- Biden argues the program will help tens of millions of middle class borrowers.
- But critics, including six conservative states, say the administration exceeded its authority.
- The Supreme Court has set oral arguments for Feb. 28.
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden's administration on Wednesday urged the Supreme Court to uphold his beleaguered student loan forgiveness plan that would wipe away debt owed by tens of millions of Americans.
The nation's highest court will hear oral arguments next month in a pair of legal challenges over that plan. Opponents, including six conservative states, say the Biden administration overstepped its authority by creating the debt relief plan on its own.
Those challenging the effort, the administration argued in a brief Wednesday, don't have standing to sue because they're not directly harmed by the plan. If the court disagrees, the administration said, then the program is nevertheless permitted under law.
Lower courts have left "millions of economically vulnerable borrowers in limbo," the administration told the Supreme Court. The justices, it said, should not compel the "damaging and destabilizing result" the administration argues blocking the program will cause.
Lower federal courts have frozen implementation of Biden's loan program for months. In a separate move, the administration extended a pause on student loan payments until as late as June 30 – temporarily limiting the impact of those court decisions.
Biden's plan would cancel up to $20,000 in student loan debt for Pell Grant recipients, and $10,000 for other borrowers, for people earning up to $125,000 a year or part of a household where total earnings are no more than $250,000. More than 26 million Americans have already applied for the relief and the administration has estimated that 40 million people may be eligible.
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