Trump-appointed judge throws monkey wrench into Biden's student debt plan

A US judge in Texas state has blocked President Joe Biden's plan to provide millions of borrowers with up to $20,000 apiece in federal student-loan forgiveness.

District Court Judge Mark Pittman, an appointee of ex-president Donald Trump based in Fort Worth, said on Thursday, the programme usurped Congress' power to make laws.

Pittman in a 26-page ruling wrote that the HEROES Act — a law that provides loan assistance to military personnel and that was relied upon by the Biden administration to enact the relief plan — did not authorise the $400 billion student loan forgiveness programme.

"The Programme is thus an unconstitutional exercise of Congress's legislative power and must be vacated," Pittman wrote.

The debt forgiveness plan would cancel $10,000 in student loan debt for those making less than $125,000 or households with less than $250,000 in income. 

Pell Grant recipients, who typically demonstrate more financial need, would get an additional $10,000 in debt forgiven.

The cancellation applies to federal student loans used to attend undergraduate and graduate school, along with Parent Plus loans.

READ MORE: US students weigh in on Biden's loan forgiveness plan

Cancellation of $430B of $1.6T student debt

Biden's plan has been the subject of several lawsuits by conservative state attorneys general and legal groups, though plaintiffs before Thursday had struggled to convince courts they were harmed by it in such a way that they have the standing to sue.

The White House and representatives for the plaintiffs did not respond immediately to requests for comment.

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office in September calculated that debt forgiveness would eliminate about $430 billion of the $1.6 trillion in outstanding student debt and that over 40 million people were eligible to benefit.

READ MORE: Biden unveils major student loan forgiveness plan