Statement by U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona on the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals' Ruling on Biden-Harris Administration's Saving a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona today released the following statement about the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling on the Biden-Harris Administration's Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan:

"Today's ruling from the 8th Circuit blocking President Biden's SAVE plan could have devastating consequences for millions of student loan borrowers crushed by unaffordable monthly payments if it remains in effect. It's shameful that politically motivated lawsuits waged by Republican elected officials are once again standing in the way of lower payments for millions of borrowers.

"Borrowers enrolled in the SAVE Plan will be placed in an interest-free forbearance while our Administration continues to vigorously defend the SAVE Plan in court. The Department will be providing regular updates to borrowers affected by these rulings in the coming days.

"It wasn't so long ago that a million borrowers defaulted on their student loans every single year, mainly because they couldn't afford the payments. The SAVE plan is a bold and urgently needed effort to fix what's broken in our student loan system and make financing a higher education more affordable in this country. The Biden-Harris Administration remains committed to delivering as much relief as possible for as many borrowers as possible. Already, we've approved an unprecedented $169 billion in relief for nearly 4.8 million Americans, including teachers, veterans, and other public servants, students who were cheated by their colleges, borrowers with disabilities, and more. And from larger Pell Grants to free community college, President Biden, Vice President Harris, and I continue to believe that college affordability is a cause worth fighting for – and we're not giving up."