MILWAUKEE — President Joe Biden's student loan relief plan is facing another major setback. A federal judge in Texas struck down the program on Thursday, leaving millions of borrowers wondering what will happen next if anything at all.
UW-Milwaukee senior student Marissa Stewart said she's been counting on the relief. As a Pell Grant recipient, she's eligible for up to $20,000 dollars under Biden's plan.
"It's helpful because it would have taken care of pretty much all of the loans that I have taken out. It would just give me a fresh, clean start where if I wanted to get a car or a house or anything I don't have my loans just weighing on my shoulders," Stewart said.
But now that relief might not come for her and millions of others who had already applied for debt relief.
The ruling out of Texas forced the department of education to stop receiving applications altogether.
Borrowers like Stewart will now likely have to wait months before finding out if their student loans will be forgiven.
The federal government has already appealed the decision, but borrowers will have to wait for that to play out in the 5th Circuit Court. And the case is now more likely to head to the U.S. Supreme Court.
"This is something society wants us to do as far as getting an education and being educated so why can't society just not help us to pay it back and pay it forward," Stewart said in response to the relief plan getting blocked.
Borrowers can subscribe to updates from the Department of Education about the various legal challenges and when debt relief might be available again.
