The Biden administration’s promise to “forgive” student loans as part of its attempt to mobilize young voters ahead of the 2024 election has run into more legal hurdles.
A pair of think tanks have asked a federal court to stop the Biden administration’s revised proposal to forgive $39 billion in student debt, arguing that the initiative is outside the administration’s purview.
The New Civil Liberties Alliance, which represents both the free-market-oriented Mackinac Center for Public Policy and the libertarian-leaning Cato Institute, launched the lawsuit in Michigan on Friday.
These organizations claim the administration has exceeded its constitutional authority by declaring a student loan forgiveness scheme for 800,000 borrowers totaling $39 billion. This program was introduced by the Department of Education shortly after the Supreme Court invalidated a more expansive student loan forgiveness strategy pursued by President Biden.
The lawsuit sought a court order to declare the current debt relief plan illegal and prevent the Department of Education from implementing it until the court case is resolved.
The Department of Education responded by describing the lawsuit as a “desperate attempt by right-wing special interests to keep hundreds of thousands of borrowers in debt,” and further assured that they “will not budge or budge an inch when it comes to defend working families”. “
This legal action follows a series of objections filed by Republicans aimed at thwarting measures by the Biden administration to reduce or forgive student loans for millions of borrowers. After the Supreme Court rejected his initial plan in June, the president signaled his intention to look for alternative ways to achieve student debt cancellation.
Separately, the administration is advocating for a more lenient repayment schedule, which critics call a “backdoor attempt” to waive loans.
On July 14, the administration disclosed a plan to discharge the debts of 804,000 borrowers involved in income-based repayment strategies, which have traditionally provided relief after 20 to 25 years of payments. However, due to “previous administrative failures” that resulted in erroneous payment accounts, borrowers’ path to debt relief has been obstructed, according to the Department of Education statement.
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