President Joe Biden arrived at the Dane County Regional Airport 12 p.m. this afternoon and is set to speak on the Madison Technical College campus to announce his administration’s new student debt relief efforts.
Biden visited Wisconsin in January and March to announce infrastructure progress, making this his third visit to the state this year and tenth since taking office. The visit comes after Biden’s first wave of student debt relief — announced in August 2022 — was struck down by the Supreme Court in June of 2023.
In a 6-3 vote, SCOTUS determined Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona acted outside his authority under the Higher Education Opportunities for Students Act in promising more than $400 billion in student debt relief following the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the decision.
The current proposal was created with SCOTUS’ opinion in mind and will see Cardona provide relief with the legal authority the secretary has under the Higher Education Act, senior administration officials said in a press call.
“We have studied the Supreme Court’s decision carefully,” senior administration officials said. “We intend to pursue these regulations in a way that is entirely consistent with that decision. The plans differ from the administration’s prior academic relief proposal in a number of significant ways. And the department’s proceeding under different legal authority.”
The student relief plans are scheduled to be rolled out early this fall and will benefit a projected 30 million Americans, senior administration officials said.
