Federal judge blocks new Biden-Harris student loan forgiveness plan from implementation

A federal judge in Georgia on Thursday temporarily blocked the Biden administration's proposal to forgive federal student loans for nearly 30 million borrowers after a group of seven state sued.

According to the ruling from U.S. District Judge J. Randal Hall, the seven states that sued the Biden administration have established a valid case that's likely to prove the Department of Education lacks the constitutional authority to implement the student loan cancellation proposal.

"Plaintiffs show a substantial likelihood of success on the merits given the rule's lack of statutory authority," the judge wrote in the ruling.

Missouri was one of the seven GOP-led states that sued the administration over the new plan, estimating that about $73 billion in loans could have been forgiven under the proposal initially with more to follow.

“The Biden-Harris Administration is dedicated to saddling working Americans with Ivy League debt, even if they have to break the law to do it. Our latest lawsuit challenges their third and weakest attempt to mass-cancel student loans in the dark of night without letting Congress – or the public – know about it. That’s illegal,” said Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey in a statement.

"We successfully halted their first two illegal student loan cancellation schemes; I have no doubt we will secure yet another win to block the third one," he added.