Ten Senate Democrats led by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) sent a letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon on April 21 demanding the Department extend the 90-day window for more than 7 million borrowers being forced off the Savings on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan.

The Department of Education has started contacting student loan borrowers with a “friendly” reminder that the SAVE plan forbearance is ending and borrowers need to choose a new repayment plan. However, starting July 1, borrowers will receive a strict 90-day warning to choose a new repayment plan or default into the standard plan.

Borrowers who don’t make a choice will still see payments resume this fall. And if they miss payments, they’ll become delinquent and potentially end up in default.

Why it matters: After the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit directed the lower court to vacate SAVE, the Department of Education set a hard transition deadline. Borrowers who fail to pick a new plan within 90 days of receiving a notice from their loan servicer will be auto-enrolled in either the Standard Repayment Plan or the new Tiered Standard Plan.

By the numbers: The standard repayment plan is typically the most expensive repayment plan. A student loan borrower with no kids, $30,000 in loans, and making $60,000 per year would see the following payments:

• RAP Plan: $250/month
• IBR Plan: $312/month
• Tiered Standard Plan: $266/month
• Standard Repayment Plan: $345/month

That’s a potential jump of $95 per month for borrowers who miss the window.

What they’re saying: “We are extremely concerned that the Department’s decision to force SAVE borrowers who do not take action in time into the Standard Plan or the new Tiered Standard Plan will result in substantially higher, and consequently unaffordable, payments,” the senators wrote.

The timeline also conflicts with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), which gave borrowers in other IDR plans until June 30, 2028 (three years) to transition.

Between the lines: The letter argues the Department is steering borrowers toward the new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) and Tiered Standard Plan rather than older income-driven options such as PAYE, ICR, and IBR, which may be cheaper for some borrowers. The senators also flagged a backlog of 553,966 unprocessed IDR applications as of March 31, 2026.

What’s next: The senators set an April 28 deadline for the Department to respond to 11 questions, including how borrowers with 10+ years of repayment history will be handled and what authority allows existing borrowers to be placed in the Tiered Standard Plan.

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