Enacting the attorney training program for rural Kansas act to provide financial assistance to lawyers and law students who practice law in rural areas.
Impact
The legislation stipulates that law students enrolled in cooperating law schools—namely Washburn University and the University of Kansas—can receive loans of up to $30,000 per academic year, applicable for a maximum of three years. In exchange, students must commit to practicing law in a rural community for at least one year for every year they receive funding. Similarly, licensed attorneys who practice in these rural areas can apply for loan repayment assistance, capped at $20,000 annually, up to a total of $100,000 over five years. This program aims to alleviate the heavy burden of student debt for those willing to serve in rural communities.
Summary
House Bill 2174, known as the Attorney Training Program for Rural Kansas Act, is designed to address the challenges faced by rural communities in attracting and retaining legal professionals. The act aims to provide financial assistance to both aspiring law students and licensed attorneys practicing in rural areas of Kansas. By establishing a dedicated fund, it seeks to incentivize legal practice in regions that often face shortages of legal services, ultimately enhancing access to justice for underserved populations.
Contention
While proponents argue that this initiative will significantly benefit rural justice systems and improve the quality of legal representation, concerns have been raised regarding the sustainability and fairness of such financial assistance programs. Questions regarding the program's administration, the prioritization of loan repayment, and the potential obligation for students to repay loans if they do not fulfill their practice requirements have also emerged. Additionally, the introduction of this bill reflects broader concerns about the accessibility of legal services in rural areas and the ongoing struggles faced by these communities in attracting professionals.
Achievements
Ultimately, HB 2174 represents a proactive effort to remedy the imbalance in legal service availability between urban and rural areas. If successfully implemented, it could serve as a model for similar initiatives in other states facing challenges in rural legal service provision.
Authorizing medical student and residency loan assistance to encourage the practice of obstetrics and gynecology in medically underserved areas of the state.
Creating the Kansas rural grocery store development incentive act to provide tax incentives for the development of grocery businesses in rural areas of the state.
Increasing the number of medical student loan agreements that may be provided by the university of Kansas school of medicine and prohibiting impediments to switching between residency programs.
Enacting the Kansas adult learner grant act to establish a grant program for adult learners to pursue certain fields of study, enacting the career technical education credential and transition incentive for employment success act to require school districts to pay for the cost of assessments for students to obtain an approved career technical education credential, designating military veterans and spouses or dependents of such veterans who were stationed in Kansas for at least 11 months as residents for purposes of tuition and fees at postsecondary educational institutions and expanding the eligible fields of study under the Kansas promise scholarship act.
Establishing the Kansas blueprint for literacy and a literacy advisory committee, directing the board of regents to appoint a director of literacy education, requiring the board of regents and board of education to collaborate on a literacy micro-credential, providing university presidents and deans of education oversight over postsecondary literacy courses, requiring a plan to establish centers of excellence in reading, requiring the board of education to submit annual reports to the legislature on literacy goals; establishing the Kansas education opportunity scholarship to replace the Kansas ethnic minority scholarship, removing limits on Kansas nursing service scholarship awards and modifying the interest rate terms and repayment obligations for such awards, eliminating the requirement to subtract other aid from the state payment for the AO-K program, modifying financial limitations on Kansas hero's scholarship awards and broadening eligibility requirements for such awards.
Enacting the Kansas film and digital media industry production development act, providing a tax credit, sales tax exemption and loans and grants to incentivize film, video and digital media production in Kansas, establishing a program to be administered by the secretary of commerce for the purpose of developing such production in Kansas and requiring the secretary of commerce to issue reports on the economic impact of the act.
Enacting the attorney training program for rural Kansas act to provide financial assistance to lawyers and law students who practice law in rural areas.
Civil Commitment Coordinating Division establishment provision, various grant programs establishment provision, transport hold working group establishment provision, and appropriations
Relating to the financial crimes intelligence center, including the establishment of an advisory committee and grants supporting the investigation and prosecution of certain offenses.