The "Strengthening Efforts for Relief and Vital Incentives for Community Service and Engagement Act," or SERVICE Act, seeks to substantially reform and enhance the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. A core provision reduces the number of qualifying monthly payments required for loan cancellation from 120 to 96. This change aims to accelerate loan forgiveness for public service workers, making the program more accessible and effective. The bill broadens the definition of a qualifying monthly payment to include specific periods of deferment and forbearance, such as those for cancer treatment, military service, or economic hardship, which previously did not count. It also introduces a buyback payment process , allowing eligible borrowers to pay for past months of public service employment that did not count as qualifying payments. Furthermore, the legislation clarifies that borrowers do not need to be employed in a public service job at the time of cancellation and prevents retroactive rejections of previously qualified payments. To improve transparency and borrower experience, the bill mandates the creation of an online portal for borrowers to track their progress, understand loan eligibility, and submit forms electronically. It also requires the establishment of a publicly accessible database of public service jobs . The bill redefines "full-time" employment for PSLF purposes and explicitly includes independent contractors working in public service jobs, expanding eligibility. It also streamlines the loan cancellation and reconsideration process, providing clear notifications and a 90-day forbearance period during reconsideration. Other key amendments include preventing the capitalization of interest on loans during periods of deferment or forbearance, applying this change retroactively. For borrowers who consolidate their loans, the bill introduces a weighted average of prior payments to determine qualifying months for consolidation loans. Finally, it removes certain limitations on teacher loan forgiveness and directs the Comptroller General to study the feasibility of data matching agreements to simplify employment certification for PSLF.