Biden vetoes legislation to cancel student debt relief

WASHINGTON (TND) — President Joe Biden on Wednesday vetoed a bill that would have canceled his plan to forgive student debt.

It is a shame for working families across the country that lawmakers continue to pursue this unprecedented attempt to deny critical relief to millions of their own constituents, even as several of these same lawmakers have had tens of thousands of dollars of their own business loans forgiven by the Federal Government," Biden said in a statement announcing the veto.

The debt cancellation plan would forgive up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt for borrowers earning less than $125,000 per year.

The plan is currently being delayed while the Supreme Court debates whether the administration has the legal authority to unilaterally wipe away student debt. A decision on that case is expected by the end of this month.

Depending on the timing of the ruling, payments could resume up to a month earlier for borrowers. Sixty days after June 30, the date set in the debt deal, would reinstate payments and the accrual of interest in late August.

The pause on student loan debt was instituted during the Trump administration at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 and has been extended eight times since then. During the latest extension of the pause, the Biden administration said it would be the final one as it faces mounting pressure to get borrowers back into repayment.