On July 1, 2025, Florida Senator Ashley Moody voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which passed 50-50 with the Vice President's vote and ended federal Grad PLUS loans for new borrowers, capped Parent PLUS loans and replaced income-driven repayment with a new Repayment Assistance Plan starting July 1, 2026. On June 24, 2026, she voted against taking up a resolution to overturn the Education Department rule that carries out the new loan limits (roll call 190).
Before she joined the Senate, as Florida attorney general, Moody put Florida among the seven states in the lawsuit, filed in April by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey and six other GOP attorneys general in 2024, to end the SAVE repayment plan. The courts blocked the plan in 2024 and vacated its rule in March 2026. The Center for American Progress estimates that Florida borrowers moved from SAVE to the new plan Moody voted for will pay $1,559 a year more on average.
Ashley Moody's Votes and Lawsuit on Student Loans and College Costs
- Moody Cast a Deciding Vote to End Grad PLUS Loans and Raise Payments for Low-Income Borrowers in July 2025. On July 1, 2025, Ashley Moody voted yes on H.R. 1, which passed 50-50 with the Vice President's vote, so it would have failed without hers. Since July 1, 2026, a graduate or professional student shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Direct PLUS Loan; graduate students may borrow $20,500 a year, and parents $20,000 a year per student. The new Repayment Assistance Plan will require payments from even those earning far below the poverty level and extends the maximum repayment term from the current 10-25 years to 30 years, the Institute for College Access and Success found. A single borrower earning $35,000 would have had $0 payments under the SAVE plan but will owe $88 per month under the new plan, according to the Center for American Progress. Starting with loans made July 1, 2027, borrowers who lose their jobs shall not be eligible to defer such loan for unemployment or economic hardship.
- As Attorney General, Moody Joined the Lawsuit That Ended the SAVE Repayment Plan. As Florida attorney general, Ashley Moody joined Missouri's suit against the SAVE plan: the lawsuit, filed in April by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey and six other GOP attorneys general in 2024, listed as co-plaintiffs Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, North Dakota, Ohio and Oklahoma, the Missouri Independent reported on October 24, 2024. After the Eighth Circuit blocked the plan in August 2024, the 8 million borrowers enrolled in the SAVE plan will be placed in an interest-free forbearance that did not count toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness, NASFAA reported. On March 10, 2026, the federal court ordered the SAVE rule VACATED in full except one provision, and the Education Department notified 7.5 million student loan borrowers enrolled in the SAVE repayment plan that it would phase out; SAVE participants will have 90 days to enroll in a new, less generous income-based repayment plan or be placed in the standard plan.
- Moody Voted to Keep the Education Department's Rule Carrying Out the Loan Caps in June 2026. On June 24, 2026, Moody voted no on taking up S.J.Res. 196, a resolution to overturn the Education Department rule establishing new loan limits for graduate students, professional students, and parents and the new repayment plan. It failed 45-52. The Center for American Progress found the graduate limits will create financing gaps for 13 percent of master’s degree borrowers and 46 percent of professional degree borrowers, forcing many borrowers to turn to more expensive private loans. The rule took effect July 1, 2026, and although a federal judge has paused the part that left nursing and some other health programs out of the higher "professional" limit, her ruling does not stop loan caps from going into effect.
- Moody Voted to Confirm Linda McMahon, Whose Department Restarted Collections on Defaulted Loans. On March 3, 2025, Moody voted to confirm Linda McMahon as Secretary of Education, and on August 1, 2025 she voted to confirm Nicholas Kent as Under Secretary in charge of student aid. In 2025 the department said it would resume collecting payments from federal student loan borrowers in default for the first time since 2020, and nearly 2 million federal student loan borrowers who applied for an income-based plan were stuck in a backlog. There are more than 9 million student loan borrowers currently in default, Hechinger reported.
What the Student Loan Changes Ashley Moody Voted For and Sued For Mean for Borrowers in Florida
- Higher payments. The Center for American Progress estimates that Florida borrowers moved from the SAVE plan to the new Repayment Assistance Plan will pay $1,559 a year more on average; by schooling, the average increase is $1,301 for borrowers with some college, $1,796 with a bachelor's degree and $1,708 with a graduate degree. These are averages for borrowers leaving SAVE, not for every borrower in Florida.
- Parents. Florida parents who borrow for a child's college after July 1, 2026 lose the income-based option: Parent PLUS loans that originated on or after July 1, 2026, will no longer be eligible for the ICR pathway, and new Parent PLUS borrowing is capped at $20,000 a year per student.
Frequently Asked Questions About Ashley Moody on Student debt
What is Ashley Moody's record on student debt under Trump?
Ashley Moody cast one of the 50 votes that passed the 2025 law ending Grad PLUS loans, capping Parent PLUS loans and moving borrowers to a repayment plan that requires payments even from borrowers far below the poverty level. In June 2026 she voted to keep the Education Department rule carrying out the caps. As Florida attorney general she joined the 2024 lawsuit that ended the SAVE plan, and as a senator she voted to confirm Linda McMahon, whose department restarted collections on defaulted loans.
Did Ashley Moody sue to block the SAVE student loan plan?
Yes. As Florida attorney general in 2024, Ashley Moody made Florida one of the seven states in the lawsuit led by Missouri. After the Trump administration took office, the Justice Department and the states jointly asked for a final judgment, which the court entered after the Eighth Circuit's March 9, 2026 judgment, ending the plan for the borrowers still enrolled in it.
Did Ashley Moody vote to end Grad PLUS loans?
Yes. Ashley Moody voted for the 2025 law that ended Grad PLUS loans for new borrowers starting July 1, 2026. The new caps leave 13 percent of master’s degree borrowers and 46 percent of professional degree borrowers with financing gaps, the Center for American Progress found, so many of these borrowers must turn to more expensive private loans.
Will student loan payments go up under the new repayment plan Ashley Moody voted for?
For many borrowers, yes: the plan Ashley Moody voted for will require payments from even those earning far below the poverty level, and a borrower earning $35,000 who paid nothing under SAVE will owe $88 per month, the Center for American Progress found. Borrowers whose loans are made after July 1, 2027 also lose the right to pause payments for unemployment or economic hardship under the law's text.
Last updated: 2026-10-25