New Mexico 2025 Regular Session

New Mexico Senate Bill SB411 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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28	28	SENATE BILL 411
29	29	57TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - FIRST SESSION, 2025
30	30	INTRODUCED BY
31	31	Craig W. Brandt
32	32	AN ACT
33	33	RELATING TO HIGHER EDUCATION; ENACTING THE PHYSICIAN LOAN
34	34	REPAYMENT ACT; PROVIDING POWERS AND DUTIES; ESTABLISHING
35	35	SELECTION CRITERIA AND ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS; PROVIDING FOR
36	36	CONTRACTS BETWEEN RECIPIENTS AND THE HIGHER EDUCATION
37	37	DEPARTMENT; PROVIDING FOR RELEASE FROM CONTRACT OR RECOUPMENT;
38	38	CREATING A FUND; PRESCRIBING A PENALTY; MAKING AN
39	39	APPROPRIATION.
40	40	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
41	41	SECTION 1. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is
42	42	enacted to read:
43	43	"[NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the
44	44	"Physician Loan Repayment Act"."
45	45	SECTION 2. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is
46	46	enacted to read:
47	47	.228610.2 underscored material = new
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74	74	"[NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Physician
75	75	Loan Repayment Act:
76	76	A. "department" means the higher education
77	77	department;
78	78	B. "physician" means a medical or osteopathic
79	79	physician licensed under the Medical Practice Act;
80	80	C. "loan" means a grant of money to defray the
81	81	costs incidental to a recipient's education, under a contract
82	82	between the federal government or a commercial lender and a
83	83	recipient, requiring either repayment of principal and interest
84	84	or repayment in services; and
85	85	D. "recipient" means a physician selected to
86	86	participate in the physician loan repayment program."
87	87	SECTION 3. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is
88	88	enacted to read:
89	89	"[NEW MATERIAL] DEPARTMENT POWERS AND DUTIES--ELIGIBILITY
90	90	REQUIREMENTS.--
91	91	A. The department may grant an award to repay loans
92	92	obtained for the educational expenses of a recipient upon such
93	93	terms and conditions as may be imposed by rules of the
94	94	department.
95	95	B. Applicants shall be licensed or certified to
96	96	practice in New Mexico as physicians and shall be bona fide
97	97	citizens and residents of the United States and of New Mexico.
98	98	Applicants shall declare their intent to practice as physicians
99	99	.228610.2
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127	127	within designated health professional shortage areas of the
128	128	state.
129	129	C. The department shall make a full and careful
130	130	investigation of the ability, character and qualifications of
131	131	each applicant and determine fitness to participate in the
132	132	physician loan repayment program.
133	133	D. The department shall assist selected physicians
134	134	in locating practice positions in designated health
135	135	professional shortage areas."
136	136	SECTION 4. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is
137	137	enacted to read:
138	138	"[NEW MATERIAL] AWARD CRITERIA--CONTRACT TERMS--PAYMENT.--
139	139	A. Prior to receiving an award, a recipient shall
140	140	file with the department a declaration of intent to practice in
141	141	areas of New Mexico designated as underserved by the
142	142	department. The department shall consult with the department
143	143	of health when designating areas as underserved.
144	144	B. Award criteria shall provide that:
145	145	(1) amounts are dependent upon the location
146	146	and characteristics of the practice and the applicant's total
147	147	medical school education indebtedness;
148	148	(2) preference in making awards shall be to
149	149	individuals who have graduated from a New Mexico post-secondary
150	150	educational institution;
151	151	(3) recruitment awards shall be made to
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180	180	eligible recipients who agree to relocate to an approved
181	181	designated area;
182	182	(4) award amounts may be modified based upon
183	183	available funding or other special circumstances;
184	184	(5) an award shall not exceed the total
185	185	medical school education indebtedness of any recipient; and
186	186	(6) a recipient shall not receive an award for
187	187	more than four years of service.
188	188	C. The following education debts are not eligible
189	189	for repayment pursuant to the Physician Loan Repayment Act:
190	190	(1) amounts incurred as a result of
191	191	participation in state loan-for-service programs or other state
192	192	financial aid programs that require service to be provided in
193	193	exchange for financial assistance;
194	194	(2) scholarships;
195	195	(3) personal loans from friends or relatives;
196	196	and
197	197	(4) loans that exceed individual standard
198	198	school expense levels.
199	199	D. The loan repayment award shall be evidenced by a
200	200	contract between a recipient and the department acting on
201	201	behalf of the state. The contract shall provide for the
202	202	payment by the state of a stated sum to the recipient's debtors
203	203	and shall state the obligations of the recipient under the
204	204	program, including a minimum four-year period of service,
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233	233	quarterly reporting requirements and other policies established
234	234	by the department.
235	235	E. Recipients shall serve a complete year in order
236	236	to receive credit for that year. The annual award shall be
237	237	established by the department but shall not exceed seventy-five
238	238	thousand dollars ($75,000), and the total award for four years
239	239	of service shall not exceed three hundred thousand dollars
240	240	($300,000).
241	241	F. If a recipient does not comply with the terms of
242	242	the contract, the department shall assess a penalty of up to
243	243	three times the amount of award disbursed plus eighteen percent
244	244	interest, unless the department finds acceptable extenuating
245	245	circumstances for why the recipient cannot serve or comply with
246	246	the terms of the contract. If the department does not find
247	247	acceptable extenuating circumstances for the recipient's
248	248	failure to comply with the contract, the department shall
249	249	require immediate repayment plus the amount of the penalty.
250	250	G. The department shall adopt rules to implement
251	251	the provisions of this section. The rules may provide for the
252	252	disbursement of loan repayment awards to the lenders of
253	253	recipients in annual or other periodic installments."
254	254	SECTION 5. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is
255	255	enacted to read:
256	256	"[NEW MATERIAL] RELEASE FROM CONTRACT--CONTRACT--
257	257	CANCELLATION--ENFORCEMENT.--
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286	286	A. The department may cancel a contract made
287	287	between the department and a recipient for the recipient's
288	288	failure to comply with the provisions of the contract, the
289	289	Physician Loan Repayment Act, rules promulgated in accordance
290	290	with that act or any other reasonable cause deemed sufficient
291	291	by the department.
292	292	B. The department shall release a recipient from
293	293	the contract without penalty if:
294	294	(1) the recipient has completed the service
295	295	requirements of the contract;
296	296	(2) the recipient is unable to complete the
297	297	service requirements of the contract due to serious illness or
298	298	disability; or
299	299	(3) the recipient demonstrates extreme
300	300	hardship or other good cause to the department justifying the
301	301	release from contract.
302	302	C. A decision not to release a recipient from the
303	303	contract without penalty is a final agency decision and may be
304	304	appealed to the district court as provided in Section 39-3-1.1
305	305	NMSA 1978.
306	306	D. The department is vested with full and complete
307	307	authority and power to sue in its own name for the balance due
308	308	the state from any recipient on a loan repayment contract."
309	309	SECTION 6. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is
310	310	enacted to read:
311	311	.228610.2
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339	339	"[NEW MATERIAL] PHYSICIAN LOAN REPAYMENT FUND
340	340	CREATED.--The "physician loan repayment fund" is created as a
341	341	nonreverting fund in the state treasury, consisting of income
342	342	from investment of the fund and any specified distributions,
343	343	appropriations, gifts, grants and donations to the fund. The
344	344	fund shall be administered by the department, and money in
345	345	the fund is appropriated to the department for the purposes of
346	346	making awards to recipients who are in compliance with the
347	347	recipients' contracts, the Physician Loan Repayment Act and
348	348	rules promulgated in accordance with that act. Expenditures
349	349	from the fund shall be by warrant of the secretary of finance
350	350	and administration pursuant to vouchers signed by the secretary
351	351	of higher education or the secretary's authorized
352	352	representative."
353	353	SECTION 7. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is
354	354	enacted to read:
355	355	"[NEW MATERIAL] REPORTS.--The department shall make annual
356	356	reports to the governor and the legislature prior to each
357	357	regular legislative session of the department's activities,
358	358	including cohort data and annual and total program data that
359	359	show:
360	360	A. the number and amount of awards given;
361	361	B. the completion rate of recipients in the
362	362	program, the number of recipients who completed the program and
363	363	stayed in New Mexico and the number of those recipients who are
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392	392	practicing in a designated underserved area;
393	393	C. the amounts repaid and amounts owed on
394	394	educational loans and the total number and total amount of
395	395	penalties assessed against recipients who left the program;
396	396	D. the service locations of current and former
397	397	recipients in New Mexico;
398	398	E. for each designated underserved area in the
399	399	state, the number of recipients who are serving or have served
400	400	in the area and whether there are recipients who are not
401	401	employed or not employed full time in the area; and
402	402	F. other information determined by the department."
403	403	SECTION 8. APPROPRIATION.--Fifteen million dollars
404	404	($15,000,000) is appropriated from the general fund to the
405	405	physician loan repayment fund for expenditure in fiscal year
406	406	2026 and subsequent fiscal years to carry out the purposes of
407	407	the fund. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance at the end of
408	408	a fiscal year shall not revert to any other fund.
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