The Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act (ECASLA) successfully prevented any disruption in student loan access, but now it is making it more difficult for some borrowers to keep track of their loans. This is because a student with pre-ECASLA and post-ECASLA loans has to repay each loan separately, even if both loans have the same loan servicer.

If this same student's school switches to the Direct Loan program and the student is disbursed a Direct Loan, this student will have to make three separate payments. Even if all three loans are serviced by the same loan servicer, the student will have to make three separate payments unless he or she consolidates the loans.

NASFAA has been working with the Department of Education to find a solution to this issue, but the Department has indicated that a solution is unlikely because pre-ECASLA loans, post-ECASLA loans (Put Loans), and Direct Loans are all made under separate loan programs.

Currently, loan consolidation is the only way for students with some combination of pre-ECASLA, post-ECASLA and Direct Loans to have one loan payment. NASFAA has also been advocating for a reinstatement of in-school consolidation so schools can counsel their students to consolidate before they leave school and are harder to contact and counsel. This makes proper exit counseling more important for borrowers. Schools can help borrowers understand where their loans are serviced so they can make proper payments on all of their loans.

NASFAA Vice President of Public Policy and Advocacy Justin Draeger discussed this issue on March 1 at NASFAA's annual Leadership Conference in Washington, DC.

Posted 03/11/10 to www.NASFAA.org. Redistribution to non-NASFAA institutions is prohibited. Please submit Web site questions or comments to Web@NASFAA.org.