President Joe Biden announced Tuesday the extension of the pause on federal student loans payments until June 30, 2023. His plan to forgive federally held student debt faces increasing legal challenges.

Biden, in a brief video released Tuesday afternoon by the White House, expresses confidence that his plan to forgive thousands of student loans to borrowers earning less than $125,000. However, he states that the extension would allow for the Supreme Court to hear any legal challenges to it during its current term.

The president states in the video that “As Americans continue recovering from the pandemic,” his administration has worked to provide student loan relief to millions of working-class and middle-class families across America. “But Republican special interests and elected officials sued to deny the relief to their constituents. However, I am confident that my plan is legal.

After being suspended in March 2020 by Trump’s administration due to the COVID-19 pandemic, student loan payments were scheduled to resume on January 1. Since then, the pause was extended several times by Biden’s administration, most recently in august.

The August extension was announced as the last. It was also accompanied by an announcement that student loan borrowers with less than $125,000 would be eligible for $20,000 in loan forgiveness, if they received a Pell Grant, and $10,000 in forgiveness for all other students.

The plan was initially announced in the beginning, but it has been challenged by multiple legal issues and was recently stopped by the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals. Circuit Court of Appeals. Last week, the Biden administration filed an urgent request to the Supreme Court to have the plan restored.

Biden states in the video, “We are not going to back down on our fight to give families breathing space.” “That is why the Department of Justice has asked the Supreme Court of the United States for a ruling on the case. It is unfair to ask tens to millions of borrowers who are eligible for relief to resume student debt payments, while the courts examine the lawsuit.

The president continued, “I won’t apologize for helping middle-class and working-class families recover after the economic crisis caused by the pandemic.” “And I’ll keep working to ensure that government delivers for all Americans.”