Borrowers who have defaulted on their federal student loans will no longer be at risk of having their Social Security benefits garnished, an Education Department spokesperson said Tuesday. The government last month restarted collections for the millions of people in default on their loans.

June 3 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Education paused a plan to garnish Social Security checks to repay defaulted student loans.

The Department of Education is pausing the plan to garnish the Social Security benefits of those in default on their student loans, a White House spokesperson confirmed to Axios Tuesday. Why it matters: It's a welcome bit of relief for older Americans who are in the awful position of still owing money for school loans and already receiving Social Security benefits.