On Dec. 1, the U.S. Supreme Court released a statement that the justices will review whether or not President Biden’s student loan debt relief program exceeds presidential powers or not.
The debt relief program seeks to forgive 10,000 dollars to loan borrowers with less than 125,000 dollars in income, and an extra 10,000 dollars to Pell Grant recipients. Enacted in August 2022, the program has received around twenty-six million applications.
However, approval of program applications have been put on pause in recent months due to court orders in response to lawsuits contesting the legality of the action. In response, the U.S. Justice Department called on the Supreme Court to review the ruling by the Eighth Circuit.
Oral argument hearings for Biden v. Nebraska will begin in February. Then, the Court will determine whether or not the Eighth Circuit has enough reason to deny the case, as well as if the plan exceeds President Biden’s powers. Due to the setbacks, the pause on student loan payments will be extended until either June 2023 or until the lawsuits have been resolved.
