Supreme Court, for Now, Keeps Block on Revamped Biden Student Debt Plan

The new plan was part of a piecemeal approach to student debt after the justices rejected a proposal last year that would have canceled more than $400 billion in loans.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday maintained a temporary pause on a new effort by President Biden to wipe out tens and perhaps hundreds of billions of dollars of student debt.

The plan was part of the president’s piecemeal approach to forgiving student debt after the Supreme Court rejected a more ambitious proposal last year that would have canceled more than $400 billion in loans. Mr. Biden has instead pursued more limited measures directed at certain types of borrowers, including people on disability and public service workers, and refined existing programs.

The Supreme Court’s order leaves in limbo millions of borrowers enrolled in the Biden administration’s SAVE program, which ties monthly payments to household size and earnings. The plan was upended by an appeals court decision last month.

The justices’ order, in response to an emergency application by the Biden administration, was one of two related to the program released on Wednesday. The brief order did not give reasons, which is typical, and no public dissents were noted.

The decision is the latest blow to the Biden administration’s debt-relief efforts, which Republican-led states have repeatedly challenged.

The justices’ order focused on a lawsuit that had reached the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, in St. Louis. In mid-July, the appeals court issued a broad hold on the program, granting a request by a group of Republican-led states to pause the plan while the courts considered the merits of the case.