The Education Department had announced loan forgiveness for more than 21,200 borrowers.

According to new court filings, the loan forgiveness comes under income-driven repayment plans.

However, this relief is short-lived as sweeping changes to the student loan system take effect.

March discharges will consist of 800 PAYE borrowers, 9,900 ICR borrowers, and 10,500 IBR borrowers. All income-driven discharges except those under the SAVE plan are being processed. The SAVE program will be discontinued as soon as possible.

But borrowers who get forgiveness in 2026 have to face new changes.

Student loan discharge is now taxable again. As the American Rescue Plan Act’s tax exemption expired on December 31, 2025, Congress declined to extend it.

This means no matter whether the portion of the loan is forgiven or cancelled, the IRS still treats that forgiven amount as taxable income.

Authorities decide to exempt those who met their repayment milestone before January 1, 2026.

As per new changes, the SAVE plan is ending, and borrowers who were enrolled in it have a deadline till July to switch to another plan.

Those who will fail to switch will automatically be placed into a Standard plan.

From July onwards, the new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) will come into effect, allowing for lower payments each month, as well as interest subsidies. However, the borrower has to make payments for at least 30 years before getting any forgiveness, which is more than double the 20 or 25 years currently required by the existing programs.

Students who have taken out a loan from July onwards are no longer eligible for PAYE, ICR, and IBR programs. Instead, their only choice would be RAP.

The scenario is not very different for the estimated 2 million students who are about to graduate this spring. The grace period remains the same at six months.

King Charles is celebrated for his environmental advocacy and decades of public service, but behind palace doors, a far more traditional lifestyle is said to unfold.

According to royal author Tina Brown in her book The Palace Papers, the King has long drawn comparisons to his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.

Brown suggests that Charles didn’t just admire her style, he embraced it. 

From maintaining multiple residences to upholding a distinctly old-world approach to household management, insiders have described a lifestyle that leans into tradition with precision.

The King is believed to favour bespoke tailoring on a significant scale, with dozens of handmade suits, carefully crafted shirts, and a substantial collection of shoes from historic British makers. 

Footwear, in particular, is said to be maintained with near-military discipline, reflecting a longstanding royal emphasis on presentation.

Inside royal residences, the same level of care is said to apply. 

Past accounts describe highly specific expectations for staff from the exact placement of everyday items to the readiness of rooms at any given moment. 

Some of these traditions echo habits once associated with the Queen Mother herself, who was known for her exacting standards, from how fireplaces were prepared to how rooms were arranged before bedtime.

During earlier years, when Queen Camilla still smoked, staff were said to prepare rooms in advance with neatly arranged accessories, ensuring everything was positioned just so.

Emily Saliers, one-half of the Atlanta folk duo the Indigo Girls, has revealed that she has been diagnosed with two incurable movement disorders that will forever change the way that she sings.

Saliers and Amy Ray posted a video on Instagram on Friday in which the singer acknowledged that many of her fans have noticed “that my voice is not what it once was.”

Saliers revealed that he had been diagnosed with cervical dystonia with torticollis, a rare neurological disorder in which the brain sends signals that cause involuntary muscle contractions in the neck.

“It’s impossible for me to hold my head centrally without shaking,” she said.

The other disorder, described by Saliers as harder for her, is an essential tremor, which she says causes involuntary shakes and movements in her jaw, throat, and diaphragm. Because of the condition, Saliers says she now has a vibrato in her singing, which she calls “horrible.”

“I am completely physically unable to hold a straight tone the way I used to, and this is what you, our community, have come to, I think, appreciate and love about our harmonies is the way we can hold long straight tones together,” she said.

Saliers said that she was doing everything she could to mitigate the disorders, including therapeutic massage, physical therapy, acupuncture, and Botox shots in her neck and shoulders. She is also working with a vocal coach who specializes in the type of disorders.

“Unfortunately, there is no cure for these, so the honest fact is that my voice will not be what it was,” Saliers said. “That’s really hard for me.”

The announcement comes as the band is set to begin a months-long tour, which includes a free concert in Decatur, Georgia as part of the FIFA 2026 World Cup events.

The pair said that they will be doing “everything we can” to make the songs sound as good as they possibly can, including adding other singers and using digital tools.

The announcement was met with a large number of comments from fans and other artists, including Brandi Carlile, Sara Bareilles, and Chely Wright, supporting Saliers and Ray.