The Supreme Court ruled Biden used the wrong law to cancel student debt. He's trying again with a different one.

• The Supreme Court struck down Biden's student-loan forgiveness on Friday.
• But the justices did not say the president cannot attempt relief using a different route.

President Joe Biden's student-loan forgiveness plan is dead. But it's not necessarily the end of the road.

On Friday, the Supreme Court decided in a 6-3 ruling that Biden's plan to cancel up to $20,000 in student debt cannot move forward. This was a major decision after months of limbo for millions of student-loan borrowers. Since November, the relief had been on pause due to two conservative-backed lawsuits that blocked the president's plan.

Friday's ruling came in two separate decisions. One of the cases, US Department of Education v. Brown, was filed on behalf of two student-loan borrowers who sued because they did not qualify for the full $20,000 amount of relief. The Supreme Court ruled that those borrowers did not have standing to sue, and dismissed the case.

The second ruling concerned Biden v. Nebraska, which was the result of six Republican-led states suing under the argument that debt relief would hurt their states' tax revenues, and the revenue of student-loan company MOHELA. The majority ruled that the states had standing to involve MOHELA in their case, and the law Biden used to cancel student debt demonstrated an overreach of authority. That decision, authored by Chief Justice John Roberts, struck down the president's plan.

While this decision is a major blow to many borrowers who have been waiting for months to learn their fate, it's important to note that the ruling only strikes down Biden's plan as it pertains to using the HEROES Act of 2003. It doesn't prohibit the president from attempting debt relief using another law.

"This fight is not over," Biden said in a statement following the decision.

"I believe that the Court's decision to strike down our student debt relief plan is wrong," he added. "But I will stop at nothing to find other ways to deliver relief to hard-working middle-class families. My Administration will continue to work to bring the promise of higher education to every American."

The Higher Education Act of 1965

Hours after the Supreme Court ruling, Biden shed more light on how the fight will continue; he announced his Education Department is beginning the process of using the Higher Education Act of 1965. The Supreme Court majority took issue with Biden's usage of the HEROES Act of 2003, which allows the Education Secretary to waive or modify student-loan balances in connection with a national emergency, like COVID-19. The Higher Education Act would not require a national emergency to get relief to millions of borrowers.

"Today, I am urging the Biden Administration to implement a Plan B immediately to cancel student debt for tens of millions of Americans who are struggling to pay the rent, put food on the table, and pay for the basic necessities of life," Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders said in a Friday statement. "Despite this legally unsound Supreme Court decision, the President has the clear authority under the Higher Education Act of 1965 to cancel student debt. He must use this authority immediately."

Other Democratic lawmakers have previously joined Sanders in pushing for the Higher Education Act— but Biden has yet to comment on if he will go that route.

In September 2020, the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School wrote a memo for Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren outlining why the Act gives the Education Secretary authority to cancel student debt broadly.

"The Secretary has the Secretary has the authority to modify a loan to zero, and exercises this authority even in the absence of any implementing regulations," the memo read.

Warren is continuing to push for an alternate route. "This fight isn't over," she said in a Friday statement. "The President has additional legal tools to cancel student debt — and he should use them. This Supreme Court needs to follow the law, not make policy decisions."

What's next for borrowers

While Biden has vowed to push for additional relief for borrowers, payments are still scheduled to resume this fall. The Education Department recently confirmed that interest will resume on student loans in September, and borrowers will start repayment October — regardless of the outcome of the Supreme Court decision.

However, Biden also announced on Friday that the Education Department will be implementing a 12 -month "on-ramp" to repayment from October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2024 to ensure "financially vulnerable borrowers who miss monthly payments during this period are not considered delinquent, reported to credit bureaus, placed in default, or referred to debt collection agencies." The department also finalized its new income-driven repayment plan that borrowers can enroll in prior to the payment resumption.

Although many Democratic lawmakers have urged Biden to not restart payments until borrowers get his broad debt relief, the president codified the end of the student-loan payment pause in the debt-ceiling bill he recently signed into law due to requests from Republican lawmakers who have opposed debt relief.

"Mr. President, good riddance to your illegal, economically disastrous taxpayer-funded bailout for the wealthy," top Republican on the House education committee Virginia Foxx said in a Friday statement. "I had hoped you would have greater respect for taxpayers and the Constitution, but I am pleased the Court stepped in to hold you accountable."

Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley told Insider in a Friday interview that the most important thing Biden and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona can ensure right now is "swift action" to get borrowers relief.

"There's a reverberating impact from the draconian actions of this super legislature, which is not elected, that is continuing to operate, I think, in the absence of justice," Pressley said. "And so I'm going to continue to to organize, to advocate, and to push on behalf of these borrowers because I know just how consequential this is. And I'm calling on President Biden and Secretary Cardona to act swiftly, decisively, to act aggressively to deliver relief, meaningful relief, to the borrowers that delivered this White House."

Do you have a story to share about student debt? What's your reaction to the Supreme Court decision? Reach out to this reporter at asheffey@insider.com.