On Tuesday, Republican lawmakers unveiled a resolution under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) opposing President Joe Biden’s recent student loan initiatives, suggesting these measures unfairly burden the general American populace.
Earlier, on Aug. 22, President Biden rolled out his “Saving on a Valuable Education” (SAVE) plan. This initiative proposes to cancel $116.6 billion in student debt, potentially benefitting over 20 million Americans, as per information from the White House. However, Senators Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, John Thune of South Dakota, and John Cornyn of Texas view the proposal differently. They’ve initiated the CRA motion to challenge the president’s impulsive decision on student loans, contending it goes against a Supreme Court verdict from June on a related matter.
Senator Cassidy expressed concerns: “Biden’s latest student loan approach appears to transfer the financial responsibility from loan recipients to those who opted out of higher education or those who have already squared their debts.”
Furthermore, Biden’s newly proposed Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plan is designed to adjust monthly loan repayments in line with a debtor’s income and family size rather than the total loan amount. The White House highlights that this strategy could lead to several borrowers paying significantly reduced amounts or even nothing monthly. Additionally, undergraduate students might witness their monthly dues drop from 10 percent to a mere 5 percent of their discretionary income.
Despite these arguments, many Republicans remain skeptical. They worry that such policies might entice more citizens into accruing debt, given the prospect of future relief. Their apprehension is that the new approach might distort the federal student loan system, converting it into an indiscriminate grant scheme funded by taxpayers.
Senator Thune expressed his concerns: “Instead of devising a sustainable solution to the rising costs of tertiary education, President Biden seems more focused on grand student loan write-offs, potentially leaving the majority without such debts to foot the bill.
This proposal seems grossly unfair, especially to those who decided against college or managed their finances prudently during their studies. We are introducing this resolution to challenge President Biden’s recent, potentially ill-advised, and financially unwarranted student loan relief.”
It’s noteworthy that the Supreme Court had previously contested the Biden administration’s stance on a similar matter. They ruled that under the “Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions “(HEROES) Act, the president was overstepping his mandate by advocating for a nearly $40 million loan relief. The SAVE Act represents President Biden’s renewed efforts in this domain, though it isn’t under the purview of the HEROES Act.
