by Derek W. Black, University of South Carolina
There’s about US$430 billion on the line for 40 million people in the Supreme Court’s upcoming decisions on student debt forgiveness.
But for President Joe Biden, the extent of the executive branch’s power is also at stake.
In August 2022, Biden announced that the U.S. Department of Education would cancel federal student loan debt for borrowers making less than $125,000 a year. The plan was designed to blunt the continuing financial hardships student loan borrowers suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic.
By executive action, the president determined the secretary of education would cancel $20,000 of debt for borrowers who were Pell Grant recipients and $10,000 for others through the 2003 Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act, or HEROES Act. It empowers the federal government to change student loan programs in response to national emergencies.
But the state of Nebraska and six others challenged the program in federal court, claiming in part that it’s an overreach that violates the separation of powers. A second lawsuit, this one brought by two students, argued that the secretary of education did not have the authority to establish the plan and asked the federal court to set it aside. Both cases are now before the Supreme Court.
The Biden administration argues that none of the plaintiffs have suffered actual injuries and are not the proper parties to sue. But if the Supreme Court disagrees, it will then decide whether the administration followed the correct procedures in adopting the plan and whether executive power covers an expansive debt cancellation plan. The answers will rest on fundamental principles regarding how the Constitution divides power between Congress and the president.
The…
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