A federal judge has decided to let a temporary ban on the Biden administration’s large student loan forgiveness plan expire. This plan could help relieve debt for millions of Americans.
According to the Center for American Progress, the plan could help up to three out of four federal student loan borrowers when added to the administration’s earlier actions. U.S. District Judge Randal Hall, appointed by former Republican President George W. Bush, ruled in favor of the Biden administration late Wednesday.
Overall the ruling allows President Joe Biden to proceed with his student loan forgiveness plan just weeks before the November election.
The situation arose from a lawsuit by seven Republican-led states—Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Missouri, North Dakota, and Ohio—claiming that the U.S. Department of Education’s new debt cancellation plan is illegal. However, Judge Hall ruled that Georgia did not have the right to file the lawsuit and that it wasn’t the right place for the case. He said the case should be moved to Missouri, where the states argue that Biden’s plan would hurt the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (Mohela) the most. A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Education welcomed the judge’s decision that Georgia had “no legal basis” for the lawsuit but criticized the GOP’s efforts to block the relief.
“The fact remains that this lawsuit reflects an ongoing effort by Republican elected officials who want to prevent millions of their own constituents from getting breathing room on their student loans,” they said.
“We will not stop fighting to fix the broken student loan system and provide support and relief to borrowers across the country.”
