Student loan relief application temporarily blocked days after official release to public

The student loan forgiveness application for current college students and alumni with loans is now open for students to apply for debt relief. Graphic by SUKHMAN SAHOTA, art director

President Joe Biden’s long-awaited student loan forgiveness application is now available for college undergraduates and graduates to apply to as of Oct. 15. People have until Dec. 31, 2023 to fill out the application to see if they are eligible to receive forgiveness aid.

However, the relief plan has been regarded by some as controversial and has received backlash since the announcement of the application. Some say that this solution is not solving the root of the problem and others are calling the Supreme Court into action to block the relief program altogether. 

As of Oct. 21, the application has been temporarily blocked by a federal appeals court, with six Republican-led states calling for it: Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and South Carolina.

As stated in a previous article from The Panther regarding Biden’s plan, individuals that make less than $125,000 a year or $250,000 for married couples are eligible to receive relief aid of $10,000. Individuals that fall under the Pell Grant requirements can receive up to $20,000 in forgiveness aid. 

Biden gave a speech at Delaware University Oct. 21 about the new student loan forgiveness application and how the program has been in progress for some time.

“My commitment when I ran for the President of the United States: that if I was elected, I’d make the government work and deliver for the people,” Biden said. “A simple application process keeps that commitment, just as I’m keeping my commitment to relieve student debt as borrowers recover from the economic crisis caused by the once-in-a-lifetime pandemic.”

The application process itself was created to be very straightforward and simple to complete. Already over 8 million people have filled out the application and it can be completed in under five minutes. The application can be found on the Student Aid Government website.

When filling out the form, users must provide their name, social security number, birth date and contact information. At the bottom of the form, users must also sign and confirm that you meet the requirements to receive aid. Finally, they can submit the application and then wait to hear from their loan provider once their relief is processed.

Kathryn Nowell, a Chapman alumna who graduated this past spring with a degree in communication studies, previously shared her thoughts with The Panther on the relief plan when the announcement was first made. She has now applied for the program and is waiting to receive her results from the application.

“The application was super quick and easy,” Nowell said. “I am so excited that the process is finally starting.”

Not only does this program apply to college graduates with loans, but also to current students who have taken out federal loans in previous years. 

Amanda Palacios is a sophomore integrated educational studies major. She received an email that she was automatically being considered for the relief plan because the Office of Financial Aid had her information. 

“I was very excited about having loan forgiveness but was stressed about the process being long,” Palacios said. “My parents heavily relied on me to look into and apply for it.”

With the halt on the application process, both Nowell and Palacios have conflicting views against this action. 

“As disappointing as this is, I am not surprised,” Nowell said. “There have been challenges, and we will continue to have obstacles until the forgiveness plan is in full effect.”

With Palacios being a current student, she is relying on this relief to help her current burden of the loans she has taken out for the past two years. 

“I think that it is frustrating because of the loans that my family and I are taking out and I am only a sophomore,” Palacios said. “To go from a state of reassurance to the application now being on hold is shocking because I do not want to suffer financially for my education.”