WASHINGTON, D.C. – Last week, Rep. Burgess Owens (UT-04), Chairman of the Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee, joined Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (NC-5) and 126 House Republicans to file an amicus brief with the United States Supreme Court in their review of the Biden administration’s student loan bailout, which exploits legislation drafted in the wake of the September 11^th Attacks that was meant to assist service members and veterans. 

“Every person who agreed to a student loan did so with the full and transparent commitment to pay the money back,” said Rep. Owens. “Transferring that debt to hardworking families, creating an offramp for responsibility, and abusing the HEROES Act is deceptive public policy with abysmal economic implications. It’s also a slap in the face to millions of Americans who worked hard to pay off their loans. Rather than focus on responsible reforms to the federal student loan program, President Biden has proposed a temporary $230 billion band-aid that will exacerbate inflation and add $60 billion to our country’s deficit. We must do better.” 

“The Biden administration’s student loan bailout is a political gambit engineered by special interest groups; abusing the HEROES Act for such a ploy is shameful,” said Chairwoman Foxx. “Moreover, this administration is bypassing Congress, which is elected by the American people to protect their interests. Congress is the only body with the authority to enact sweeping and fundamental changes of this nature, and it is ludicrous for President Biden to assume he can simply bypass the will of the American people.”

The full text of the brief is available here.

Background:

House Republicans repeatedly expressed concerns about the authority of the Secretary of Education and the Biden administration to enact widespread student loan debt cancellations. The Biden administration is exploiting language in the 2003 HEROES Act to waive the student loans of millions of Americans who do not qualify.

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