The court’s right leaning judges were hostile in arguments on the President’s action* that involves Humndreds of Millions of dollars and millions of American student/parents borrowers….
Republican lawmakers (and few Democrat’s) in Congress tend to turn thumbs down on debt relief for anybody except the rich and corate America….
Biden & Co. will heve to figure out something to geta round the ruling which COULD upset the countries economy…
Biden contended his administration had the authority to forgive student loan debt under the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003. The law allows the education secretary to waive or modify loan provisions in response to a national emergency, such as the coronavirus pandemic.
But the challenge brought together controversial issues: an ambitious program aimed at fulfilling a campaign promise for Biden’s political base; heightened suspicion by the Supreme Court’s conservative supermajority about the ability of federal agencies to act without specific congressional authorization; and the power of Republican-led states to use the judiciary to stop a president’s priorities before they take effect.
Biden and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona proposed a plan that would eliminate up to $10,000 of student debt for borrowers earning up to $125,000 annually, or up to $250,000 for married couples. Those who received Pell Grants, a form of financial aid for low- and middle-income students, would be eligible for an additional $10,000 in forgiveness. About 20 million borrowers could see their balances wiped clean…
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…the court has rejected the administration’s expansive arguments in the past. The court lifted a pandemic-era moratorium on rental evictions put in place by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It threw out a coronavirus vaccination-or-testing mandate imposed on large businesses by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. And in a ruling unrelated to the pandemic, it cited the “major questions” doctrine to limit the Environmental Protection Agency’s optionsfor combating climate change…
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The legal battles have left millions of student loan borrowers in limbo. More than half of eligible people had applied for the forgiveness program before it was halted by the courts, with the Education Department approving some 16 million applications.
Biden’s debt relief program has been a divisive issue on Capitol Hill. On June 7, Biden vetoed a Republican-led resolution to strike down the controversial program and restart loan payments for tens of millions of borrowers. The measure passed the Senate with the backing of Sens. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.). Despite Biden’s veto, the resolution shows the likely difficulty of getting any future debt relief plan through Congress….
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In March 2020, President Donald J. Trump declared that the coronavirus pandemic was a national emergency, and his administration invoked the HEROES Act to pause student loan repayment requirements and to suspend the accrual of interest.
The Biden administration followed suit. The payment pause has cost the government more than $100 billion, according to the Government Accountability Office.
In August, the administration said it planned to switch gears, ending the repayment pause but forgiving $10,000 in debt for individuals earning less than $125,000 per year, or $250,000 per household, and $20,000 for those who received Pell grants for low-income families.
Nearly 26 million borrowers have applied to have some of their student loan debt erased. While the government has approved 16 million applications, no debt has been canceled yet. The Education Department, which owns and manages the government’s $1.5 trillion student debt portfolio, has stopped accepting applications in light of the legal challenges….
*Actually?
Biden did NOT wanted to do and resisted the student loan forgiveness policy move that he finally DID do under YUGE pressure from Democrats and Progressives…..
Note…
What does the Biden admin do about hundreds of Milliuons REFUNDED to people?
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
@AOC
It is very important to note this SCOTUS ruling does NOT remove Biden’s ability to pursue student loan forgiveness.
The Biden Admin can use the HEA (Higher Ed Act) – our position from the start – to continue loan forgiveness before payments resume. They should do so ASAP.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
@AOC
Just last year, DOE forgave $6 BILLION for defrauded students. Trump completely wiped out debt for disabled veterans. Neither program was challenged nor overturned.
We still have the power to cancel and must use it, or we’re looking at an economic crisis for millions of people.
Remember
There are thousands of REPUBLICANS holding Student Loans…..