The department announced this week that it’s preparing to tell colleges about the fraud allegations made against them by federal student loan borrowers who are seeking to cancel their debt through a “borrower defense to repayment” claim. The opportunity for colleges to respond is part of the Obama-era “borrower defense” regulation that the Trump administration is being forced to carry out after losing a legal battle to delay it.
— The Education Department said it will “soon” send notices to college officials about the pending borrower defense claims associated with their institution. The department said schools will have 30 days to respond and provide evidence.
— More news coming on ‘borrower defense’: The Education Department’s steps to further implement the Obama-era “borrower defense” rule come as officials have signaled in recent weeks that they plan to soon release a new policy for providing partial loan forgiveness to some defrauded borrowers. The Trump administration’s first such partial loan forgiveness policy with regard to a set of borrowers who attended the now-defunct Corinthian Colleges has been blocked by a federal judge on the grounds that it violated federal privacy laws.