A small group of Republican-led states have formally requested that the US Supreme Court intervene to halt President Joe Biden’s second initiative to forgive billions of dollars in student loan debt. The states of Texas, South Carolina, and Alaska addressed their emergency request to Justice Neil Gorsuch on Tuesday. This comes as part of an effort to annul a lower court order, which permits the Education Department to commence the cancellation of student debt under a new rule beginning on August 1.
The petition follows the Biden administration’s ongoing attempts to alleviate student debt burdens, which have faced frequent legal and political challenges. The states argue that the administration lacks the authority to cancel the debt and seek to prevent the implementation of the rule established by the Education Department.
As the justice assigned to the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, Justice Gorsuch will oversee the initial response to this emergency request. The appeals court had issued the order that the states are now seeking to overturn.
Further details on this developing legal battle can be found on Bloomberg Law.