SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, March 29, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes has joined a lawsuit over President Joe Biden‘s renewed attempts to cancel student loan debt.
In the complaint, Kansas v. Biden, states contend Biden’s actions are unlawful, citing a Supreme Court decision in June 2023 on the U.S. Department of Education‘s first attempt to cancel student debts under the HEROES Act.
“This attempt by the Biden administration at massive student loan forgiveness is a desperate and purely political election-year maneuver,” Reyes said. “The last Biden loan forgiveness program was struck down as unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2023. Instead of accepting such a clear legal rebuke, the White House blithely ignores precedent and acts like this version is somehow different and less offensive. In fact, the current proposal is even more problematic because it relies on numbers and calculations from its first failed attempt that are invalid and unsustainable.”
In the lawsuit, states argue that the Department of Education violates separation of powers, and exceeds its statutory authority and jurisdiction.
Kansas and Utah are joined in the lawsuit by fellow Republican attorneys general in Alabama, Alaska, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Nebraska, South Carolina and Texas.
In the previous case, Biden v. Nebraska, the Supreme Court voted 6-3 vote in favor of a 17-state coalition to reject the program that sought to deliver up to $20,000 of relief to millions of borrowers struggling with outstanding debt.
In the written decision, Chief Justice John Roberts said the Biden administration rewrote the law and the action required direct authorization from Congress.
