A federal court has put a temporary stop to President Joe Biden's student loan program. 

The Daily Caller reports that the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals did so on Thursday.

The program that is temporarily stopped is the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan.

The outlet explains, "The Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan, which was introduced in 2023, seeks to provide new repayment methods for student loan borrowers, including lowering monthly payments based on income and minimizing interest payments."

Here's what's going on:

The Attorneys General of several Republican states have been keeping a close eye on the Biden administration's attempt to unilaterally make changes to federal student loan repayment programs. Americans, for example, have seen repeated, unilateral attempts by the Biden administration to "forgive" large amounts of federal student loan debt.

The underlying question is to what extent the Biden administration has such authority to make such changes.

The Republican Attorneys General have argued that the Biden administration has repeatedly gone beyond the bounds of that authority, including with the SAVE Plan.

The actual case regarding the SAVE plan is still being litigated. What the Eight Circuit has done is stop Biden from trying to implement the SAVE plan while this litigation plays out.

In other words, the SAVE plan can still be approved or rejected by the courts, but, until then, it cannot be put into effect.

The White House responds

Biden's Education Department has put out a statement on the above court ruling.

"Today’s ruling from the 8th Circuit blocking President Biden’s SAVE plan could have devastating consequences for millions of student loan borrowers crushed by unaffordable monthly payments if it remains in effect. It’s shameful that politically motivated lawsuits waged by Republican elected officials are once again standing in the way of lower payments for millions of borrowers," Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said.

He went on to say that "Borrowers enrolled in the SAVE Plan will be placed in an interest-free forbearance while our Administration continues to vigorously defend the SAVE Plan in court."

The secretary concluded by offering a defense the SAVE plan.

"It wasn’t so long ago that a million borrowers defaulted on their student loans every single year, mainly because they couldn’t afford the payments. The SAVE plan is a bold and urgently needed effort to fix what’s broken in our student loan system and make financing a higher education more affordable in this country," he said.