Federal Judge halts Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan

By Stacy M. Brown
Contributing Writer

(NNPA Newswire) — President Joe Biden’s ongoing efforts to alleviate the burden of student loan debt have hit another significant obstacle. U.S. District Judge John A. Ross, an Obama nominee, issued an order halting further loan forgiveness under the Biden administration’s income-driven repayment plan known as SAVE. This decision is a component of a more significant legal conflict that several Republican-led states started.

Judge Ross stated that the administration is “preliminarily enjoined from any further loan forgiveness for borrowers under the Final Rule’s SAVE plan until such time as this Court can decide the case on the merits.” The ruling is a major setback for Biden, whose administration launched the SAVE plan after the Supreme Court quashed a more comprehensive debt relief initiative last year. That plan had aimed to eliminate up to $20,000 in federal student debt for approximately 43 million borrowers.

The judge rejected the administration’s motion to dismiss the case, affirming that the states involved had standing and “are likely to succeed on the merits of their argument that the early loan forgiveness provisions… were promulgated in a manner exceeding the Secretary’s statutory authority.”

The Biden administration, undeterred, quickly responded. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre vehemently disagreed with the ruling, asserting that the Department of Justice would continue to vigorously defend the SAVE Plan. “Since day one, the President and his Administration have fought to fix a broken student loan system and make sure borrowers aren’t saddled with unmanageable student loan debt,” she emphasized.

Jean-Pierre pointed out the SAVE Plan’s immediate benefits: lower monthly payments for eight million Americans and accelerated debt cancellation for hundreds of thousands of borrowers. She criticized Republican officials and their allies for obstructing these efforts, accusing them of fighting to prevent their constituents from accessing much-needed financial relief.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, representing one of the states that filed the lawsuit, celebrated the ruling. “By attempting to saddle working Missourians with Ivy League debt, Joe Biden is undermining our constitutional structure,” Bailey declared. “Only Congress has the power of the purse, not the president. Today’s ruling was a huge win for the rule of law and for every American who Joe Biden was about to force to pay off someone else’s debt.”

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin echoed this sentiment: “With Independence Day fast approaching, another court has reminded President Biden that he is not a king. He can’t go around Congress and unilaterally cancel student loans. He should have learned that from Schoolhouse Rock!”

According to the lawsuit, which Florida, Georgia, North Dakota, Ohio, and Oklahoma have joined, the SAVE Plan allegedly violates the Constitution’s guarantee of the separation of powers. Despite the ruling, Judge Ross noted that other beneficial aspects of the program, such as lowering monthly payments and limiting interest accrual, could continue, acknowledging that the states had not demonstrated harm from these provisions.

Adding to the administration’s challenges, U.S. District Judge Daniel D. Crabtree issued a separate ruling blocking parts of the SAVE Plan set to take effect on July 1. Crabtree found that while the states had not shown irreparable harm from provisions already in effect, they had demonstrated potential harm from the forthcoming provisions.

The Biden administration has made significant strides in debt relief, forgiving substantial amounts under the SAVE Plan. Last month, officials announced $613 million in debt cancellation for over 54,000 borrowers, part of a broader effort that has resulted in $167 billion in loan forgiveness for 4.75 million people through various administrative actions.

Despite legal setbacks, the Biden administration remains resolute. “Today’s rulings won’t stop our Administration from using every tool available to give students and borrowers the relief they need,” Jean-Pierre affirmed. “President Biden and his administration will continue to build off of the progress made in delivering debt cancellation to over 4.75 million Americans through various actions, and we will never stop fighting for students and borrowers, no matter how many roadblocks Republican elected officials and special interests put in our way.”

This article originally published in the July 1, 2024 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.