Student loan forgiveness plan on the line in Supreme Court

While the U.S. Supreme Court debates the constitutionality of President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan, students are confused about the future of their debt.

The conservative majority court is not expected to rule in favor of Biden’s plan for student loan relief. The Supreme Court needs a majority vote among the nine justices for a decision to be made.

Biden’s plan is to forgive as much as $20,000 per borrower. Student loan debt in America totals approximately $1.757 trillion.

College debt has more than tripled since 2006 due to yearly rising tuition costs, much of that resulting from a 2,807% increase in tuition from 1970-2022, according to the Education Data Initiative.

“I think it’s great that $20,000 can be forgiven, but what about all of the people before and after the pandemic who will have to pay thousands of dollars in loans? College is just too expensive,” said University of Central Oklahoma student Mackenzie McDaniel.

Many Supreme Court judges paid less for college when they graduated in the 1970s through the 1990s, in contrast to today’s prices.

Justice Clarence Thomas’ tuition at College of the Holy Cross was approximately $14,550, as opposed to today’s Holy Cross tuition of about $300,000, according to a study from Take Back the Court, an action fund fighting to balance the conservative-leaning Supreme Court.

Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the youngest of the judges, graduated in 1994 with an estimated tuition total of $70,664 compared to today’s tuition of $273,112.

“Those who took out loans and paid them in full might be upset that their loan wasn’t forgiven. Also those who chose to forgo college, seeing that they could have gotten $20,000 forgiven,” said UCO Accounting Instructor Riley Shaull. “The hardworking taxpayer has to pick up the cost of the loan for each student.”

Approximately 39 million students will benefit from the program if it passes, which can cost upwards of $7.8 billion.

The Supreme Court is unsure if Biden has the authority to enact loan forgiveness for so many students.

Although, Biden’s administration argues that the HEROES Act passed in 2003 ensures student loan borrowers cannot be financially hurt as much during times of national emergency.

This was signed in response to 9/11, and the Biden administration includes COVID-19 as a national emergency.

Despite being the underdog in court, Biden’s plan might have a chance.

Biden administration lawyer Elizabeth Prelogar argued in favor of the forgiveness. She is the

Solicitor General of the United States and is the fourth-highest ranking official in the Department of Justice.

The federal student loan forgiveness program started in 2020 in response to COVID. Currently, the government has paused applications for the loan forgiveness program due to the in-progress discussions at the Supreme Court.

If student loan forgiveness fails to make it through the Supreme Court, then federal loan payments will begin in 60 days from the decision.

Oklahoma’s February 2022 tornadoes kill one, injure thirteen

Matilda Harvey Contributing Writer

Over the course of the evening of Feb. 26, 2023, a series of tornadoes occurred across the state of Oklahoma.

The tornadoes ranged from EF0 to EF2. The Enhanced Fujita scale measures the strength of tornadoes. EF0 is considered weak, with wind speeds of 65 to 85 mph. EF1 is also weak but has wind speeds of 86 to 110 mph. EF2 is a strong tornado with wind speeds of 111 to 135 mph.

The first tornado was at 7:13 p.m. in Roger Mills county. In an EF2 tornado, one person was killed and three were injured. The tornado’s path was seven miles long and five hundred yards wide.

At 9:09 p.m., there was another EF2 tornado in McClain/ Cleveland Counties. Although there were no deaths, 12 injuries were reported. The tornado’s path was 27 miles long and seven hundred yards wide.

The third EF2 tornado of the night occurred at 9:45 p.m. in Pottawatomie/Lincoln Counties. There were no deaths or injuries connected to this tornado. The tornado’s path was six miles long and 200 hundred yards wide. All data is from NOAA and the National Weather Service.

In 2023, there have been 17 tornadoes as of the end of February, with five occurring in January. The 2022 tornado season didn’t begin until Mar. 21, 2022.

This across Halstead, Kansas, on Wednesday,

6, 2015.

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