"Cash for clunkers" receives additional funding
The Car Allowance Rebate System (popularly known as "cash for clunkers") was almost a victim of its own success. The program, which provides $3,500 or $4,500 vouchers that can be used toward the purchase or lease of a fuel-efficient new vehicle when an old "gas guzzler" is traded in, burned through its initial $1 billion funding well short of its projected expiration of November 1, 2009. On Friday, President Obama signed legislation that provides an additional $2 billion in funding for the program, an amount estimated to be enough to sustain current activity levels through the end of August.
The IRS also issued an alert advising dealerships that funds received under the program are includible in their gross income. For up-to-date information on the Car Allowance Rebate System, see www.cars.gov.
On July 1, the federal government's new Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan for federal student loans went into effect. Under this program, a borrower's monthly student loan payments will be based on his or her income and family size. More specifically, annual loan payments will be 15% of the difference between a borrower's gross income and 150% of the federal poverty level (the latter depends on family size and state of residence). Monthly payments are then calculated as one-twelfth of that amount. After 25 years of qualifying payments, the principal loan balance may be forgiven.