H.R. 8475 · 119th Congress
Savings Opportunity and Affordable Repayment Act
Key: what the circles and colors mean
Each circle is a bill. The ring fills as it moves through Congress:
Under the number: the Yea · Nay count of its final (or latest) recorded vote. On a member's page, the small badge is how that member voted: Y Yea / Aye, N Nay / No, P Present, – Not voting.
Gold and violet are only for Yea and Nay; they never mean a party. A member's party is the letter on their photo.
Not yet voted on. This bill is still a proposal: it hasn't reached a floor vote, and its text can change in committee or on the floor before any vote.
D
DeLauroSponsor11 cosponsors · 11 D
D
Casar
PJ
D
Jayapal
EN
D
Norton
CP
D
Pingree
LS
D
Simon
ST
D
Thanedar
EV
D
Vindman
AC
D
Craig
DG
D
Goldman
AGD
Grijalva
SB
D
Bonamici7 signed on when it was introduced; the rest joined later. Cosponsors who withdrew aren't shown.
This bill creates a new income-driven repayment plan for student loans called the Savings Opportunity and Affordable Repayment (SOAR) plan. The SOAR plan has similar provisions to, but further expands on, the Department of Education's (ED's) final rule published on July 10, 2023, that created the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan.
What it does: CRS summary · Introduced in House · Apr 23, 2026
Savings Opportunity and Affordable Repayment Act
This bill creates a new income-driven repayment plan for student loans called the Savings Opportunity and Affordable Repayment (SOAR) plan. The SOAR plan has similar provisions to, but further expands on, the Department of Education's (ED's) final rule published on July 10, 2023, that created the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan. The SAVE plan was blocked by federal courts.
The bill directs ED to carry out a SOAR plan program that complies with specified requirements. The bill allows all federal student loan types to be eligible for repayment under the SOAR plan, including Parent PLUS Loans and Federal Family Education Loans.
Under the SOAR plan, a federal student loan borrower whose income is at or below 250% of the federal poverty level (FPL) has $0 monthly payments. A borrower whose income is over 250% of the FPL pays 5% of their discretionary income on loans obtained for undergraduate study and 10% of their discretionary income for all other outstanding loans (e.g., loans obtained for graduate study).
Additionally, under the SOAR plan, holders of eligible federal student loans (e.g., ED or private lenders) must apply 50% of the borrower's monthly payment toward outstanding principal. The other 50% must be applied in the following order: (1) accrued charges and collection costs on the loan, (2) outstanding interest, and (3) outstanding principal.
ED must forgive any loan balance that remains outstanding after a specified maximum repayment period (e.g., 10 years or 15 years).
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov
About this bill and sources
Official title: Savings Opportunity and Affordable Repayment Act
Latest action (Apr 23, 2026): Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
Policy area: Education · Origin: House · Introduced: Apr 23, 2026
Official page on Congress.gov · Bill text (GovInfo) · Status record (XML)
No recorded floor vote found.