White House says student loan forgiveness plan will cost $24 billion a year

A U.S. plan to forgive $10,000 in student loans for millions of debt-saddled former college students announced this week will cost $24 billion a year assuming that three quarters of those eligible take up the offer, the White House said.

"Assuming that 75% of folks take us on on the President's student loan cancellation plan, and you look at the average cash flow on that, it's going to be about $24 billion per year," White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre told CNN on Thursday.