U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona issued a statement on June 25, 2024, regarding recent rulings by district courts in Missouri and Kansas that impact the Biden-Harris Administration’s Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan.

“We strongly disagree with the Kansas and Missouri District Court rulings, which block components of the SAVE Plan that help student loan borrowers have affordable monthly payments and stay out of default. The Department of Justice will continue to vigorously defend the SAVE Plan," Cardona stated.

He emphasized that the SAVE Plan is designed to be the most affordable repayment plan in history. "We designed SAVE to cut undergraduate loan payments in half, avoid interest growth for borrowers making zero-dollar or low payments, and allow at-risk borrowers to reach forgiveness faster," he said. According to Cardona, nearly eight million Americans benefit from this plan.

Cardona criticized Republican elected officials and special interests for suing to block their constituents from benefiting from the plan. He noted that the Department has used its authority under the Higher Education Act three times over the past 30 years to implement income-driven repayment plans.

“While we continue to review these rulings, the SAVE plan still means lower monthly payments for millions of borrowers—including more than four million borrowers who owe no payments at all—and protections for borrowers facing runaway interest when they are making their monthly payments,” he added.

Cardona reaffirmed his commitment alongside President Biden and Vice President Harris to fixing what he described as a broken student loan system. “We remain proud of our work providing debt relief to more than 4.75 million Americans—including fixing the broken Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, providing income-driven repayment plans, relief for borrowers with disabilities, and relief for borrowers burdened with debt from predatory schools,” he concluded.