Ep. 75. Biden, SCOTUS, and Student Loan Debt Relief by Policy Outsider

In August 2022, the Biden administration announced a plan to cancel up to $20,000 in student loan debt for eligible borrowers. The plan, legally challenged almost immediately, was struck down in early July by the Supreme Court, ruling the Executive had overreached its authority. Then, on July 14, the Biden administration announced its latest move: using the negotiated rulemaking process under the Higher Education Act to forgive student loans, revising income-driven repayment plans, and providing more than 800,000 qualifying borrowers with nearly $40 billion in loan forgiveness. On the latest episode of Policy Outsider, Rockefeller Institute Director of Education Policy Studies Brian Backstrom and Fellow Rebecca Natow discuss the Supreme Court's ruling, the Biden administration's latest plan, and what comes next in the lengthy saga of addressing the nation's student loan debt crisis. Guests: Brian Backstrom, director of education policy studies, Rockefeller Institute Rebecca Natow, fellow, Rockefeller Institute & associate professor of educational leadership and policy, Hofstra University Learn More: States Step In: Relieving the Burden of Student Loan Debt Student Debt In New York State: A Compendium of Work by the Rockefeller Institute of Government State-Sponsored Child Investment Accounts: Helping Parents Save for Collage, Helping Students Avoid Loan Debt

Biden's backup for student loan relief will be long, risky

Negotiations over loan forgiveness will spotlight the Education Department’s complicated process to enact new rules—and are likely to frustrate borrowers in the process.

Biden has another plan for mass student loan forgiveness. It could be excruciatingly long

The Biden administration is using the Higher Education Act's "neg reg" process to craft a regulation so the government can cancel some student debt.

The Supreme Court struck down Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan. But he’s trying again.

The president had tried to cancel student loan debt for those earning up to $125,000 a year, which conservatives deemed financially imprudent and unfair.

Agency Rule List - Fall 2022