State AGs request automatic discharge of disabled veterans’ student loan debt

State Issues Student Lending Military Lending Higher Education Act Department of Education

On May 24, Attorneys General from 47 states, American territories, and Washington D.C., sent a letter to Secretary Betsy DeVos of the U.S. Department of Education (Department) to implement an automatic discharge process for the student loans of veterans who are totally and permanently disabled or otherwise unemployable (known as a “TPD discharge”). The letter asserts that while the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 requires that the Department discharge the student loans of veterans who are totally and permanently disabled as a result of service, the Department requires eligible veterans to take “affirmative steps to secure the loan forgiveness,” which “may prove [to be] insurmountable obstacles to relief for many eligible veterans due to the severe nature of their disabilities.” According to the letter, the Department has identified over 42,000 veterans who are eligible for discharges and carry over $1 billion in dischargeable student loan debt, yet fewer than 9,000 of the eligible veterans had applied for the discharge as of April 2018. In response to the Department’s concerns about the veterans’ potential tax liability, the Attorneys General pointed out that federal tax law excludes loan discharges for disabled borrowers from taxable income. Even if the discharge increases their state tax bill, the Attorneys General argued that most borrowers would prefer to have their outstanding loans completely discharged, and those that do not could be given notice and an opportunity to opt out. Because there is no statutory requirement that eligible veterans apply for the TPD discharges, the Attorneys General urged the Department to implement a program to automatically discharge the outstanding loans as expeditiously as possible.