Republicans announce resolution to scrap Biden student loan forgiveness plan
Ryan King
Video Embed
Rep. Bob Good (R-VA) and Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) announced legislation Monday to scrap President Joe Biden‘s student loan forgiveness program.
Under the resolution, Congress will express disapproval of the student loan cancellation plan to overturn the program, which is stuck in limbo amid a court battle. The resolution will need a simple majority to clear the Senate and is expected to draw a veto from Biden.
HOW SENATE REPUBLICANS COULD TANK BIDEN’S STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM THIS WEEK
“The student loan transfer plan is just the latest in a series of costly moves by the Biden Administration which continue to drive up inflation. Rep. Good’s Joint Resolution would allow Congress to formally revoke the authority the administration claimed it had to forgive loans,” a press release read.
https://twitter.com/AndrewSolender/status/1640348699116072960
On the Senate side, Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) are backing the Congressional Review Act resolution alongside Cassidy, the ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
“President Biden is not forgiving debt. He is shifting the burden of student loans off of the borrowers who willingly took on their debt and placing it onto those who chose to not go to college or already fulfilled their commitment to pay off their loans,” Cassidy said.
Some 38 House Republicans are co-sponsoring the legislation, and multiple groups, such as the National Taxpayers Union, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, Heritage Action, and the America First Policy Institute, are backing the proposal, according to a press release.
Earlier this month, the Government Accountability Office said the student loan cancellation plan is subject to the Congressional Review Act, which gives Congress the authority to dismantle certain regulations within a set time frame.
Once the GAO gave the green light, Republicans signaled plans to bring forth legislation to overturn the program, which is estimated to cost $400 billion, per the Congressional Budget Office.
Biden unveiled the student loan forgiveness plan last August to much fanfare from progressives. Under the initiative, borrowers with an annual income of $125,000 or less can have up to $10,000 in federal student loans canceled, while those who received Pell Grants during their schooling can have up to $20,000 wiped out.
The program stems from the 2003 HEROES Act, which grants the executive power to relieve student loan debt in times of national emergency or war. Critics have pointed out that Biden deemed the COVID-19 pandemic was “over” in a 60 Minutes interview last year. The pandemic was used as justification for using the HEROES Act.
Last November, a lower court in Texas halted the program amid pending legal challenges. The Supreme Court is expected to rule on the program’s legality by June or July.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The White House says it has amassed roughly 26 million applications and approved 16 million for relief, but cancellation has not yet taken place amid the legal wrangling.
Biden used his veto power for the first time last week to reject a resolution that would’ve nixed a Labor Department rule permitting retirement plans to take into account environmental, social, and governance considerations in investment decisions.