Judge dismisses attempt by Missouri, other states to block Biden debt forgiveness program

An attempt to block the Biden administration's student debt forgiveness program in court by Missouri and several other states was dismissed by a federal judge Thursday.

Judge Henry Edward Autrey, appointed by former President George W. Bush, sided with the federal government in an opinion ruling that the six states' case failed to establish legal standing. His decision came just an hour after Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett declined to hear a separate legal challenge attempting to block the program, meaning it will remain in effect.

The White House's plan seeks to forgive up to $20,000 per individual for an estimated 40 million Americans. Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, along with AGs from Nebraska, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina, alleged in their lawsuit that the Biden administration had overstepped federal authority in establishing their program, and that the plan would put the finances of state loan servicers and holders at risk.

More:Missouri sues to block Biden's student debt cancellation program, joining 5 other states

Autrey wrote in his ruling that the states "present important and significant challenges" to the plan but that they failed to establish a proper legal foundation to determine that the specific challenges violated federal law.

Regarding Missouri's case specifically, he wrote that the state "fails to connect the alleged harms to MOHELA," a student loan servicer based in St. Louis, to the state itself. He cited a lack of any prior cases where Missouri has sued on behalf of MOHELA or stepped in to protect its financial obligations.

"The express financial separation of MOHELA established by Missouri law and the lack of any obligation for Missouri to pay MOHELA's debts, strongly militates against finding MOHELA to be an 'arm of the state,'" Autrey wrote. "Missouri has not met its burden to show that it can rely on harms allegedly suffered by MOHELA."

From USA TODAY:Supreme Court denies challenge to Biden's student loan forgiveness program

A spokesperson for the Missouri AG's office said he planned to appeal the decision; an official appeal to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals was filed later Thursday evening. Schmitt, who is also the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, had previously criticized the program and called it an "unlawful edict."

"The Biden Administration’s push to cancel student loan debt will unfairly burden working class families with even more economic woes," spokesperson Chris Nuelle said in an email.

In a statement posted to social media Thursday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said "Republican members of Congress and Republican governors are doing everything they can to deny student debt relief to their own constituents.

"POTUS won't stop fighting these suits and working to help families as they recover from the pandemic," Jean-Pierre said.

Schmitt and the other states' lawsuit came weeks after private talks were reportedly held among Republican lawmakers and conservative groups, including Schmitt, strategizing how to challenge the program in court.

Galen Bacharier covers Missouri politics & government for the News-Leader. Contact him at gbacharier@news-leader.com, (573) 219-7440 or on Twitter @galenbacharier.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Judge dismisses Missouri attempt to block Biden student debt relief