US House of Representatives vote to block Biden’s student debt relief program

If you borrowed money for college, you may now have to pay it back, like you agreed to when you signed the loan documents.

The US House of Representatives voted in favor of a bill that would claw back paused student loan payments and block the president’s student debt forgiveness program.

The bill called the Congressional Review Act (CRA) was passed by a 218-203 vote, with at least two Democratic representatives appearing to support the measure.

The House resolution would repeal the administration’s program to cancel between $10,000 and $20,000 in loans for borrowers whose income falls below certain levels or who have received a Pell Grant. The legislation would also end a pandemic-era pause on loan payments and interest accrual.

Republicans have sharply criticized the Biden administration’s program, arguing it burdens taxpayers and is unfair to Americans who have already paid off their loans or who did not attend college. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that repealing the program would decrease the federal deficit by about $315 billion in the next decade.

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimated that if the measure passed, it would reduce deficits by $316 billion through 2033. The public policy nonprofit instead said the administration should “find a bipartisan path forward that truly reforms the system,” CRFB President Maya MacGuineas said in a statement.