- Final rule on ‘borrower defense’ includes lower standard
- Still needs OMB review, target for finalization is September
Students who were misled by colleges into attending and who are now seeking loan forgiveness would have an easier time under a revised Trump administration proposal but they could still face an uphill climb.
The Education Department plans to allow students to have their loans forgiven under a rule known as “borrower defense” if they can show there is a greater than 50% chance the school deceived them, according to a copy of its draft final rule. In a July 2018 proposed rule, the department considered using a higher standard of evidence, requiring students’ claims to be “highly and substantially more probable to be true than not.”
The department “has been persuaded that without subpoena power, discovery rights, or legal representation, the clear and convincing evidence standard may be too difficult for borrowers to satisfy,” according to the updated regulation obtained by Bloomberg Government.