A federal judge will let a temporary restraining order against the Biden administration’s sweeping new student loan forgiveness plan expire, which will deliver financial relief to tens of millions of Americans.
When combined with the administration’s previous efforts, the plan could benefit as many as three in every four federal student loan holders, according to an estimate by the Center for American Progress.
U.S. District Judge Randal Hall in Georgia, who was appointed by former Republican President George W. Bush, ruled in favor of the Biden administration late on Wednesday, allowing President Joe Biden to forward with his administration’s student loan forgiveness plan just weeks before the November election.
The initial lawsuit against the aid package was brought by seven GOP-led states— Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Missouri, North Dakota, and Ohio — and claimed the Department of Education’s new debt cancellation effort is "illegal."
However, Judge Hall found that Georgia lacked standing to sue against the relief plan, and could not be the venue for the case, so he directed it to be transferred to Missouri.
The judge also wrote that the court agreed with the federal government's argument that the venue was improper. "Without standing, Georgia cannot provide the proper venue for the suit because a plaintiff that lacks standing cannot create a venue where it would not otherwise exist," Judge Hall wrote.
President Biden’s plan would forgive student debt for four groups of borrowers: those who owe more than they originally took out; people who’ve been in repayment already for decades; students from schools with a low financial value; and those who qualify for loan forgiveness under an existing program, but haven’t applied for it yet.