Biden has a new student loan forgiveness plan, and you can join a public hearing on it now
- On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Education is holding a public hearing on its alternative plan to cancel student debt.
- This round, President Joe Biden is relying on a different law to try to cancel people's debt — the Higher Education Act. The Supreme Court has ruled he didn't have the power to do so under the Heroes Act of 2003.
Following a Supreme Court ruling last month that effectively killed President Joe Biden's original student loan forgiveness plan, the White House is quickly moving ahead with a new strategy to deliver people relief.
This time, Biden will rely on a different law to try to legally erase student loan debt — the Higher Education Act. The justices concluded he didn't have the power to do so under the Heroes Act of 2003.
This new plan is the topic of an open hearing Tuesday at the U.S. Department of Education, where members of the public can weigh in on the latest relief package and learn more about how it will work.
"We look forward to participating in the negotiated rulemaking process and appreciate the Biden administration's willingness to deliver debt relief in the face of last month's unjust ruling by the Supreme Court," Mike Pierce, executive director of the Student Borrower Protection Center, said during the event.
More from Personal Finance:
Quiet luxury may be Americans' most expensive trend ever
Companies recognize importance of 'out of office' time
Cash-strapped consumers tip less amid persistent inflation
This hearing is the first phase of the process, and there will be an opportunity to submit your own public comment on it in the near future. For Tuesday, here's what to know.
Anyone can join: here's how
The virtual event is free and runs from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Eastern time. You can join the public hearing on student loan relief at Eventbrite.
Speakers will each have 4 minutes
Those who wanted to comment at the hearing had to send an email by noon on Monday to negreghearing@ed.gov.
If you didn't meet that deadline, it should still be an interesting event to listen in on, said higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz.
"They can hear what other people are saying," he said. Each person should speak for around four minutes.
There will also be a public comment period down the road, Kantrowitz said, during which anyone can submit their preferences and ideas on the subject.
Process could take a year or longer
Tuesday's hearing should influence Biden's proposed new rule for delivering people relief. The entire process could take a year or longer, Kantrowitz said.
That's because unlike with Biden's first attempt to forgive student debt quickly through an executive order, this time he's turning to the rulemaking procedure.
"If the Biden administration is successful in providing loan forgiveness under the HEA," Kantrowitz said, "borrowers could see forgiveness around the time of the election."