Biden's Student Loan Timeline: repayment freezes, cancelations, lawsuits
Starting in April, the White House extended the federal student loan freeze until Aug. 31. Prior to this decision, Americans were set to resume loan repayments on May 1.
The case is now expected to be heard by the Supreme Court in February of the new year.
April 6, 2022
Progressive pressure results in Biden extending student loan freeze
The White House extended the federal student loan freeze until Aug. 31. Prior to this decision, Americans were set to resume loan repayments on May 1.
In August, Campus Reform reported President Biden’s decision to extend the loan freeze through February, the policy which preceded the May 1 extension.
The August deadline marked the second time the Biden administration extended the freeze.
August 24, 2022
BREAKING: Biden cancels $10k of students’ debt, extends loan freeze again
President Biden announced details of his student loan forgiveness plan, explaining that students who received pell grants will receive up to $20,000 in student loan relief, while students who did not receive pell grants will be eligible for up to $10,000 in debt cancellation.
Those with an income of over $125,000 a year will not be eligible for Biden’s plan, however.
September 21, 2022
REPORT: House approves bill permitting married couples to separate student loans
The United States House of Representatives passed a bill on September 21 to allow married couples to separate consolidated student loan debt, a move that may increase the number of people eligible for the Biden administration’s debt cancellation.
The Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Act “allows two borrowers, who had previously received a joint consolidation loan for their federal student loan debt, to submit a joint application to the Department of Education [DOEd] to sever their consolidated loan into two separate loans,” the bill explains.
September 27, 2022
Biden administration faces first lawsuit over student loan forgiveness
On September 27, Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) filed the first lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education regarding President Biden’s student loan forgiveness program.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of plaintiff Frank Garrison, a public interest attorney with PLF.
Garrison’s student loans were being forgiven by the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, but “[a]s a result of the administration’s new student loan plan, the lawsuit claims Garrison will face additional taxes that he would not have otherwise incurred.”
October 21, 2022
U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocks Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan
The U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis, Missouri granted a temporary administrative stay on Oct. 21 preventing President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan from going into effect pending a ruling on an appeal issued by several red states.
“Appellants’ emergency motion for an administrative stay prohibiting the appellees from discharging any student loan debt under the Cancellation program until this Court rules on the appellants’ motion for an injunction pending appeal is granted,” the motion read. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre encouraged Americans in a press release that same day to continue to apply for student loan relief.
November 1, 2022
Lawsuit pushing back on Biden student loan forgiveness files for permanent injunction
Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) filed a motion for a permanent injunction pending an appeal with the Supreme Court after its lawsuit against the Department of Education (DOEd) was dismissed by a federal judge.
In a press release, PLF criticized the DOEd’s previous handling of the Biden Administration’s new program, saying the DOEd “relied on ever-evolving press releases and webpages…[that have] changed on the fly to avoid legal challenge.” PLF’s statement called on the Supreme Court to prevent “mischief from future administrations.”
November 4, 2022
Supreme Court denies request for an injunction that would halt Biden student loan plan
Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett denied an emergency motion to place an injunction on the Biden Administration’s student loan forgiveness plan. The emergency injunction was filed by Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) on Nov. 1 asking the court to approve a preliminary injunction halting the implementation of student loan forgiveness until the appeals courts decided on the lawsuit.
Justice Barrett declined the request on Nov. 4 and did not refer the matter to the court. Barrett denied a similar request on Oct. 20 after a Wisconsin taxpayer group asked for an injunction pending appeal.
November 10, 2022
Biden’s loan forgiveness program is an ‘unconstitutional exercise,’ federal judge rules
Northern District of Texas Judge Mark Pitman declared in a Nov. 10 opinion that President Biden’s student loan forgiveness program is an “unconstitutional exercise” and granted summary judgment against the program.
Pitman’s ruling criticized the use of the HEROES Act to justify student loan forgiveness without Congressional action. While acknowledging that the use of the HEROES Act removes the requirement for the government to provide notice and a public comments phase, the court noted that whether the act had authority in the matter of student loans was a “different story.”
December 1, 2022
UPDATED: Court blocks Biden’s student loan plan
On December 1, “the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans denied plaintiffs’ attempt to appeal an earlier decision by Texas judge Mark Pittman, who, on November 10, paused the forgiveness program, charging the executive with ‘unconstitutionally exercise[ing] ‘legislative powers’ vested in Congress.’”
The case is now expected to be heard by the Supreme Court in February of the new year.
