A federal judge on Thursday extended a temporary restraining order prohibiting the Harris-Biden administration from canceling billions of dollars in student loans.
U.S. District Judge Randal Hall ruled that “good cause exists” to extend his Sept. 5 restraining order that blocked the Education Department’s $147 billion write-off effort for an additional 14 days.
“The extension will allow the Court to properly review and evaluate the briefs and arguments submitted by the Parties during the September 18, 2024 hearing and issue an Order addressing the pending motions,” Hall wrote.
Republican attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Missouri, North Dakota and Ohio sued President Biden and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona earlier this month, arguing the debt forgiveness plan would “illegally” cancel $73 billion in student loans held by the federal government “overnight.”
The plaintiffs are seeking a preliminary injunction against the plan, while the Harris-Biden administration has asked Hall to dismiss the suit.
The Harris-Biden administration plan would “forgive interest for millions of borrowers up to $20,000,” including those with household incomes above $240,000, and eliminate the balances of undergraduate student borrowers who have been paying off their loans for 20 years and graduate students who have been making payments for 25 years.
It would also cancel student debt from institutions that were once but are no longer part of any federal grant and loan programs, or non-degree programs and institutions that the Department of Education determined did not provide financial value to students.
The pause extension is the latest in a series of setbacks to President Biden’s efforts to cancel student loan debt.
In June, federal judges in Kansas and Missouri issued nationwide preliminary injunctions blocking the Harris-Biden administration from canceling more federal student debt for borrowers enrolled in the Savings for Valuable Education (SAVE) plan, which has an estimated cost of $475 billion.
The Supreme Court opted not to lift the injunction last month.
Last summer, the Supreme Court rejected an earlier attempt by Biden to forgive $400 billion in federal student loan debt.
