Biden Announces New 'Legally Sound' Path For Student Loan Relief After Supreme Court Roadblock

The Biden administration’s plan to forgive $430 billion in student loan debt, which would have allowed eligible borrowers to cancel up to $20,000 in debt, was blocked by the Supreme Court in a monumental 6-3 decision Friday.

About 43 million people were eligible to benefit from the program.

In a White House speech addressing the Supreme Court's decision, Biden criticized the Republicans who successfully sued to block the student loan forgiveness program. "The money was literally about to go out the door, and then Republican elected officials and special interests stepped in,” he said.

The president also expressed a belief that the Supreme Court misinterpreted the Constitution.

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Still, Biden announced that his administration would take a new path to student loan relief. The path involves the Higher Education Act of 1965 and aims to provide debt relief to as many borrowers as possible, as quickly as possible, he said.

The act empowers the Secretary of Education, currently Miguel Cardona, to “compromise, waive, or release loans under certain circumstances.” Biden said the approach, while slower, is the best remaining path to provide relief for as many borrowers as possible.

The president said the new path is “legally sound.”

The Education Department will not refer borrowers who don't pay their student loan bills to credit agencies for 12 months, to give them time to "get back up and running,” he said. Student loan payments are set to resume in October.

During his speech, Biden critiqued Republican members of Congress who received thousands of dollars in PPP loans that were later forgive, but did not support his student debt plan.

He also said Republicans who are pushing to make former President Donald Trump's tax cuts permanent are hypocrites, describing the tax cuts as "handouts to the wealthiest Americans."

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