Older student-loan borrowers are at risk of losing a chunk of their Social Security. There's a new bill to prevent that.
Sen.
Bernie Sanders is pushing to prevent Social Security garnishment for older student-loan borrowers.
Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images Sen.
Bernie Sanders is introducing legislation to stop Social Security garnishment for defaulted student-loan borrowers.
The Education Department has paused garnishments and has not specified when the pause will lift.
Defaults are at a record high, and more borrowers are expected to fall behind due to the elimination of SAVE.
Student-loan borrowers could lose their Social Security checks if they fall behind on their loan payments.
Democratic lawmakers want to put an end to that practice.
On Monday, Sens.
Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Ed Markey introduced a bill to prevent older student-loan borrowers and borrowers with disabilities from facing Social Security garnishment if they default on their payments.
A fact sheet of the legislation reviewed by Business Insider said that the bill would prohibit the Treasury from seizing Social Security payments, including Social Security Disability Insurance, and protect those borrowers from "unnecessary forced collections." Sanders said in a statement that "in the richest country in the history of the world, no senior should have their Social Security payments taken away from them to pay back student debt." "This is especially true when seniors throughout the country already cannot afford the skyrocketing price of healthcare, prescription drugs, groceries and housing," Sanders said.
"Congress must pass this legislation." The legislation comes as student-loan defaults are at a record high.
Over 9 million borrowers were in default as of March, according to the latest Education Department data, which happens when a borrower has missed payments for 270 days.
The New York Federal Reserve's latest household debt report showed that student-loan delinquencies stood at 10.6% in the second quarter of 2026 — up from 10.3% in the first quarter.
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