With less than two months until Inauguration Day, the Department of Education (ED) will need to decide if it will address the impending deadline on the student loan moratorium or allow the pause to lapse, effectively forcing President-elect Joe Biden’s administration to re-implement the policy.
While the transition process has been stymied by a number of lawsuits from the outgoing administration over election certifications, the General Services Administration’s (GSA) recent announcement that the presidential transition could begin frees up a number of resources for the incoming administration that could bring more certainty for federal agencies and create a smoother hand-off.
For ED, one of the most pressing policy decisions will concern the current student loan moratorium — which has provided borrowers with a pause in monthly payments, as well as interest accrual on their federal student loans — set to expire at the end of the calendar year.
The moratorium could be extended through the department, through a congressionally-approved spending bill or aid package, or through executive action from President Donald Trump.