Supreme Court Rejects Biden's Student Loan Forgiveness Plan
Landmark Ruling Invalidates Biden's Plan to Cancel Federal Student Debt
June 30, 2023 at 8:00 AM EDT
In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court on Friday struck down President Biden's plan to cancel up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt. The ruling represents a major setback for the Biden administration's efforts to tackle the nation's $1.7 trillion student loan crisis.
The court's decision, delivered in a 6-3 vote, found that the Biden administration lacked the authority to implement the student loan forgiveness plan without congressional approval. The ruling overturned a lower court's decision that had upheld the plan.
The Biden administration had argued that the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003 (HEROES Act) gave it the authority to cancel student debt during national emergencies. However, the Supreme Court ruled that the HEROES Act was intended to provide limited relief in specific situations, such as military operations, and did not authorize the broad-scale forgiveness of student debt.
The ruling is expected to have a significant impact on the lives of millions of Americans who hold federal student loans. The Biden administration had estimated that its plan would provide relief to up to 43 million borrowers, canceling all of their debt for more than 20 million borrowers.
Critics of the plan argued that it was unfair to taxpayers who have already paid off their student loans or who do not have a college degree. They also raised concerns about the potential cost of the plan, which was estimated to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars.
The Supreme Court's ruling is likely to reignite the debate over student loan forgiveness in Congress. Some lawmakers have called for legislation to forgive all or some student debt, while others have opposed any such measures.
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