President Joe Biden will cancel $39 billion in student debt for 804,000 Americans – two weeks after the Supreme Court rejected his $430 billion relief plan on grounds of unconstitutionality.
For borrowers who have been making payments for 20-25 years, the debt is paid off due to “corrections” in the system that calculates the repayment schedules.
The President continues his efforts to pay off billions of dollars in student debt, despite the fury of taxpayers and Americans who have never been to college.
The Supreme Court’s landmark decision dealt a major blow to his plan, but the White House has vowed to move forward to seek widespread relief.
Critics slammed the announcement as “absurd” and called it a “slap in the face to taxpayers.”
President Joe Biden will forgive 804,000 Americans $39 billion in student debt weeks after the Supreme Court rejected his multi-billion dollar relief plan. Pictured is Biden returning from Europe on Thursday evening
David Williams, President of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance, told : “This new announcement is preposterous and a slap in the face to taxpayers.”
“The Biden administration is determined to recklessly spend hundreds of billions of tax dollars bailing out wealthy student loan borrowers, even after being rebuked by the nation’s highest court.”
“More than 80 percent of the country that doesn’t have student loans will be forced to subsidize the small percentage of Americans who do have loans.” And once again, the Biden administration is sidestepping Congress.
“Whether it’s an escalation in missions by agencies like the Federal Trade Commission with politically motivated antitrust lawsuits, the Securities and Exchange Commission with ESG rules, or the recent demise of the Department of Education with student loans, these actions must stop immediately.”
“For far too long, borrowers have fallen through the cracks of a broken system that has not been able to accurately track their progress toward forgiveness,” said Education Minister Miguel Cardona.
“Today, the Biden-Harris administration is taking another historic step to right these wrongs and is announcing $39 billion in debt relief for an additional 804,000 borrowers.”
Supreme Court justices ruled 6-3 that the education secretary had no power to service the debts of 20 million borrowers.
There followed the ire of taxpayers who had never been to college and Republicans who claimed America’s middle class was funding a student bailout.
Under Biden’s plan, those earning less than $125,000 a year would have received a $10,000 relief, while Pell Grant recipients would have had $20,000 cut.
The majority of judges ruled that Biden should have sought congressional approval first.
It prompted Biden to plan a new way to pay off millions of Americans’ debts and fulfill a promise he made during his presidential campaign.
“By fixing past administrative mistakes, we ensure everyone gets the forgiveness they deserve, just as we have done for public officials, students cheated by their colleges, and borrowers with permanent disabilities, including veterans,” added Cardona.
“This government will not stop fighting for a level playing field in higher education.”
“These corrections are part of the department’s commitment to correct historical errors in the administration of the federal student loan program, which did not account for qualifying payments under IDR plans that should have brought borrowers closer to forgiveness,” it said in the guidelines of the Ministry of Education.
“Borrowers are eligible for forgiveness when they have accumulated the equivalent of 20 or 25 years of qualifying months.”
Vice President Kamala Harris said, “President Joe Biden and I are committed to bringing relief to student loan borrowers to help them move forward in life—whether they want to start a family, buy a home, or become an entrepreneur.”
“Today we are taking another historic step by forgiving $39 billion in student loan debt to 804,000 borrowers who have been paying off their debt for 20 years or more and should be eligible for relief.”
Supreme Court justices ruled 6-3 that the education secretary had no power to service the debts of 20 million borrowers
“Instead, credit servicers put many on forbearance in violation of the rules, and others failed to get adequate credit for their monthly payments.”
“Tackling these harmful practices and reducing student loan debt has been a priority throughout my career.” As California Attorney General, I won $1 billion for betrayed veterans and students by campaigning against predatory, for-profit colleges.
“We’re not going to stop there.” Last month, President Biden announced we were pursuing an alternative path to relief with the Higher Education Act, and we finalized our new earnings-related repayment plan that will halve monthly bachelor’s loan payments. “Our administration will continue to fight to ensure Americans have access to quality post-secondary education without incurring the burden of unmanageable student loan debt.”