
In that sense, the decision was the second in as many days from the high court to hit minority students particularly hard. Several advocates were quick to note that would have disproportionate impact on students of color, who are more likely to not only borrow but also carry higher debt loads. The administration had estimated that as many as 40 million people would be eligible for relief under the program. The Supreme Court decision will have the most immediate impact on about 26 million borrowers who applied for relief in the few weeks applications were open, and more than 16 million were approved before a pair of court decisions put the loan forgiveness effort on hold. "In my view, it's the best path that remains to provide as many borrowers as possible with debt relief." On Friday afternoon, Biden said he would introduce an alternative plan to provide student loan forgiveness, by utilizing the Higher Education Act of 1965. "This fight is not over," Biden said after the decision. But student debt relief has not gained traction on Capitol Hill and Biden's options for meeting his campaign promise to reduce student debt appeared limited. The decision − widely expected for months − drew a sharp rebuke from the court's liberal wing and the White House itself, which vowed to continue working on the issue.


"The act allows the secretary to 'waive or modify' existing statutory or regulatory provisions applicable to financial assistance programs," Roberts wrote, "not to rewrite that statute from the ground up." In one of the most closely followed cases before the court, with sweeping implications for the balance of power in Washington and the household finances of millions of families, a majority ruled on ideological lines that the Biden administration overstepped its power by attempting to forgive $400 billion in student loans lingering during the pandemic.Ĭhief Justice John Roberts wrote the decision for the 6-3 majority, with the conservative justices lining up behind the idea that a federal law called the HEROES Act that allowed the Biden administration to "waive or modify" the terms of student loans did not give the president the power to offer wholesale forgiveness of that debt. WASHINGTON − The Supreme Court on Friday dashed President Joe Biden's plan to wipe out student loan debt for tens of millions Americans, ending a program that was intended to ease the financial burden on families in the latest significant ruling from the high court that curbs a president's power to act alone.
