Supreme Court Blocks Biden’s Student Debt Relief Program

Today, a 6-3 majority in the Supreme Court struck down President Biden’s student debt relief program in their decision on Biden v. Nebraska, claiming that the president didn’t have the authority to cancel student debt as part of his COVID-19 emergency response.

Biden originally paused student debt under the 2003 HEROES Act, which gave the president the power to “waive or modify” student loans in the event of a war or other national emergency. Later, Biden began forgiving $10,000 for eligible borrowers, or $20,000 for low-income borrowers. Around 40 million borrowers would have benefited from student debt relief.

For those with student debt, the court’s decision means that repayment will resume in October. In a statement provided to The Mary Sue, legal aid organization Legal Services NYC explains the reality of living with student loan debt:

Today’s Supreme Court decision condemns millions of borrowers to a lifetime of repaying student debts they cannot afford to repay. Some of these borrowers went to for-profit schools that exploited lax lending rules and left them with no marketable skills. Others went to legitimate schools but dropped out when a parent got sick or lost their job. Many work as cashiers, nursing assistants, baristas, Uber drivers, and office receptionists and nearly all of them, and their families, will continue to suffer setbacks and go without basic human needs, including food, shelter, and medications. They will face decades of collection activity, including the reduction of their Social Security when they retire or become disabled, and will forever be burdened by a debt they cannot repay due to steep interest rates and complicated repayment structures. As the nation’s largest provider of free legal services, we will continue to help low-income borrows structure payments plans in a way that allows them to live their life, but they will forever be burdened by a mountain of debt that will never go away.

As I’ve previously written, objections to student debt relief ring hollow when you look at the facts. The price of a college education has spiraled far beyond what it was a generation ago. Unlike credit card debt and car loans, most student debt can’t be discharged if a borrower files for bankruptcy—giving lie to detractors’ claims that student loan debt is all about fairness. And the $315 billion price tag for student debt relief pales in comparison to Trump’s $3.5 trillion tax cuts for the wealthy.

Borrowers and allies are already fighting back

Following the court’s decision, The Debt Collective, a nonprofit that describes itself as “the nation’s first debtors’ union,” is currently organizing to fight for student debt relief on other fronts. After the SCOTUS decision was announced, the organization stressed that “the Biden administration still has legal tools at his disposal to broadly cancel student debt.”

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is also laying out a game plan for fighting for student debt relief, stating that Biden can use the Higher Education Act to continue student loan forgiveness.

Biden himself says he’ll make a public statement this afternoon.

(featured image: Paul Morigi, Getty Images)