Ending Administrative Garnishment Act of 2025
The Ending Administrative Garnishment Act of 2025 would pause the Department of Education’s authority to garnish the disposable pay of defaulted federal student loan borrowers and require a formal certification before any garnishment resumes. Specifically, starting from enactment, wage garnishment under the Higher Education Act would be suspended until the Secretary of Education submits a certification to Congress showing either (A) a new process is in place that (i) refunds improper garnishments within one week, (ii) allows the Secretary to suspend the program at any time, and (iii) requires quarterly verification from employers about accurate wage-withholding data, or (B) that garnishment cannot be implemented. If the Secretary demonstrates option A, a centralized database would be created to track affected individuals and ongoing garnishments, with regular reporting to Congress. The bill also adds liability and remedies for improper garnishments, requires prompt repayment to borrowers, prohibits garnishment for loans older than 10 years, and provides avenues for injunctions to enforce these provisions. In short, the bill would halt wage garnishment for student loans, impose new safeguards and data reporting requirements if garnishment resumes, strengthen protections for borrowers harmed by improper garnishment, and place new limits on when garnishment can occur.
Key Points
- 1Suspension of authority: The Secretary’s ability to garnish disposable pay under the Higher Education Act is suspended at enactment and remains suspended until Congress receives a certification describing the safeguards and processes described below.
- 2Certification options:
- 3- Option A (preferred): The Secretary has implemented a process that refunds improper garnishments within one week, allows independent suspension of the program, and requires quarterly employer verifications of wage-withholding data.
- 4- Option B: The Secretary cannot implement the process and garnishment would not apply to individuals as authorized.
- 5Centralized data collection and reporting: If Option A is certified, the Secretary must establish a centralized database with pre-enactment and current garnishment data for affected individuals and issue a progress/impact report within 90 days of establishing the database and annually thereafter.
- 6Liability and remedies for employers: Employers can be sued for improper wage withholding, with damages including actual damages, attorneys’ fees, costs, and potential punitive damages.
- 7Remedies for improper garnishment: The Secretary must pay borrowers twice the amount garnished within 10 days of discovering improper garnishment, with potential injunctions available to enforce this.
- 8Limits on use: Garnishment under this section cannot apply to loans that have been outstanding for more than 10 years.