U.S. Appeals Court Rejects Biden's Student Loan Plan
Wednesday, a federal appeals court refused to stop a Texas judge's decision that President Joe Biden's plan to forgive hundreds of billions of dollars in student loan debt was illegal.
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans refused to halt a judge's Nov. 10 judgement invalidating the $400 billion student debt relief scheme.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman in Fort Worth, Texas, was one of two across the country that stopped the U.S. Department of Education from doing something.
The administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to lift an order by the St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that, at the request of six Republican-led states
In a short order on Wednesday, a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit refused to put Pittman's decision on hold while the government appealed it
Two of the panel's members were picked by Republicans, and one was picked by then-Democratic President Barack Obama.
Biden said in August that the U.S. government would forgive up to $10,000 in student loan debt for people who make less than $125,000 a year.
During his campaign for president in 2020, Biden said he would help college graduates with a lot of debt. Republicans don't like what Biden wants to do.
In September, the Congressional Budget Office said that running the programme to forgive debt would cost taxpayers about $400 billion.
About 26 million Americans have asked the U.S. Department of Education to forgive their student loans, and 16 million of them have already been approved.
Biden stated last week that his administration would stop student loan payments to ease students' worry during debt relief litigation.
Pittman had ruled in a case brought by the Job Creators Network Foundation and two borrowers who were partially or fully ineligible for the loan forgiveness.