Student loan borrowers share debt burdens because states argue that cancellation is illegal

Hundreds of activists and borrowers traveled to the Supreme Court on Tuesday as President Joe Biden’s administration defended its student debt cancellation plan in oral arguments before the justices.

Some of the program’s supporters said they camped out the night before, braving the low temperatures and rain, for nearly four hours of questioning by Supreme Court justices in two cases facing Biden – – and most of the time lent to law enforcement. brought by six GOP-led states, which argued that Biden’s debt forgiveness plan exceeded its legal authority and the federal government argued that the states had no standing to try to block what they called relief vital economic.

Biden first implemented his cancellation plan in August, intending to begin forgiving loans in late 2022. He announced at the time that his administration would forgive up to $10,000 of federal student loan debt in against the borrower, as long as they made under $125,000 or $250,000 annually. as a married couple, and an additional $10,000 for recipients of Pell grants, which are given to low-income families.

But the plan, which the White House said could be used by about 40 million Americans, was halted in a lawsuit in November.

On Tuesday in Washington, the cases to decide the fate of the program succeeded a young crowd of college students and recent graduates from around the country.

Kiara Palmer, a 33-year-old who said she incurred more than $50,000 in student loan debt while getting a master’s degree from American University, told ABC News that the Trump and Biden administrations are suspending payments for three years during the COVID-19 pandemic — a taste of what debt cancellation would look like — gave her breathing room to make a house payment. That was a big step for her, she said, since her own mother had faced foreclosure on her home after taking out loans to get a teaching degree.

“I had to do something I never thought would happen,” Palmer said.

“When you’re in debt like that, $53,000 … you can’t focus on anything but that. And your aspirations, your future, your goals are hurt,” she said.

As for those who oppose debt relief, Palmer cited taxpayer-funded economic aid during past prosperity as evidence of precedent.

“We have a lot of rescuers. Why not release the next generation?” she said.

Kianna Harrison and Kennedy Crawford, both students at North Carolina A&T State University, a historically Black institution, said they took an overnight bus to get to the Supreme Court in time for arguments. The trip was organized by the NAACP.

If the debt forgiveness plan goes through, it would wipe out what Harrison and Crawford owe, they said — and reset the student loan burden from generation to generation. They said they have been watching their parents pay off student debt all their lives.

“My mom is in her late 40s and she still has loans and that’s what scares me,” said Harrison, who wants to be a physician’s assistant when she graduates. “I don’t want to be like that.”

Harrison, who chose a school where she received both a partial scholarship and in-state tuition, knew she would graduate with some debt no matter which college she chose to attend because of the systems in place. She said she wished that attitude would change, however.

“Because it seems like we’re educationally embarrassed — because you have to pay back an education, like you did something wrong,” she said. “You’ll look back on it with horror, and that’s not how I want to see my education. I want to look at it with pride, happiness.”

As Harrison spoke, Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, the two progressive lawmakers who have pushed the Biden administration to act on loan cancellations, took the podium in front of the Supreme Court, cheering the crowd and urging the justices to rule in their favor.

Unrelieved, Sanders argued, younger borrowers would buckle under the weight of higher debt.

“I’ve talked to people all over this country who delay having a family, don’t have any kids, can’t afford a car, can’t afford a middle-class life because they are drowning. student debt,” Sanders said.

“In America, you shouldn’t have to face financial ruin because you want a damn education,” he said.

Warren, a lawyer and former law professor, said she has read the HEROES Act — the law the Biden administration acted under — and believes the plan is legal.

“We are here today because President Biden has the legal authority to cancel student loan debt. Let me say that again and let them hear it inside,” Warren said.

“It’s time for the Supreme Court to stop the politics and apply the law and let us cancel this debt,” she said.

But Republicans, inside the court arguing the case and across the street on Capitol Hill, firmly agree.

North Carolina Rep. Virginia Foxx, chairwoman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, has called the program “illegal” since it was first implemented.

“(Borrowers) are in legal limbo because the Biden administration is trying to do something it shouldn’t be doing,” Foxx said in an interview.

“These people knowingly and willingly borrowed money to further their education. They should be responsible for paying back their loans,” she said.

Foxx is one of the most passionate members of Congress fighting the plan, even though more than 100 members of her congress have signed court filings declaring the Biden administration’s use of the HEROES Act, which gives the education secretary broad authority alleviate financial hardship. for federal student loan recipients during a disaster, it is outdated.

“He’s trying to use a law that was intended for something to help firefighters and police officers after 9/11,” Foxx said. “It’s illegal. It shouldn’t be done.”

But borrowers, who braved the cold, rainy conditions on Tuesday morning, were more focused on the impact of having their debt forgiven than the means to achieve it.

“It would take a lot of stress off my family,” said Glenn Lopez, a freshman attending Morgan State University in Baltimore. “It would take a lot of stress out of me, really. And it really relieves the anxiety and stress of thinking about it on a daily basis.”

Lopez estimates he will be up to $20,000 in debt after the first year.

When asked how many of his classmates he knows are also taking out loans to pay for school, he said, “Everybody. I know everybody.”

ABC News’ Jay O’Brien contributed to this report.