[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4666 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4666
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to modernize and improve the
public service loan forgiveness program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 22, 2021
Mr. Panetta (for himself, Mr. Cuellar, and Mrs. McBath) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and
Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to modernize and improve the
public service loan forgiveness program, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Modernization Act''.
SEC. 2. REPAYMENT PLAN FOR PUBLIC SERVICE EMPLOYEES.
Section 455(m) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
1087e(m)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (2), the following:
``(3) Program modernization.--
``(A) Database of public service employers.--
``(i) Establishment.--The Secretary, in
consultation with the Commissioner of the
Internal Revenue Service, shall establish and
regularly update a comprehensive database that
identifies--
``(I) each qualified public service
employer; and
``(II) each position offered by
such employer that is a public service
job.
``(ii) Accessibility.--The database
established under clause (i) shall be made
available in an easily searchable format on a
publicly accessible website of the Department
of Education and via a free and secure mobile
software application.
``(B) Employer self-certification.--
``(i) In general.--The Secretary shall
establish a process through which an employer
may electronically submit to the Secretary a
certification that the employer is a qualified
public service employer.
``(ii) Secretarial review and
verification.--The Secretary shall review each
self-certification submitted under clause (i)
to verify whether the employer concerned is a
qualified public service employer.
``(iii) PSLF certification seal.--An
employer verified by the Secretary under clause
(ii) shall receive permission to use, for
informational and marketing purposes, a graphic
seal-of-approval developed by the Secretary to
indicate the employer's status as a qualified
public service employer.
``(C) Certification of employment.--
``(i) Forms and signatures.--The Secretary
shall ensure that any forms required to certify
a borrower's employment in a public service job
are available to borrowers and employers--
``(I) on a publicly accessible
website of the Department of Education;
``(II) via a free and secure mobile
software application; and
``(III) in traditional hard copy
format.
``(ii) Electronic signature and
submission.--The Secretary shall establish a
process that enables borrowers and employers--
``(I) to electronically sign any
forms required to certify a borrower's
employment in a public service job; and
``(II) to submit such forms to the
Department of Education through an
online portal or via a free and secure
mobile software application.
``(iii) Notice of recertification.--In the
case of a borrower who has previously submitted
an annual certification of employment under
this section, the Secretary shall provide
notice to the borrower of the option to
recertify such employment not later than 60
days before the expiration of the one year
period following the date of the borrower's
most recently submitted employment
certification. The Secretary shall provide such
notice to a borrower via email and regular
mail.
``(D) Statement of qualifying payments.--On an
annual basis, the Secretary shall provide to each
borrower of an eligible Federal Direct Loan who has
submitted an annual certification of employment under
this section the following information:
``(i) The number of monthly payments made
by the borrower on each eligible Federal Direct
Loan of the borrower.
``(ii) The number of such payments that
qualify as monthly payments under paragraph
(1)(A).
``(iii) The number of monthly payments
under paragraph (1)(A) remaining on such loan
before the borrower is eligible for loan
cancellation under paragraph (2).
``(E) Definitions.--In this paragraph:
``(i) The term `Secretary' means the
Secretary of Education acting through the Chief
Operating Officer of the Office of Federal
Student Aid.
``(ii) The term `qualified public service
employer' means an employer that offers
employment in a position that is a public
service job.''.
SEC. 3. APPLICATION PROCESS FOR TEMPORARY EXPANDED PUBLIC SERVICE LOAN
FORGIVENESS.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
Secretary of Education shall not require a borrower to apply for and be
denied loan cancellation under section 455(m) of the Higher Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(m)) as a condition of eligibility for loan
forgiveness under the programs specified in subsection (b).
(b) Programs Specified.--The programs specified in this subsection
are the programs of student loan forgiveness commonly known as
``Temporary Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness'' established
under the following provisions of law:
(1) Section 313 of the Department of Defense and Labor,
Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Act,
2019 and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019 (Public Law 115-
245).
(2) Section 315 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2018 (Public Law 115-141).
(c) Online Help Tool.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Education shall develop,
and make available on a publicly accessible website, an online tool
designed to help borrowers--
(1) learn more about the Temporary Expanded Public Service
Loan Forgiveness Program;
(2) determine their eligibility for forgiveness under the
program; and
(3) identify any requirements for participation in the
program, including any application requirements.
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