Supreme Court Draws on Flawed “Major Questions” Theory to Strike Down Student Loan Debt Relief

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court today struck down President Biden’s student debt relief program, drawing on the same so-called “major questions” rationale the majority relied on a year ago to the day in West Virginia v EPA.

Ian Fein, senior counsel for litigation strategy at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council), made the following statement:

“A year to the day after narrowing the EPA’s options for cleaning up dirty power plants, the Court has relied on the same made-up ‘major questions’ theory to once more strike down popular federal action the conservative majority doesn’t support. The public should be alarmed by this new tool the Court has given itself to veto high-profile policy decisions of an administration the majority dislikes.

“This power grab by the Court will make it harder for our federal government to meet critical national challenges—such as climate change or crushing student loan debt. The Court must do better than this.”

NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Established in 1970, NRDC uses science, policy, law, and people power to confront the climate crisis, protect public health, and safeguard nature. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, Beijing and Delhi (an office of NRDC India Pvt. Ltd). Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.