On Friday, the Biden Administration defied the Supreme Court and announced the approval of an additional $5 billion in debt cancelation for about 74,000 student loan borrowers.
The total number of students who have gotten their debt canceled has now toppled 3.7 million Americans, totaling $136.6 billion.
Last June, the Supreme Court shot down Biden's student loan relief plan because Congress had not approved it. Six conservative justices voted to strike down the plan, with three far-Left justices opposing it. This resulted in the higher court's 6-3 decision, which would have cost the government more than $400 billion.
In a statement, Biden said that public sector workers, such as teachers and firefighters, will have their debt erased after ten years of public service. He added that over 30,000 borrowers impacted by their loans have been in repayment for the past 20 years "but never got the relief they earned through income-driven repayment plans."
"From Day One of my Administration, I vowed to improve the student loan system so that a higher education provides Americans with opportunity and prosperity — not unmanageable burdens of student loan debt," Biden said. "I won't back down from using every tool at our disposal to get student loan borrowers the relief they need to reach their dreams."
Biden defended his defiance of the Supreme Court, stating that his administration acted legally.
"My Administration is able to deliver relief to these borrowers – and millions more – because of fixes we made to broken student loan programs that were preventing borrowers from getting the relief they were entitled to under the law," he continued.
Friday's announcement results from adjustments made by the Biden Administration to the income-driven repayment forgiveness and Public Service Loan Forgiveness programs. Last week, student loan borrowers were able to enroll in the Savings on Valuable Education (SAVE) plan who took out less than $12,000 in loans and have been in repayment for ten years. These borrowers will have their remaining debts zeroed out next month.
Republicans have criticized Biden's multi-billion dollar student loan programs, claiming it's a plea with Americans to win the 2024 election.
"President Biden is downright desperate to buy votes before the election — so much so that he greenlights the Department of Education to dump even more kerosene on an already raging student debt fire," said House Education Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.). "It's clear that the Biden administration needs a good old-fashioned dose of fiscal common sense — all it knows how to do is spend like a drunken sailor."