Student loan forgiveness

Some 26 million of 40 million eligible borrowers have applied for relief. Federal loan payments are due to resume two months after the court's ruling. The legal ...

The opponents of student loan cancellation say the HEROES Act was never intended to empower such a sweeping program. Originally passed by Congress in 2003 to benefit military servicemembers with student loans, it was made permanent in 2007 and gives the Secretary of Education broad powers in the event of a national emergency.7 Biden’s lawyers contend that MOHELA is a separate legal entity from the state and that if it wanted to kill the loan program, it could sue on its own behalf—but it didn’t. The doctrine holds that “administrative agencies must be able to point to ‘clear congressional authorization’ when they claim the power to make decisions of vast ‘economic and political significance.’9 The Biden administration is making a two-pronged argument to defend the program, people familiar with the administration’s legal strategy said. They also argue that the forgiveness program will deprive the states of income tax revenue they would otherwise collect on student loan balances being discharged. The states contend that they were harmed in several ways by the loan forgiveness program. In November, a higher court temporarily blocked Biden’s student loan program while the states appealed the case of Biden vs. [Myra Brown and Alexander Taylor](https://www.investopedia.com/here-are-the-players-in-the-supreme-court-student-loan-case-7113321), backed by a conservative activist group, sued the Department of Education arguing that the process for determining who got debt forgiveness and who didn’t was unfair and broke the law.3 A federal judge sided with the students in Department of Education vs. Most were dismissed somewhere in the court system, but two were successful, resulting in federal judges blocking forgiveness. Lawyers for both sides have laid out the battle lines in legal briefs. If Biden loses, [borrowers will have to adjust their budgets](https://www.investopedia.com/what-if-supreme-court-blocks-student-loan-forgiveness-7112773) to fit in monthly payments they haven’t made for almost three years.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments this week on President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness plan. The decision will affect tens of millions of ...

[the 2008 mortgage crisis](https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/21/the-student-loan-bubble.html) and built pressure on Biden to deliver relief. Department of Education has already been able to " [fully approve](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/27/16-million-people-approved-for-contested-student-loan-forgiveness-.html)" more than 16 million people for the relief and even sent their paperwork to loan servicers. He said the conservative justices believe government agencies exert too much authority and "violate the separation of powers." [rolled out in August](https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/08/24/fact-sheet-president-biden-announces-student-loan-relief-for-borrowers-who-need-it-most/). Legal experts say forgiveness plan faces tough odds [Gregory Caldeira](https://polisci.osu.edu/people/caldeira.1), a political science professor at Ohio State University, said he wouldn't be surprised if the highest court rules against Biden. history for the kind of sweeping debt forgiveness that the White House has promised to deliver, although consumer advocates point out that large corporations and banks have been bailed out by the government after going through their own crises. The country has been operating And they say that canceling a large share of education debt is necessary to relieve the many borrowers struggling from Student loan borrowers were having problems repaying their debt before Covid. "Borrowers deserve better than to be treated like political pawns — lives and livelihoods are at stake." [Dozens of Republican members of Congress](https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-506/253935/20230203133433451_Final%20Senators%20Amicus%20Brief%20-%20Biden%20v.%20Nebraska.pdf) have also filed briefs with the U.S. They also argued that the president didn't have the power to forgive consumer debt on his own without authorization from Congress.

The Supreme Court will hear two cases Feb. 28 challenging the legality of President Biden's student loan forgiveness plan, four months after an appellate ...

An Indiana lawsuit was the first significant [legal action seeking to invalidate Biden’s policy](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/09/27/lawsuit-student-loan-forgiveness/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_11). Six Republican-led states are also [suing to overturn President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan](https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2022/09/29/republicans-student-loan-forgiveness-lawsuit/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_10). Use this calculator to see [how much of your student loan debt can be forgiven](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/interactive/2022/calculator-student-loan-debt-forgiveness/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_6). [the legality of President Biden’s debt relief plan](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/12/01/supreme-court-review-student-loan-forgiveness/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_1), after another [appeals court rejected a bid](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/11/30/student-loan-forgiveness-5th-circuit/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_2) to revive it. If the challenges prevail, supporters of debt relief worry about what could happen to borrowers when loan repayments resume. To date, Biden’s [student loan forgiveness plan is on ice](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/11/11/student-loan-forgiveness-blocked-meaning/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_3) after a Texas judge [blocked the student debt relief plan](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/11/10/student-loan-forgiveness-texas-lawsuit/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_4).

More than 25 million borrowers have already applied for the debt forgiveness, which is being stalled by two lawsuits that will come before the Court on ...

But if not, it could take months for the administration to modify the program and try canceling student debt again. Justices typically release their rulings in late June or early July. It is being backed by the Job Creators Network Foundation, a conservative advocacy organization. But his plans have been The HEROES Act, passed in the wake of 9/11, allows the education secretary to grant relief to a federal student loan program in times of national emergency so that borrowers "are not placed in a worse position financially" by the crisis, which the Biden administration argues the pandemic would do. [Joe Biden](https://www.newsweek.com/topic/joe-biden)'s student loan forgiveness program will go before the [Supreme Court](https://www.newsweek.com/topic/supreme-court) this week, deciding the fate of tens of millions of borrowers who could see up to $10,000 in debt canceled, or $20,000 canceled for Pell Grant recipients, if the justices rule in Biden's favor.

The Biden administration has said that payments will resume 60 days after litigation over the forgiveness program is resolved or at the end of August, whichever ...

Even before ruling on the merits of the cases, the justices must consider whether the suing parties have standing to bring the legal challenges. Last year, a district court found that the states did not have standing to sue. In contrast to the one-time student loan cancellation program, the new repayment plan could help The changes will make it easier for some borrowers to receive debt forgiveness. Plaintiffs in both lawsuits argue that the administration does not have the authority to cancel the student loan debt under the proposed rules of the program. Pell grants are a key federal aid program that help students from the lowest-income families pay for college. These changes are not facing legal challenges. One case was brought by six Republican-led states that say they would be harmed financially if the forgiveness program goes into effect. [argue](https://www.justice.gov/d9/2022-11/2022-08-23-heroes-act.pdf) that this provision gives the secretary of education the authority to cancel federal student loan debt so that borrowers are not made worse off with respect to their loans by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. [Pell grant](https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/25/politics/pell-grant-student-loan-forgiveness/index.html) while enrolled in college, the individual is eligible for up to $20,000 of debt forgiveness. If the Supreme Court rules that theBiden administration's student loan forgiveness program is legal and allows it to move forward -- or if the court dismisses the challenges due to a lack of "standing," or the legal right to bring the disputes in the first place -- it's possible the government willbegin issuing some debt cancellations fairly quickly. But the Biden administration argues that a 2003 law grants the executive branch the power to discharge federal student loan debt in the event of a national emergency, including the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mr Biden announced a plan last August to cancel up to $10,000 (£8,400) in federal student loans for Americans who earned less than $125,000 each year, but ...

"There are lots of people who made more than the $125,000 threshold who were put in a worse financial position because of Covid, but they're cut off. To bring a case in federal court, he said, a plaintiff must be able to demonstrate that they would suffer from concrete harm or injury because of a policy. Both cases hinge on whether challengers to the loan forgiveness plan can demonstrate they would be harmed by the programme. The law was enacted after the 11 September attacks and allows for loan cancellation for people who have suffered economic hardship because of a national emergency. "It's doomed," Jed Shugerman, a professor at Fordham Law School, told the BBC. The Supreme Court is reconvening to hear two cases related to the programme, which could determine whether more than 40 million people in the US are able to have thousands of dollars in debt cancelled.

On Tuesday, the justices will hear expedited arguments in a challenge to the Biden plan brought by six states—Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Arkansas, ...

Indeed, the six states that are challenging the Biden plan have thrown everything at the wall to make such a showing. So the states have had to be "creative in terms of figuring out how to identify an impact on them from the forgiving of student loans to other people." "This is a stunningly broad grant of authority from Congress to the secretary of education," Vladeck says. Does the 2003 law, known as the HEROES Act, give the president and his secretary of education the power to authorize federal student loan forgiveness? Passed by Congress after the 9/11 attacks, the law is meant to ensure that federal student loan borrowers will not be economically clobbered in a national emergency, or a war or disaster. A handful of Republican-dominated states will ask the Supreme Court on Tuesday to permanently block the Biden administration's student loan forgiveness program.

President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness plan would be life-changing for borrowers' finances. Two lawsuits are challenging the legality of the ...

[federal student loan payments](https://studentaid.gov/announcements-events/covid-19/payment-pause-zero-interest) were paused in March 2020. If the payment pause ended, Americans would have a few options to consider. “After all, this plan would offer the most relief (up to $20,000) for Pell Grant recipients, the majority of which (66%) come from families with incomes of $60,000 or less.” The Biden administration argues neither student can demonstrate harm. Do the parties suing the Biden administration have a basis for doing so? One would not receive forgiveness but there is no financial setback as a result. With Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan tied up in court, the administration [extended the pause](https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2022/11/22/biden-pauses-student-loan-payments-though-june/?sh=47838ff636ad) until June 2023. A key issue in both cases is standing. Pell Grant holders could receive up to $20,000 in relief. One was filed by a half-dozen, Republican-led states that claim Biden’s plan would hurt their states’ finances. [Adam Minsky](https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamminsky/?sh=992a7e97b34e) and [Robert Farrington](https://www.forbes.com/sites/robertfarrington/?sh=1e730775682b) have been following the student loan forgiveness debate in an effort to help borrowers prepare for what comes after the Supreme Court decides the future of Biden’s plan. [oral arguments](https://www.supremecourt.gov/) Tuesday on [two lawsuits](https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamminsky/2022/12/15/student-loan-forgiveness-update-heres-the-latest-supreme-court-timeline/?sh=791563df412d) challenging President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan.

The nine justices of the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in two cases challenging Biden's student loan forgiveness plan.

[Justice Thomas wrote of 'crushing weight' of student loans] [The Supreme Court won't have far to look if it wants a personal take on the "crushing weight" of student debt that underlies the Biden administration’s college loan forgiveness plan. ] [With many experts predicting President Joe ] [Biden is in for a rough argument](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/02/27/biden-student-loan-forgiveness-supreme-court/11326560002/) Tuesday over his $400 billion student loan forgiveness plan, a natural question has come up repeatedly in recent days: Is there a Plan B if the administration's effort is ultimately struck down? Acknowledging the administration is combing through federal statutes looking for some other way to authorize the program would give ammunition to the plaintiffs on the eve of the arguments. That law, the administration argues, gives the education secretary the ability to “waive” or “modify” student loans during a national emergency. The law Biden relied on gives the administration power to “waive or modify” loan provisions.] [Is what Biden did a “waiver or a modification,” Thomas pressed. Under that doctrine, courts can invalidate regulations that have a major effect on the economy, are a matter of great "political significance" and are not explicitly authorized in the law – though no one is entirely sure how to define those terms. The Supreme Court struck down the moratorium, ruling Congress couldn't have contemplated the law leading to a halt of evictions. Campbell is likely to face a series of difficult questions from the court’s liberal wing – and perhaps some of its conservatives as well – over whether the plaintiffs in the cases were actually harmed by Biden’s plan. A crowd of largely Black and Latino students, borrowers, advocates and politicians started to dissipate after an hours-long rally for loan forgiveness in front of the Supreme Court. “For those Americans, this is a critical lifeline to ensure that they are not subject to the severe negative consequences of delinquency and default on student loan debt,” Prelogar said. “And so, Congress made a choice and that may have been the right choice or it may have been the wrong choice, but that's Congress's choice." ] [Myra Brown, one of the plaintiffs in the suit backed by the Job Creators Network Foundation, holds debt issued through the Federal Family Education Loan program.] [This is a specific type of student loan backed by the federal government but held by private entities.

The justices are hearing two cases challenging President Joe Biden's authority to forgive student loan debt under a 2003 law called the HEROES Act.

Holders of student loan debt currently do not have to make payments as part of Covid relief measures that will remain in effect until after the Supreme Court issues its ruling. The Supreme Court has to find only that one challenger has legal standing to reach the merits of the case. Liberal justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson wondered whether it was appropriate for the court to intervene in the case. The overall program could help more than [40 million borrowers](https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/student-loan-borrowers-debt-forgiveness-effects-on-economy-rcna44640), the administration has said. A key threshold question is whether any of the challengers have legal standing to sue in the first place. “Now, we take very seriously the idea of separation of powers and that power should be divided to prevent its abuse,” Roberts said. Pell Grant recipients, who are the majority of borrowers, would be eligible for an additional $10,000 in debt relief. Of the six conservative justices, only Amy Coney Barrett repeatedly examined whether challengers had legal standing. "That seems problematic," he said. Barrett, as well as the liberal justices, questioned whether Missouri could rely on that agency's role to assert that the state has standing based on the fact that the corporation is an entity separate from the state that is not involved in the litigation. In a later comment, Kavanaugh appeared more supportive of the administration, noting that the language of the 2003 law that the Biden administration says gives it legal authority to forgive debt included "extremely broad" language. That could indicate they believe the challengers have standing.

The Trump administration initially paused student loan repayments in March 2020 because of the pandemic. The Biden administration kept the pause until August ...

“Congress passed a statute that dealt with loan repayment for colleges, and it didn’t pass a statute that dealt with loan repayment for lawn businesses,” she said. “I may have views on the fairness of that and mine don’t count,” Chief Justice Roberts said. Given the inclination of the conservative justices to question the legality of the program, if the administration is to prevail it may have to do so on the standing question. “And so Congress made a choice, and that may have been the right choice or it may have been the wrong choice, but that’s Congress’s choice.” “The whole point of this statute, its central mission and function, is to ensure that in the face of a national emergency that is causing financial harm to borrowers, the secretary can do something,” she said. “Its financial interests are totally disentangled from the state, it stands alone, it’s incorporated separately, the state is not liable for anything that happens to MOHELA,” she said. The challengers argued that its potential losses from the loan forgiveness program were enough to confer standing because it is effectively an arm of the State of Missouri. Prelogar conceded that the loan authority would have standing had it chosen to sue in its own name. indicated that the ordinary colloquial meaning of “major questions” encompassed “what the government proposes to do with student loans.” The administration was spurred to act because of the pandemic and its lingering effects. If the administration is to prevail, it would probably be on the ground that none of the plaintiffs in the two cases had established standing to sue, but that outcome did not seem likely, either. [prepares to run for a second term](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/03/us/politics/biden-2024-trump-democrats.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-biden&variant=show®ion=MAIN_CONTENT_1&block=storyline_top_links_recirc), his team is mapping out a strategy for 2024 that in many ways resembles that of 2020.

The Supreme Court will have the ultimate say on whether President Biden can wipe out student loan debt. Here's what to know if you're waiting for debt ...

The Supreme Court has the final say on Biden's student loan forgiveness plan but college affordability will remain an issue for years to come.

More and more students feel they need to go to graduate school to be competitive in the job market. Around 7% of student loan borrowers are now more than $100,000 in debt. Americans now owe more in private student loans than they do for past-due medical debt or payday loans. These days, tuition accounts for about half of public college revenue, while state and local governments provide the other half. And more time in school means more costs, and a greater need for borrowing. Department of Labor, told CNBC. [parent student loans](https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/types/loans/plus/parent) and private financing to be able to send their children off to college, an increasingly necessary step for people to have a decent shot at landing in the [middle class](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/15/is-college-worth-it-how-to-figure-out-the-return-on-investment.html). Meanwhile, the private student loan market has grown more than 70% over the last decade, according to the Student Borrower Protection Center. [Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan heads to the Supreme Court](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/24/supreme-court-to-hear-these-cases-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-.html) [How to decide if you should go back to school](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/25/with-a-recession-looming-how-to-decide-if-you-should-to-go-back-to-school.html) [The cheapest states for in-state college tuition](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/08/the-top-10-cheapest-colleges-for-in-state-tuition.html) [significant tuition increases](https://www.cbpp.org/research/state-budget-and-tax/state-higher-education-funding-cuts-have-pushed-costs-to-students) and pushed more of the costs of college onto students. Over the 30 years between 1991-92 and 2021-22, average tuition prices more than doubled, increasing to $10,740 from $4,160 at public four-year colleges, and to $38,070 from $19,360 at private institutions, after adjusting for inflation, according to the College Board. - The Supreme Court has the final say on Biden's student loan forgiveness plan but college affordability will remain an issue for years to come.

The Biden administration wants to wipe out $400 billion in student debt by forgiving up to $20000 per borrower. Six Republican-dominated states — Nebraska, ...

The other is whether the program exceeds the legal authority that Congress granted to the Education Department and whether it followed legally required procedures in devising the plan. Connolly is arguing on behalf of the student loan borrowers challenging the program in the second case. “If administrative agencies seek to regulate the daily lives and liberties of millions of Americans, the doctrine says, they must at least be able to trace that power to a clear grant of authority from Congress.” “The evidence is clear that many of them will have to default,” she said. Created in 1981, it has since grown to become one of the largest federal loan servicers — the entities that collect borrowers’ payments on behalf of the federal government. “This program is going to give tens of millions of Americans around the country a little bit of breathing room,” Ms. Given the inclination of the conservative justices to question the legality of the program, if the administration is to prevail it may have to do so on the standing question. “The whole point of this statute, its central mission and function, is to ensure that in the face of a national emergency that is causing financial harm to borrowers, the secretary can do something,” she said. The plaintiffs in the Supreme Court cases have argued that Mr. The challengers argued that its potential losses from the loan forgiveness program were enough to confer standing because it is effectively an arm of the State of Missouri. indicated that the ordinary colloquial meaning of “major questions” encompassed “what the government proposes to do with student loans.” If the administration is to prevail, it would probably be on the ground that none of the plaintiffs in the two cases had established standing to sue, but that outcome did not seem likely, either.

Conservative justices in the Supreme Court's majority are asking skeptical questions about President Joe Biden's plan to wipe away or reduce student loans ...

The administration says that 26 million people have applied to have up to $20,000 in federal student loans forgiven under the plan. Republican-led states and lawmakers in Congress, as well as conservative legal interests, are lined up against the plan as a violation of Biden’s executive authority. A federal judge initially found that the states would not be harmed and dismissed their lawsuit before “Nobody’s telling the person who is trying to set up the lawn service business that he doesn’t have to pay his loan,” Roberts said. Biden’s plan would lift a burden for her mother, who borrowed more than $20,000 in federal student loans to help Smith attend college. The law was primarily intended to keep service members from being hurt financially while they fought in wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. “Some of the biggest mistakes in the court’s history were deferring to assertions of executive emergency power," Kavanaugh said. “If you're talking about this in the abstract, I think most casual observers would say if you're going to give up that much ... Those earlier programs halted by the court were billed largely as public health measures intended to slow the spread of COVID-19. “Their financial situation will be even worse because once you default, the hardship on you is exponentially greater. Three times, the chief justice said the program would cost a half-trillion dollars, pointing to its wide impact and hefty expense as reasons the administration should have gotten explicit approval from Congress. Loan payments that have been on hold since the start of the coronavirus pandemic three years ago are supposed to resume no later than this summer.

The Supreme Court will have the ultimate say on whether President Biden can wipe out student loan debt. Here's what to know if you're waiting for debt ...

The Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments Tuesday in two cases challenging President Joe Biden's student loan debt forgiveness program. Listen to the oral ...

Nebraska Solicitor General James Campbell received a series of questions – from justices on both sides of the ideological spectrum – about whether the states had overcome this procedural threshold, which is known as “standing.” Several justices noted that MOHELA could have filed its own lawsuit challenging the program, but has not. And Justice Neil Gorsuch asked Nebraska Solicitor General James Campbell, who is representing the red states, a series a questions that seemed aimed at helping the court further flesh out the doctrine. “There’s 50 million students who are – who will benefit from this. The second case is Department of Education v. How and when the justices rule will also determine when payments on federal student loans will resume after a pandemic-related pause was put in place nearly three years ago.

It comes after President Joe Biden, a Democrat, announced a plan last year to forgive up to $10,000 (£8,400) in federal student loans per borrower. So far, ...

And even if the court sides with the government, more legal challenges may yet be filed. But relief is on hold as legal challenges to the plan make their way through the courts. They were joined by some of the Democratic Party's most outspoken figures on student debt. If so, they would have the legal right to sue and prevent the plan from being implemented in its current form. Mrs Prelogar replied that, in the given context, "modify" could entail making broad changes to protect borrowers. How does that fit under the normal understanding of modified?"

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona found authority to forgive student loan debt under the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003.

Use this calculator to see [how much of your student loan debt can be forgiven](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/interactive/2022/calculator-student-loan-debt-forgiveness/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_5). An Indiana lawsuit was the first significant [legal action seeking to invalidate Biden’s policy](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/09/27/lawsuit-student-loan-forgiveness/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_10). Six Republican-led states are also [suing to overturn President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan](https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2022/09/29/republicans-student-loan-forgiveness-lawsuit/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_9). [Confused about the status of student loan forgiveness](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/11/03/student-loan-forgiveness-checks-confusion/?itid=cb_box_45L6SJE4UFHNHDYMBGC6MLMPRY_2)? [appeals court blocked the imminent cancellation of federal student loans](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/10/21/student-loan-forgiveness-temporary-stay/?itid=cb_box_45L6SJE4UFHNHDYMBGC6MLMPRY_4). [conservative Supreme Court justices seemed highly skeptical](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/02/28/supreme-court-student-loan-forgiveness-hearing/?itid=lb_student-loan-forgiveness_1) of President Biden’s debt relief plan. “For those Americans, this is a critical lifeline to ensure that they are not subject to the severe negative consequences of delinquency and default on student loan debt.” In this case, it is not enough just to object to the size of the program or even to allege that the president has exceeded his authority. Gorsuch also pressed Prelogar on whether the loan forgiveness program was fair: to those who have paid off their loans, those who financed college without debt or those who decided not to go to college because of the cost. [extend a pause on student loan payments](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/11/22/student-loan-payment-pause-extension/?itid=cb_box_45L6SJE4UFHNHDYMBGC6MLMPRY_1)as legal fights have put the debt relief plan in limbo. [President Biden’s plan will cancel some of the federal student debt](https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/08/24/biden-student-loan-cancellation/?itid=cb_box_45L6SJE4UFHNHDYMBGC6MLMPRY_5)held by millions of Americans. Prelogar that blocking the program would actually thwart the will of Congress, which in 2003 provided authority for the secretary of education to “waive or modify” student loan provisions in times of emergency.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday heard oral arguments in two challenges to President Joe Biden's student debt relief plan, with several conservative justices ...

Whether the GOP states are threatened by the type of harm that makes it appropriate for a court to intervene was a major theme. in terms of macroeconomic policy, do we normally assume that every secretary Cabinet member – as learned as they are – has that kind of knowledge?” “So why isn’t MOHELA responsible for deciding whether to bring this suit?” Several justices noted that MOHELA could have filed its own lawsuit challenging the program, but has not. “There’s 50 million students who are – who will benefit from this. How and when the justices rule will also determine when payments on federal student loans will resume after a [pandemic-related pause](https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/22/politics/student-loan-repayment-freeze-extended/index.html) was put in place nearly three years ago. The second case is Department of Education v. Who today will struggle. Many of them don’t have assets sufficient to bail them out after the pandemic. In another sign of her skepticism toward the states’ standing arguments, she also asked whether the state of Missouri also filed a lawsuit to vindicate the interests of the city of St. Later on, Kagan pointed out that the state of Missouri was so disconnected from MOHELA that the state had to file an open-records request to get the records from MOHELA that it needed from the lawsuit. In some of those Covid-19 cases, Kavanaugh noted, the court ruled that the agency exceeded its authority, and in others, the action was upheld – particularly when an executive branch action was found to be in the “wheelhouse” of the agency that implemented it.

The Supreme Court held a blockbuster hearing today on President Biden's sweeping plan to enact mass student loan forgiveness.

A favorable ruling could result in approved borrowers receiving student loan forgiveness within a matter of weeks of a decision. “It is very hard for me to say" that there can be any sufficient relationship between MOHELA and the state of Missouri for MOHELA to have standing, she said. The administration has also maintained the challengers are unable to demonstrate that the student loan forgiveness plan results in a sufficiently concrete injury that would allow them to have “standing” to sue in the first place. On the issue of standing, Chief Justice John Roberts seemed to dismiss the idea that courts should not have the ability to weigh in on such a significant program, suggesting that the cases present “extraordinary concerns” about the separation of powers. She argued Congress knew exactly what it was doing when it established sweeping authority for a secretary of education to waive or modify provisions of federal student loan programs, including those related to loan repayment and discharge. Similarly, Justice Brett Kavanaugh noted that Congress “could have in 2003 referred to ‘loan cancellation’ and ‘loan forgiveness’ ” in the text of the HEROES Act, but did not include those specific phrases, saying that “seems problematic.” This statute provides broad authority for the Education Department to “modify” or “waive” federal student loan programs in response to a national emergency, such as the Covid-19 pandemic. Prelogar, representing the Biden administration, argued that the program falls squarely within the authority of the HEROES Act, and that Congress contemplated such broad relief when it enacted the legislation in 2003. The Court’s three liberal justices hammered the challengers on the issue of standing. If the Court rules in favor of the administration, it could be solely on the issue of standing, or on the underlying merits of the administration’s legal authority. The states focused primarily on MOHELA, a FFELP guaranty agency and loan servicer that was not an actual party in the lawsuit. Biden’s unprecedented student loan forgiveness proposal would cancel up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt for up to 40 million borrowers.

The Supreme Court's conservative justices cast doubt on President Biden's student debt forgiveness plan during oral arguments on Tuesday in a pair of ...

The justices also heard a second challenge to the debt relief, Department of Education v. “The HEROES Act specifically says no notice and comment. No negotiated rulemaking, specifically — says there’s going to be an emergency. We’re not going to be responsible for any of its contracts. Fellow conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh cautioned, “Some of the biggest mistakes in the court’s history were deferring to assertions of executive emergency power. Maybe it was warranted, but why was it done? We’re not going to be responsible for its debts. Nebraska Solicitor General James Campbell, representing the states, argued Missouri speaks for the loan servicer. Why is it in the answer to say that it was warranted? We’re not going to be responsible for anything that does financially.’ And the state itself says this is not the state, it’s an independent corporation. In the first case, Biden v. “It’s an outrageous sum, and yet no one is disputing that.

A handful of Republican-dominated states seemed on the verge of invalidating President Biden's student loan forgiveness plan at the Supreme Court on Tuesday ...

Unless the court decides that the states have no standing to sue and throws the case out of court, the Biden student loan forgiveness program will likely be struck down. The biggest sticking point of the day, though, was whether the six state objectors have legal standing to challenge the student loan forgiveness plan at all. "It's been set up as an independent corporate entity with the ability to bring suits on its own," Justice Kagan said. Without relief for debtors, there will be a "wave of default across the country with all of the negative consequences that has for borrowers," she said. In 2003, after the 9/11 attacks, Congress passed a law to ensure that federal student loan borrowers would not be economically hammered in a national emergency. Indeed, she argued, the Biden plan "is precisely the type of context where the executive should be able to implement those emergency powers."

Not only will the Supreme Court's student loan forgiveness decision have consequences for borrowers, it could also reshuffle power in Washington.

"For those Americans, this is a critical lifeline to ensure that they are not subject to the severe negative consequences of delinquency and default on student loan debt," Prelogar said. But she also has a knack for calling attention to the bigger picture. Alongside the debt forgiveness plan, for example, Biden introduced a new program meant to tie borrowers' monthly loan payments to how much they earn. If Biden loses, it's likely to put enormous pressure on the administration from the left to come up with another plan. "And then along comes the government and tells that person, you don't have to pay your loan." [Student loan payments are set to restart in 2023. Two associate justices in the court’s liberal wing, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, signaled support for Biden on the point. "Congress was very aware of potential emergency actions," he said, noting that the law was passed in the wake of the Sept. That law allows the Department of Education to "waive or modify" loan provisions. "How does that fit under the normal understanding of 'modifying'?" The other, instead, started a lawn care business with help from a private bank loan. Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh, both of whom sit at the ideological center of the conservative court, underscored skepticism early and often.

Hundreds of students urged the justices to keep the Biden administration program that aims to eliminate $400 billion in student loan debt.

But he said that his son’s girlfriend was set to have the maximum amount of student loan debt, $20,000, forgiven by Mr. She said she had $12,875 in student loan debt. But she still expects to graduate with more than $10,000 in student loans. The plaintiffs in the Supreme Court cases have argued that Mr. We want this new generation to make a better future.” “I’m only in my second year and I’m truly just trying to stay focused and keep on going,” Ms.

The high-stakes battle over President Biden's student debt relief plan reached the Supreme Court on Tuesday, with each justice giving a glimpse into their ...

They are going to continue to suffer from this pandemic in a way that the general population doesn’t.” The evidence is clear that many of them will have to default.” “And all of this would be a lot easier.” [2017 interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaJuyXqGF2E) described a “continuing tension” in the U.S. You have a lot of power in emergencies. Some of the finest moments in the Court’s history were pushing back against presidential assertions of emergency power.“ “Their financial situation will be even worse because once you default, the hardship on you is exponentially greater,” she continued. “Many of them don’t have assets sufficient to bail them out after the pandemic,” Sotomayor added. He compared that to how the administration is justifying their plan as merely a waiver and modification. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar on how the HEROES Act justifies cancelling hundreds of billions of dollars in debt. Why is it in the answer to say that it was warranted? “It’s you simply forbearing on collecting an underlying debt, but you don’t cancel the debt.