The court will reportedly hear the Biden administration’s case in February.
12/01/2022 3:30 P.M.
2 minute read
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review a request from the Biden administration to restore its student loan forgiveness plan, The Hill reports.
While the court has agreed to review the case, it denied a request to immediately reinstate the program, according to the article.
In November, the Biden administration, with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), turned to the U.S. Supreme Court for help with legal challenges to its student loan forgiveness plan—in particular, one arguing that the plan goes beyond what Congress allows, ACA International previously reported.
The DOJ is seeking to remove an injunction preventing the plan from moving forward in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit as well as a pause from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in a Texas case that found the plan is illegal.
In a brief unsigned order, the Supreme Court said it would hear arguments in the case in February, according to The Hill report.
In the Texas case at the center of the request for the Supreme Court, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona issued a statement on the court’s ruling in a news release: “We believe strongly that the Biden-Harris Student Debt Relief Plan is lawful and necessary to give borrowers and working families breathing room as they recover from the pandemic and to ensure they succeed when repayment restarts. We are disappointed in the decision of the Texas court to block loan relief moving forward. Amidst efforts to block our debt relief program, we are not standing down. The Department of Justice has appealed today’s decision on our behalf, and we will continue to keep borrowers informed about our efforts to deliver targeted relief.”
Several other cases in courts across the U.S. are on the books challenging the student loan forgiveness plan, but those in the appeals process in the 5th and 8th Circuits carry the most weight at this time.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Education has extended the pause on student loan repayment, interest, and collections through June 30, 2023, while the Supreme Court’s hearing of the case proceeds, ACA previously reported.
The DOE reports that borrowers can use the continued payment pause to make sure their contact information is correct with student loan servicers and consider signing up for electronic debit and income-driven repayment plans.
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