[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 409 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 409
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide student loan
deferment for victims of terrorist attacks.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 14, 2023
Mr. Rubio introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide student loan
deferment for victims of terrorist attacks.
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 ``Terrorism Survivors Student Loan
Deferment Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. STUDENT LOAN DEFERMENT FOR VICTIMS OF TERRORIST ATTACKS.
(a) Terms of Federally Insured Student Loans.--Section 427(a)(2)(C)
of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1077(a)(2)(C)) is
amended--
(1) in clause (iii), by striking ``or'' after the
semicolon;
(2) in clause (iv), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; or''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(v) not in excess of 1 year due to the
borrower being a victim of a terrorist
attack;''.
(b) FFEL Program.--Section 428(b) of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078(b)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)(M)--
(A) in clause (iv), by striking ``or'' after the
semicolon;
(B) in clause (v), by inserting ``or'' after the
semicolon; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(vi) not in excess of 1 year due to the
borrower being a victim of a terrorist attack
as described in paragraph (10);''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(10) Deferment for victims of terrorist attacks.--For
purposes of deferment under paragraph (1)(M)(vi), a victim of a
terrorist attack is an individual who is designated as a victim
of a terrorist attack by the head of the Federal agency that is
handling the investigation of the attack.''.
(c) Direct Loans.--Section 455 of the Higher Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 1087e) is amended--
(1) in subsection (e)(7)(B)(i), by inserting ``or due to
the borrower being a victim of a terrorist attack'' after
``section 435(o)''; and
(2) in subsection (f)--
(A) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in subparagraph (C), by striking
``clause (i) or (ii); or'' and inserting
``clause (i) or (ii);'';
(ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking the
period at the end and inserting ``; or''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(E) not in excess of 1 year due to the borrower
being a victim of a terrorist attack as described in
paragraph (6).''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(6) Deferment for victims of terrorist attacks.--For
purposes of deferment under paragraph (2)(E), a victim of a
terrorist attack is an individual who is designated as a victim
of a terrorist attack by the head of the Federal agency that is
handling the investigation of the attack.''.
(d) Federal Perkins Loans.--Section 464(c)(2) of the Higher
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087dd(c)(2)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A)--
(A) in clause (v), by striking ``or'' after the
semicolon;
(B) in clause (vi), by inserting ``or'' after the
semicolon; and
(C) by inserting after clause (vi) the following:
``(vii) not in excess of 1 year due to the
borrower being a victim of a terrorist attack
as described in subparagraph (D);''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(D) For purposes of deferment under subparagraph
(A)(vii), a victim of a terrorist attack is an individual who
is designated as a victim of a terrorist attack by the head of
the Federal agency that is handling the investigation of the
attack.''.
(e) Designating Victims of Terrorist Attacks.--The head of the
Federal agency that is handling the investigation of a terrorist
attack, or has handled the investigation of a terrorist attack, shall
designate the individuals who are victims of such terrorist attack.
(f) Anti-Fraud Protections.--The Secretary of Education shall
establish anti-fraud protections in carrying out the amendments made by
this Act.
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