A group of 130 Republicans in Congress is calling for the Biden administration to withdraw $147 billion in student-loan bailouts that were approved last month. Led by lawmakers such as Virginia Foxx and Bill Cassidy, the GOP members argue that taxpayers are being burdened with the debt of nearly 28 million borrowers through this bailout, which they consider fiscally irresponsible and illegal. They believe that the administration is using borrowers as political pawns in an attempt to enact ‘free’ college.
In June 2023, the US Supreme Court rejected Biden’s attempt to cancel $430 billion in student loans, citing a lack of authority to write off federal student loans en masse. Since then, the Education Department has been utilizing a piecemeal approach to forgiving much of that debt under the Higher Education Act of 1965. However, the Republicans claim that this approach is also unconstitutional, as it relies on creating regulations from outdated statutory text that has never been used extensively in the past.
President Biden had promised to forgive portions of federally-held student loan debt during his 2020 presidential campaign, a pledge that Education Secretary Miguel Cardona has stood by. The administration is committed to providing relief to as many borrowers as possible, and Biden has even visited key swing states to promote his efforts to cancel student debt. This move has been criticized by Republicans as an attempt to buy votes ahead of the upcoming elections.
According to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, the cost of Biden’s latest debt cancellation move, along with previous programs, could reach between $870 billion and $1.4 trillion. A significant portion of the debt has already been cancelled through programs like Biden’s Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan, which offers income-driven repayment and forgiveness of up to $25,000 on average for households earning over $312,000 annually. Despite these efforts, the Education Department did not respond to a request for comment on the matter.
The Republicans are urging the Biden administration to reconsider their approach to student loan forgiveness and to adhere to legal and fiscal responsibilities in addressing the issue. The letter to the Education Department highlights concerns about the misuse of taxpayer funds, the lack of authority to write off debt en masse, and the potential negative impacts of these actions. With ongoing debates surrounding student loan forgiveness and the looming costs associated with it, it remains to be seen how the Biden administration will respond to these Republican demands and navigate the complex landscape of higher education debt relief.
