CULVER CITY, Calif. (AP) President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that his administration was automatically canceling federal student loans for nearly 153,000 borrowers, putting the spotlight on his debt cancellation efforts as he ramps up his reelection campaign.

Biden, who is in the midst of a three-day campaign swing through California , made the announcement as part of a new repayment plan that offers a faster path to forgiveness.

The president was expected to speak about his administrations student loan relief efforts from a local library before he went on to campaign-related events Wednesday.

The administration began sending email notifications on Wednesday to some of the borrowers who will benefit from what the White House has called the SAVE program. The cancellations were originally scheduled to start in July, but last month the administration said it would be ready almost six months ahead of schedule, in February.

Starting today, the first round of folks who are enrolled in our SAVE student loan repayment plan who have paid their loans for 10 years and borrowed $12,000 or less will have their debt cancelled, Biden posted on social media Wednesday. Thats 150,000 Americans and counting. And were pushing to relieve more.

The first round of forgiveness from the SAVE plan will clear $1.2 billion in loans. The borrowers will get emails with a message from Biden notifying them that all or a portion of your federal student loans will be forgiven because you qualify for early loan forgiveness under my Administrations SAVE Plan.

The president is expected to highlight the SAVE plan during a speech in Culver City, California, before heading to San Francisco later Wednesday for more campaign fundraising.

Biden in the email writes he has heard from countless people who have told me that relieving the burden of their student loan debt will allow them to support themselves and their families, buy their first home, start a small business, and move forward with life plans theyve put on hold.