The Supreme Court announced Thursday it will hear arguments by six Republican-led states against President Biden’s $400 billion student loan forgiveness program in February of next year — the latest high court showdown over one of the president’s policies.
The attorneys general of Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and South Carolina have argued that Biden was incorrect to use the COVID-19 pandemic as justification to launch the program in August of this year — and overstepped the limits of his power while doing so.
The justices will allow the debt program to remain blocked by lower courts before they hear arguments on the program.
The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, based in St. Louis, put a preliminary injunction on the administration’s plan last month while it considered the states’ appeal of a lower court’s order in October to allow the program to move forward because the states lacked standing in the case.
The states argued that the debt cancellation plan would do financial harm to the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority, an organization that services loans held by the federal government to students across the country.
The court upheld the states’ standing, ruling that the loan writeoff “will prevent or delay Missouri from funding higher education at its public colleges and universities.”
Two of the appeals court judges were appointed by former President Donald Trump and the third was nominated by former President George W. Bush.
The Biden administration has claimed that it has the authority to wipe out the debt under the HEROES Act of 2003, which gives the executive branch broad powers during national emergencies.
It has contended that the coronavirus pandemic is such an emergency despite the president saying on “60 Minutes” Sept. 18 that the pandemic is “over.”
The administration suffered another legal setback on Wednesday when the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected its bid to put a hold on a Texas judge’s ruling blocking the White House plan.
The three-judge panel from the New Orleans-based court unanimously rejected the request to stay US District Judge Mark T. Pittman’s Nov. 10 order.
Pittman, ruling in a lawsuit filed by the conservative Job Creators Network, said the Biden White House overstepped its authority.
“In this country, we are not ruled by an all-powerful executive with a pen and a phone. Instead, we are ruled by a Constitution that provides for three distinct and independent branches of government,” he wrote.
The administration’s plan, announced in August, would cancel up to $10,000 in student loan debt for individuals making less than $125,000 per year or households making under $250,000 per year in income.
Pell Grant recipients, who typically demonstrate more financial need, would get up to $20,000 in debt forgiven.
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