Biden cancels student loan debt for another 74K borrowers

WASHINGTON - The Biden administration began canceling student loans for some borrowers, the White House announced Friday.

"Today, my Administration approved debt cancellation for another 74,000 student loan borrowers across the country, bringing the total number of people who have gotten their debt cancelled under my Administration to over 3.7 million Americans through various actions," President Joe Biden said in a statement on Jan. 19.

Of the 74,000 borrowers approved for relief Friday, the administration said nearly 44,000 of them are teachers, nurses, firefighters and other individuals who earned forgiveness after 10 years of public service. The other 30,000 individuals have been in repayment for at least 20 years. 

"My Administration is able to deliver relief to these borrowers – and millions more – because of fixes we made to broken student loan programs that were preventing borrowers from getting relief they were entitled to under the law," Biden continued.

Student loan borrowers gather near The White House to tell President Biden to cancel student debt on May 12, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Credit: Paul Morigi/Getty Images for We, The 45 Million)

The latest round of student debt cancelation brings the total amount canceled under Biden to $136.6 billion, according to the Department of Education. 

RELATED: Got student loan debt? Here’s how to get up to $2500 tax deduction

Friday's announcement follows action taken by Biden last week for student loan borrowers enrolled in the Savings on Valuable Education (SAVE) plan. Borrowers enrolled in SAVE who took out less than $12,000 in loans and have been in repayment for 10 years will have their remaining debts zeroed out next month. 

This story was reported from Los Angeles. FOX Business contributed.