checks to prevent fraud in its student loan forgiveness plan.
The Supreme Court struck down the Administration’s $430 billion debt writeoff in June, but the GAO review is relevant since the Education Department is canceling hundreds of billions of dollars in student loans via the back door. Under the President’s original plan, borrowers who earned less than $125,000 ($250,000 for couples) were eligible for $10,000 to $20,000 in forgiveness. But the Education Department let borrowers “self-attest” that their incomes fell below these thresholds. In other words, trust, but don’t verify.
The Supreme Court struck down the Administration’s $430 billion debt writeoff in June, but the GAO review is relevant since the Education Department is canceling hundreds of billions of dollars in student loans via the back door. Under the President’s original plan, borrowers who earned less than $125,000 ($250,000 for couples) were eligible for $10,000 to $20,000 in forgiveness. But the Education Department let borrowers “self-attest” that their incomes fell below these thresholds. In other words, trust, but don’t verify.