Supreme Court To Hear Challenges To Biden Student Loan Debt Plan In February

The Supreme Court will hear two challenges to President Joe Biden‘s plan to forgive the student loan debt of millions of borrowers across the country.

The Washington Examiner reports the justices will hear the two challenges on Feb. 28.

In the first challenge to the plan, Biden v. Nebraska, six Republican-led states (Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, and South Carolina) argue Biden’s plan violates the separation of powers and the Administrative Procedure Act. The second challenge, Department of Education v. Brown, involves two plaintiffs claiming the Department of Education failed to offer public comments on the plan.

Biden’s student loan debt plan will forgive $10,000 in student loan debt for those making less than $125,000 annually or households with less than $250,000 in income. Additionally, Pell Grant recipients would receive an additional $10,000 in forgiveness. According to Forbes, 60% of Black college students and half of Latino and Native American students have a Pell Grant.

Biden’s plan has been on hold since October as it worked its way through the courts and the Supreme Court left the plan blocked until it hears the case in February. In response, the president has again extended the pause on student loan payments through next summer.

“It isn’t fair to ask tens of millions of borrowers eligible for relief to resume their student debt payments while the courts consider the lawsuits. For that reason, the Secretary of Education is extending the pause on student loan payments while we seek relief from the court,” Biden said, according to ABC News.

About 26 million of the 40 million borrowers the Biden administration says are eligible for student loan forgiveness have requested it. According to Sound Dollar, student loan debt is currently the second-highest debt Americans carry, valued at $1.59 trillion.

The initial pause on student loan payments occurred in March 2020 during the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic. CNN reports the latest extension of the student loan pause is the eighth since the payments were stopped.

Since the pandemic, college enrolment has declined for three straight years, which has led some schools to cut their tuition rates in half.