H.B. No. 518
AN ACT
relating to programs to provide student loan repayment assistance
for certain correctional officers, for certain speech-language
pathologists and audiologists, and for certain mathematics and
science teachers.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 61, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter FF to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER FF. CORRECTIONAL OFFICER LOAN REPAYMENT
ASSISTANCE PILOT PROGRAM
Sec. 61.9781. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Correctional officer" means a correctional
officer employed in a confinement facility operated by the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice.
(2) "Trust fund" means the correctional officer loan
repayment assistance trust fund.
Sec. 61.9782. REPAYMENT AUTHORIZED. The board shall
establish a pilot program to provide, using money in the trust fund
and in accordance with this subchapter and rules of the board,
assistance in the repayment of student loans for correctional
officers who apply and qualify for the assistance.
Sec. 61.9783. ELIGIBILITY. To be eligible to receive
repayment assistance, a correctional officer must:
(1) have received a baccalaureate degree from Sam
Houston State University or from another general academic teaching
institution that is selected to participate in the program by the
board under Section 61.9789(b) if the board expands the program to
include an additional general academic teaching institution;
(2) establish to the board that:
(A) the repayment assistance will be used to
repay any part of a student loan received by the correctional
officer to cover the officer's cost of attendance in connection
with enrollment in junior-level or senior-level course work in the
baccalaureate degree program at the institution;
(B) during the period of the correctional
officer's enrollment at the institution as described by Paragraph
(A), the officer:
(i) was employed full-time as a
correctional officer in this state;
(ii) was classified as a resident of this
state under Subchapter B, Chapter 54;
(iii) established financial need as
determined by board rule; and
(iv) maintained good academic standing at
the institution as determined by board rule; and
(C) the correctional officer has not committed an
offense:
(i) under Chapter 39, Penal Code;
(ii) under Section 38.11 or 38.114, Penal
Code;
(iii) under any other provision of the
Penal Code in which the victim was a person in the custody of the
Texas Department of Criminal Justice at the time the offense
occurred; or
(iv) the elements of which are equivalent
to a criminal offense under the law of another state, federal law,
or the law of a foreign government;
(3) complete at least two full years of employment as a
full-time correctional officer in this state not later than the
second anniversary of the date of the person's graduation from the
institution; and
(4) comply with any other requirements adopted by
board rule under this subchapter.
Sec. 61.9784. ELIGIBLE LOANS. (a) The board may provide
repayment assistance for the repayment of any student loan received
by an eligible correctional officer through any lender for the cost
of attendance for enrollment at Sam Houston State University or at
another general academic teaching institution that is selected by
the board to participate in the program under Section 61.9789(b).
(b) The board may withhold repayment assistance for a
student loan that is in default at the time of the correctional
officer's application.
(c) Subject to Sections 61.9785 and 61.9788, in each state
fiscal biennium the board shall attempt to allocate all funds
available in the trust fund for the purpose of providing repayment
assistance under this subchapter.
Sec. 61.9785. REPAYMENT. (a) The board shall deliver any
repayment under this subchapter in a lump sum:
(1) payable to both the lender or other holder of the
loan and the correctional officer; or
(2) on the correctional officer's behalf directly to
the lender or other holder of the loan.
(b) A repayment under this subchapter may be applied to any
amount due in connection with the loan.
(c) The board may grant prior conditional approval to a
correctional officer who completes each eligibility requirement
under Section 61.9783 other than the requirement under Section
61.9783(3) and may reserve money in the trust fund for disbursement
under this subchapter on the officer's completion of that
requirement.
Sec. 61.9786. RULES. (a) The board shall adopt rules
necessary to administer this subchapter. The board may consult
with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to assist the board in
establishing priorities among eligible correctional officers for
repayment assistance.
(b) The board shall distribute to Sam Houston State
University, any other general academic teaching institution that is
selected by the board to participate in the program under Section
61.9789(b), each public junior college, and appropriate state
agencies and professional associations copies of the rules adopted
under this section and other pertinent information relating to this
subchapter.
Sec. 61.9787. AMOUNT OF REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE. (a) The loan
repayment amount for one year of full-time employment as a
correctional officer beginning two years after graduation from Sam
Houston State University or from another general academic teaching
institution that is selected by the board to participate in the
program under Section 61.9789(b) may not exceed the cost of
attendance for the officer to enroll in 30 semester credit hours of
junior-level or senior-level course work at the institution, as
applicable.
(b) The total amount of repayment assistance distributed by
the board under this subchapter may not exceed the total amount of
gifts and grants accepted by the board for repayment assistance,
legislative appropriations for repayment assistance, and other
funds available to the board for purposes of this subchapter.
Sec. 61.9788. TRUST FUND. (a) The board shall award
repayment assistance under this subchapter from the amount
available in the trust fund. The trust fund is established outside
the treasury but is held in trust by the comptroller. Money in the
trust fund may be spent without appropriation and only to fund the
pilot program. Interest and income from the assets of the trust
fund shall be credited to and deposited in the trust fund. In each
state fiscal year the board may spend from the trust fund to cover
the costs of administering this subchapter an amount not to exceed
2.5 percent of the total amount of money deposited into the trust
fund in that fiscal year.
(b) The board may solicit and accept gifts and grants from
any public or private source for the purposes of this subchapter and
shall deposit a gift or grant to the credit of the trust fund.
(c) The legislature may appropriate money to the trust fund.
Sec. 61.9789. EVALUATION OF PILOT PROGRAM. (a) The board
shall evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot program established
under this subchapter and report the results of the evaluation to
the legislature not later than December 31 of each even-numbered
year.
(b) If the board determines that expansion of the program
would enhance the effectiveness of the program or improve the
board's ability to evaluate the program, the board by rule may
expand the program to include as eligible to receive repayment
assistance under Section 61.9783 a correctional officer who:
(1) received a baccalaureate degree from a general
academic teaching institution other than Sam Houston State
University that is located near a confinement facility operated by
the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and that is selected by the
board to participate in the program; and
(2) meets all other eligibility requirements
prescribed by or adopted under Section 61.9783.
(c) If the board by rule expands the program under
Subsection (b) to include graduates of one or more other general
academic teaching institutions, the board shall include in the
report under Subsection (a) information regarding the
effectiveness of the expansion and the name of each additional
general academic teaching institution selected to participate in
the program.
Sec. 61.9790. TERMINATION OF PILOT PROGRAM. The board may
not award repayment assistance under this subchapter to pay the
costs of enrollment in an academic year after the 2015-2016
academic year. On January 1, 2019, the trust fund is abolished and
any amount remaining in the trust fund shall be transferred to the
general revenue fund.
SECTION 2. Chapter 61, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter GG to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER GG. REPAYMENT OF CERTAIN SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGIST
AND AUDIOLOGIST EDUCATION LOANS
Sec. 61.9801. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Audiologist" means a person licensed as an
audiologist under Chapter 401, Occupations Code.
(2) "Communicative disorders program" means a
graduate degree program in audiology or speech-language pathology
accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology
and Speech-Language Pathology.
(3) "Public school" means a public preschool or
primary or secondary school in this state.
(4) "Speech-language pathologist" means a person
licensed as a speech-language pathologist under Chapter 401,
Occupations Code.
Sec. 61.9802. REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED. The board
shall provide, in accordance with this subchapter and board rules,
assistance in the repayment of student loans for speech-language
pathologists and audiologists who apply and qualify for assistance.
Sec. 61.9803. ELIGIBILITY. (a) To be eligible to receive
repayment assistance, a speech-language pathologist or an
audiologist must:
(1) apply to the board; and
(2) at the time the speech-language pathologist or
audiologist applies for the assistance:
(A) have been employed as a speech-language
pathologist or as an audiologist, as applicable, for at least one
year by, and be currently employed full-time in that capacity by, a
public school; or
(B) have been employed as a faculty member of a
communicative disorders program at an institution of higher
education for at least one year, and be currently employed
full-time in that capacity at such an institution.
(b) The board by rule may provide for repayment assistance
on a pro rata basis for speech-language pathologists and
audiologists employed part-time by a public school or institution
of higher education.
Sec. 61.9804. LIMITATION. (a) On qualifying for the
assistance, a speech-language pathologist or an audiologist may
receive repayment assistance grants for each year of employment,
not to exceed five years, by:
(1) a public school; or
(2) a communicative disorders program at an
institution of higher education.
(b) The amount of repayment assistance grants that a
speech-language pathologist or an audiologist may receive for each
year of employment by a public school or a communicative disorders
program at an institution of higher education may not exceed 20
percent of the speech-language pathologist's or audiologist's total
principal amount of student loans.
(c) The total amount of repayment assistance grants
received by a speech-language pathologist or an audiologist under
this subchapter may not exceed $30,000 for an eligible recipient
who holds a master's degree but not a doctoral degree, or $45,000
for an eligible recipient who holds a doctoral degree.
Sec. 61.9805. ELIGIBLE LOANS. (a) The board may provide
repayment assistance for the repayment of any student loan for
education at an institution of higher education, including loans
for undergraduate education, received by a speech-language
pathologist or an audiologist through any lender.
(b) The board may not provide repayment assistance for a
student loan that is in default at the time of the speech-language
pathologist's or audiologist's application.
(c) Each state fiscal biennium, the board shall attempt to
provide repayment assistance in amounts sufficient to use all the
money appropriated to the board for that biennium for the purpose of
providing repayment assistance under this subchapter.
Sec. 61.9806. REPAYMENT. (a) The board shall deliver any
repayment made under this subchapter in a lump sum payable to the
lender and the speech-language pathologist or audiologist, in
accordance with any applicable federal law.
(b) A repayment made under this subchapter may be applied
only to the principal amount of the loan.
Sec. 61.9807. ADVISORY COMMITTEES. The board may appoint
advisory committees to assist the board in administering this
subchapter.
Sec. 61.9808. ACCEPTANCE OF GIFTS. The board may accept
gifts, grants, and donations for the purposes of this subchapter.
Sec. 61.9809. RULES. (a) The board shall adopt rules
necessary for the administration of this subchapter.
(b) The board shall distribute a copy of the rules adopted
under this section and pertinent information regarding this
subchapter to:
(1) each institution of higher education;
(2) any appropriate state agency; and
(3) any appropriate professional association.
SECTION 3. Chapter 61, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter HH to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER HH. TEXAS TEACH CORPS STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE
PROGRAM FOR MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE CLASSROOM TEACHERS
Sec. 61.9831. LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED. The
board shall provide, in accordance with this subchapter and board
rules, assistance in the repayment of eligible student loans for
eligible undergraduate students who agree to teach mathematics or
science for a specified period in school districts in this state
that are determined by the Texas Education Agency to have shortages
of teachers in mathematics or science.
Sec. 61.9832. ELIGIBILITY; AGREEMENT REQUIREMENTS.
(a) To be eligible to receive loan repayment assistance under this
subchapter, a person must:
(1) apply for the loan repayment assistance in the
manner prescribed by the board;
(2) have graduated from high school in this state;
(3) be currently enrolled in an educator preparation
program accredited by the State Board for Educator Certification
that is provided by an institution of higher education or by a
private or independent institution of higher education in this
state;
(4) have a cumulative grade point average of at least
2.75 on a four-point scale or the equivalent;
(5) enter into an agreement with the board providing
that:
(A) the person will earn a baccalaureate degree
through completion of an educator preparation program described by
Subdivision (3);
(B) the person will graduate with a cumulative
grade point average of at least 2.75 on a four-point scale or the
equivalent;
(C) the person will obtain, within the period
prescribed by board rule, appropriate certification under
Subchapter B, Chapter 21, to teach mathematics or science in a
public school in this state;
(D) beginning with the first school year that
begins after the date the person obtains the appropriate
certification described by Paragraph (C), the person will accept an
offer of full-time employment to teach mathematics or science, as
applicable based on the person's certification, in a school
district in this state selected by the person from among districts
determined by the Texas Education Agency to have shortages of
teachers in that subject for that first school year for which the
person is accepting employment;
(E) the person will complete four consecutive
years of employment as a full-time classroom teacher in a district
described by Paragraph (D) whose primary duty is to teach
mathematics or science, as applicable, based on the person's
certification; and
(F) the person acknowledges the conditional
nature of the loan repayment assistance; and
(6) comply with any other requirement adopted by the
board under this subchapter.
(b) Except as provided by Section 61.9833, for the first
school year of employment and each following consecutive school
year of employment, as described by Subsections (a)(5)(D) and (E),
not to exceed a total of four years, the board may provide
assistance for the repayment of a portion of an eligible person's
eligible loans. Subject to the availability of funding under
Section 61.9836 and except as otherwise provided by this
subsection, the amount of an assistance payment provided under this
subsection in any year to an eligible person is $5,000. The board
shall increase that amount as necessary to adjust for inflation or,
as determined by the board, on the basis of other relevant
considerations. The board shall reduce the amount of a single
assistance payment or refrain from making an assistance payment to
an eligible person as necessary to avoid making total payments
under this subsection to the person in an amount greater than the
total amount of principal and interest due on the person's eligible
loans.
(c) For purposes of this subchapter, whether a school
district is determined to have a shortage of mathematics or science
teachers for a school year is based on a determination made by the
Texas Education Agency during the preceding school year. Not later
than April 1 of each school year, the Texas Education Agency shall
determine which school districts in this state have a shortage of
mathematics or science teachers during that school year and shall
provide that information to the board and to each educator
preparation program in this state accredited by the State Board for
Educator Certification.
(d) For purposes of Subsection (a)(5)(E), if a person is
employed as a teacher in a school district determined to have a
shortage of teachers in mathematics or science for the first year of
employment, each subsequent year of continuous employment as a
teacher in that district is considered to be employment in a
district determined to have such a shortage of teachers in that
subject in that subsequent year, regardless of whether the Texas
Education Agency determined that the district had a shortage of
teachers in that subject for that year.
(e) To satisfy the teaching obligation prescribed by an
agreement under this section, a person must teach mathematics or
science courses for not less than an average of four hours each
school day.
Sec. 61.9833. EXCEPTION TO CONSECUTIVE YEARS OF EMPLOYMENT
REQUIREMENT. The board shall excuse an otherwise eligible person
from the requirement imposed by Section 61.9832(a)(5)(E) that the
employment be performed in consecutive years if the break in
employment is a result of the person's:
(1) full-time enrollment in a course of study related
to the field of teaching that is approved by the State Board for
Educator Certification and provided by an institution of higher
education or by a private or independent institution of higher
education in this state;
(2) service on active duty as a member of the armed
forces of the United States, including as a member of a reserve or
National Guard unit called for active duty;
(3) temporary total disability for a period of not
more than 36 months as established by the affidavit of a qualified
physician;
(4) inability to secure employment as required by
Section 61.9832 for a period not to exceed 12 months, because of
care required by a disabled spouse or child;
(5) inability, despite reasonable efforts, to secure,
for a single period not to exceed 12 months, employment as required
by Section 61.9832; or
(6) satisfaction of the provisions of any other
exception adopted by the board for purposes of this section.
Sec. 61.9834. ELIGIBLE LOANS. (a) The board may provide
under this subchapter repayment assistance for the repayment of any
student loan that:
(1) is for education at a public or private
institution of higher education; and
(2) is received by an eligible person through an
eligible lender.
(b) If the loan is not a state or federal guaranteed student
loan, the note or other writing governing the terms of the loan must
require the loan proceeds to be used for expenses incurred by a
person in attending a postsecondary educational institution.
(c) The board may not provide loan repayment assistance
under this subchapter for a student loan that is in default at the
time of the person's application for repayment assistance.
Sec. 61.9835. PAYMENT OF ASSISTANCE. (a) The board shall
pay any loan repayment assistance under this subchapter in a lump
sum:
(1) payable to both the holder of the loan and the
eligible person; or
(2) delivered on the eligible person's behalf directly
to the holder of the loan.
(b) Loan repayment assistance provided under this
subchapter may be applied to any amount due on the loan.
(c) Each fiscal biennium, the board shall attempt to
allocate all money available to the board for the purpose of
providing loan repayment assistance under this subchapter.
Sec. 61.9836. MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE TEACHER INVESTMENT
FUND. (a) In this section, "fund" means the mathematics and
science teacher investment fund.
(b) The fund is a dedicated account in the general revenue
fund and consists of:
(1) appropriations of money to the fund by the
legislature;
(2) gifts, grants, and other donations received for
the fund; and
(3) interest and other earnings from the investment of
the fund.
(c) The fund may be used only to provide repayment
assistance for the repayment of loans eligible under Section
61.9834, including related administrative costs.
(d) The fund is exempt from the application of Sections
403.095 and 404.071, Government Code.
(e) The board may solicit and accept grants, gifts, or
donations from any public or private entity for the purposes of this
subchapter. All money received under this subchapter shall be
deposited in the fund.
Sec. 61.9837. AMOUNT OF LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE.
(a) The total amount of loan repayment assistance paid by the
board under this subchapter may not exceed the total amount of money
available in the fund under Section 61.9836 and any other money that
the board is legally authorized to use for purposes of this
subchapter.
(b) Not more than 4,000 eligible persons may be provided
loan repayment assistance in the amount authorized under this
subchapter in any school year.
(b-1) This subsection expires January 1, 2016.
Notwithstanding Subsection (b), not more than the following number
of eligible persons may be provided loan repayment assistance in
the amount authorized under this subchapter in the specified school
year:
(1) in the 2012-2013 school year, not more than 1,000
eligible persons may be provided loan repayment assistance;
(2) in the 2013-2014 school year, not more than 2,000
eligible persons may be provided loan repayment assistance; and
(3) in the 2014-2015 school year, not more than 3,000
eligible persons may be provided loan repayment assistance.
(c) If in any year the amount of money available for loan
repayment assistance under this subchapter is insufficient to
provide loan repayment assistance to each eligible applicant or if
there are more eligible applicants than the number authorized by
this section, the board shall establish criteria to determine which
eligible applicants will be provided repayment assistance as the
board determines appropriate to further the purposes of this
subchapter.
Sec. 61.9838. RULES. The board shall:
(1) adopt rules necessary for the administration of
this subchapter, including a rule providing for the manner in which
a person may apply for loan repayment assistance; and
(2) distribute to each educator preparation program
approved by the State Board for Educator Certification offered by
an institution of higher education or by a private or independent
institution of higher education in this state a copy of the rules
adopted under this section.
SECTION 4. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
shall adopt the rules for repayment assistance under Subchapter FF,
Chapter 61, Education Code, as added by this Act, not later than
December 1, 2009.
SECTION 5. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
shall begin providing loan repayment assistance under Subchapter
HH, Chapter 61, Education Code, as added by this Act, for eligible
persons teaching in the 2012-2013 school year.
SECTION 6. Subchapter HH, Chapter 61, Education Code, as
added by this Act, does not make an appropriation. A provision in
Subchapter HH, Chapter 61, Education Code, as added by this Act,
that creates a new governmental program, creates a new entitlement,
or imposes a new duty on a governmental entity is not mandatory
during a fiscal period for which the legislature has not made a
specific appropriation to implement the provision.
SECTION 7. This Act does not make an appropriation. A
provision in this Act that creates a new governmental program,
creates a new entitlement, or imposes a new duty on a governmental
entity is not mandatory during a fiscal period for which the
legislature has not made a specific appropriation to implement the
provision.
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 518 was passed by the House on May 15,
2009, by the following vote: Yeas 137, Nays 4, 1 present, not
voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
No. 518 on May 29, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, 1
present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 518 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 26, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays
0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor