Here’s how many N.J. residents sought student loan forgiveness under Biden plan now in court
The U.S. Supreme Court is the only thing standing in the way of as many as 759,000 New Jerseyans receiving relief from some or all of their student loan debt, according to figures released Thursday by the White House.
An estimated 493,000 applications already were approved, with the remainder yet to be acted upon as federal courts temporarily suspended the program. Other state residents also could be eligible if the program is resumed.
The figures were released in advance of the Feb. 28 hearing before the U.S. Supreme Court on whether President Joe Biden’s loan forgiveness program was legal.
It was put on hold following lawsuits brought by Republican-led states and a conservative advocacy organization who claimed Biden didn’t have the authority to act.
Just 10 states had more applicants than New Jersey did, including New York with 1.5 million and Pennsylvania with 1.2 million. Nationally, 26.3 million people sought relief with 16.5 million of those applications approved.
The program is restricted to individuals making less than $125,000 and married couples making under $250,000. The White House said almost 90% of the benefits for borrowers no longer in school would go to individuals making less than $75,000.
“The pandemic had a tremendous impact on working- and middle-class families,” said Bharat Ramamurti, deputy director of the National Economic Council, said on a conference call with reporters.
Ramamurti said he expected the administration to prevail in the lawsuit.
“We feel confident in our authority,” he said.
For now, loan payments will remain suspended until the end of June. They were paused because of the coronavirus pandemic. If the loan program is thrown out, Ramamurti said the administration will decide how to respond and what its next steps will be.
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Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him at @JDSalant.
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