Diane Jones, one of DeVos’ top deputies, offered new details on Tuesday about how the Trump administration is approaching the growing backlog of applications for debt relief by students who claim they were defrauded by their colleges.
— Education Department officials did not approve or deny any “borrower defense to repayment” claims for the last six months of 2018, and DeVos confirmed earlier this month the processing of those claims remained stalled this year.
— “The department, unfortunately, is waiting for a court ruling,” Jones said when asked about the backlog of more than 158,000 claims during a Bipartisan Policy Center event on Tuesday.
— A federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s partial loan forgiveness policy on the grounds it violated privacy law. The Education Department appealed the ruling to the 9th Circuit, where it remains pending.