(TheConservativeTimes.com) – A federal court headed by three conservative judges dealt yet another blow to the Biden administration’s student debt forgiveness agenda, striking down a recently enacted rule by the Department of Education that would make it easier for student loan borrowers who believe they have been defrauded or misled by their college or university.
The ruling came from the Fifth U.S. Circuit of Appeals, which is headed by three conservative judges. The court placed a temporary injunction on the Department of Education’s rule after a request by the state-led organization Career Colleges and Schools of Texas (CCST). CCST is an organization composed of more than 70 different private and postsecondary institutions that prepare students for alternative career routes to college, such as entering a trade. The injunction is now pending appeal.
The rule enacted by the Department of Education would have allowed student loan borrowers to file a claim for student debt relief if they believed they were misled by their college or university or engaged in criminal activity. If the claim was to be accepted, a student debt borrower could have all of their debt wiped clean.
According to the original request by CCST, the Department of Education allegedly made the rule to unfairly favor students with traditional college educations, and that the language of the rule was specifically structured to allow student loan borrowers to have their debt forgiven, no matter the actual merits of their claim for relief.
In a statement to Newsweek on Monday, August 7, the Department of Education said it is reviewing the court order, and that the rule was intended to ease the burden on student loan borrowers who feel they have been taken advantage of by their institution.
The news comes as the Biden administration’s student debt forgiveness plan was struck down by the Supreme Court. Such a decision was part of a larger string of controversial decisions handed down from the conservative-controlled High Court, which also struck down Affirmative Action — or race-based college admissions — in both private and public colleges and universities.
The news also comes as the administration also recently announced it would be canceling $130 million in student loans for the 7,400 students at the now-defunct CollegeAmerica institution in Colorado.
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