Supreme Court expands review of Biden’s student loan handout

The debt forgiveness program is estimated to cost taxpayers around $400 billion

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear another challenge to President Biden’s contentious student loan relief program. 

The new case involves challenges brought by Myra Brown and Alexander Taylor. Per Biden’s program, Brown is ineligible for relief because her loans are held by commercial entities rather than the Education Department. Taylor is eligible for $10,000 in loan relief, but not the higher $20,000 he would be entitled to under a Pell Grant. 

Student debt protestor

FILE: A trombone player with the Too Much Talent band performs at a Student Loan Forgiveness rally on Pennsylvania Avenue and 17th street near the White House on April 27, 2022, in Washington, DC.  (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Their lawsuit, backed by conservative advocacy group Job Creators Network Foundation, merely seeks for the right to comment on the student loan proposal. Texas-based U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman went further, issuing an injunction that blocked the plan as the Biden administration overstepping its authority. 

MILLIONS OF BORROWERS MISTAKENLY TOLD THEY WERE APPROVED FOR STUDENT LOAN RELIEF

The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday it would hear the Biden administration’s appeal of Pittman’s ruling. The Court said earlier this month it would hear arguments on the legality of the debt relief program in another case pursued by six mostly Republican-led states.

The justices fast-tracked both cases for oral arguments in late February or early March, with a ruling due by the end of June. 

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Biden announced in August that the U.S. government would forgive up to $10,000 in student loan debt for borrowers making less than $125,000 a year, or $250,000 for married couples. The Congressional Budget Office in September calculated that the debt forgiveness program would cost taxpayers about $400 billion.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.