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President Joe Biden's student loan-forgiveness plan was temporarily blocked by a federal appeals court on Friday, delaying distribution of up to $20,000 in debt relief for more than 40 million eligible borrowers. This effort is separate from a Wisconsin taxpayer's group's challenge to the program that was rejected by the Supreme Court last week.
The Biden administration can't discharge any student loans until the 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis rules on an injunction request from six GOP-led states (Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina) challenging the legality of the debt relief plan.
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Attorneys for the states asked the court to revive their lawsuit over the plan after it was dismissed Thursday by a federal judge who determined that the states wouldn't suffer any direct harm if the plan went into effect.
The states asked the appeals court to temporarily block rollout of the plan while their case proceeds, and the court issued an unsigned emergency order late Friday pausing any debt relief while they consider the request. The appeals court gave the administration until Monday to respond to the states' request and the states will have until Tuesday to reply to that response.
The Biden administration opened applications for its debt relief program earlier this month. Under the plan as much as $20,000 in federal student loans for certain borrowers making less than $125,000 per year or $250,000 for households would be forgiven.
The court order doesn't prevent borrowers from applying, or the government from reviewing the applications, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.
"We will continue to move full speed ahead in our preparations in compliance with this order," Jean-Pierre said. "The administration will continue to fight Republican officials suing to block our efforts to provide relief to working families."
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