Supreme Court agrees to weigh student loan forgiveness plan next year

The Supreme Court announced on Thursday that they would make a decision on whether the Biden administration can be used to cancel student loans nationwide. They promised an answer by summer 2023 at the latest.

Last week the Biden administration extended the pause on student loan repayments, which is set to expire.

“It isn’t fair to ask tens of millions of borrowers eligible for relief to resume their student debt payments while the courts consider the lawsuit,” Biden said in a video uploaded on Twitter, according to the Associated Press.

The Biden administration requested a court order that would have allowed the program to be rolled out while the legal challenges are worked out in court. The Supreme Court Justices did not agree to this.

The plan grants a check of $10,000 to students with incomes of less than $125,000, or households earning less than $250,000. Pell Grant recipients, who are usually from lower-income families, will receive an additional $10,000.

The Congressional Budget Office said that the program will cost approximately $400 billion over the next 30 years.

Over 26 million people already applied for the relief, with 16 million being granted approval, however the Education Department stopped processing applications last month after a federal judge in Texas blocked the plan.