Education Department negotiators tighten repayment-assistance and IDR language, leave professional‑student definition unresolved

Tammy, a Department of Education negotiator, told participants on returning from lunch that the department would circulate 16 red‑lined regulatory provisions and asked negotiators to submit highlighted counter‑language and rationales by Oct. 10.

The session moved into detailed edits to regulation 685203 and a separate provision, 685209, that would create a Repayment Assistance Plan and revise income‑driven repayment (IDR) references. Tammy read a suite of definition changes and eligibility limits — including a cutoff that only direct loans made before 07/01/2026 may be repaid under certain plans and a transition schedule tied to 07/01/2028.

Why it matters: the changes would reshape who qualifies for reduced monthly payments and which loans count toward forgiveness under long‑standing statutory repayment frameworks. Negotiators repeatedly pressed the department for clarity on whether prior coursework or transfers affect a borrower’s classification as a "professional student," and on how aggregate loan limits should apply across institutions.

Key changes discussed

- Document and process: Tammy said the department will "separate out the provisions into their own individual papers" and circulate 16 red‑lined drafts; parties were asked to highlight proposed edits in yellow so red lines are visible.

- Definitions and eligibility: The department replaced acronyms with spelled‑out plan names and added definitions for terms such as "applicable amount" and "base payment." It also read a new rule that "only direct loans made before 07/01/2026 may be repaid under an income contingent or income based repayment plan" in certain paragraphs.

- Payment tiers and calculation: For the repayment assistance plan, the department laid out tiered base payments by adjusted gross income (AGI) ranges (for example, 1% for AGI more than $10,000 and not more than $20,000, up to 10% for AGI over $100,000). Tammy also explained that for new borrowers a 10% substitution would replace a 15% calculation under some plans.

- Monthly minimums and dependents: The department retained a $10 monthly minimum for payments calculated under the repayment assistance plan, and it said the monthly payment can be reduced by $50 for each dependent.

- Transition and recertification: Borrowers repaying under income‑contingent plans or in administrative forbearance must elect a new eligible repayment plan by 07/01/2028 or the secretary will assign a plan. The department read provisions describing automatic recertification procedures and the borrower's right to opt out of certain tax‑information disclosures.

Outstanding items and disputes

Negotiators pressed the department about the "who has not and has never been a professional student" clause. Tammy confirmed that language remains unresolved and that the department had unintentionally placed some edits in the wrong subsection; staff will move the clause to the intended location and circulate corrected language. Jenna and others explicitly asked whether transfers (for example, moving between institutions while in the same program) would affect a borrower's status; the department said it would revisit that drafting.

A specific legal question from the legal‑aid constituency asked whether a borrower could make a payment while in authorized forbearance so that the payment would count toward enrollment in ICR/IVR. Tamar Hoffman reported the caucus asked that question; Tammy said the department's legal counsel determined that being in forbearance does not meet the statute’s requirement of "being repaid," so forbearance payments would not count toward enrollment in those plans at this time: "the department is not able to agree to that to this at this time."

Next steps

Tammy told the group the department will circulate the red‑lined regulatory provisions next week, asked for counter‑language and questions by Oct. 10, and confirmed the next negotiated‑rulemaking session is scheduled for Nov. 3–7. She also committed to fix mislocated text (notably the professional‑student placement) and to provide finalized discussion drafts ahead of the next session.

What remains unresolved: the precise drafting and placement of the professional‑student definition and some elements of the schedule of reductions and aggregate loan limits. Negotiators asked the department to rework those clauses and return corrected drafts for further review.

Closing: participants caucused briefly and then returned for a report‑out. Tammy thanked negotiators, legal counsel and administrative staff and closed the session.