By: Hancock, Bettencourt S.B. No. 16
(In the Senate - Filed March 8, 2019; March 11, 2019, read
first time and referred to Committee on Higher Education;
April 8, 2019, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 9, Nays 0; April 8, 2019,
sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 16 By: Buckingham
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a student loan repayment assistance program for certain
full-time peace officers in this state.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 61, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter NN to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER NN. PEACE OFFICER LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
Sec. 61.9951. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "peace
officer" has the meaning assigned by Article 2.12, Code of Criminal
Procedure.
Sec. 61.9952. LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED;
PURPOSE. The board shall establish and administer a program to
provide, in accordance with this subchapter and board rules, loan
repayment assistance in the repayment of eligible loans for
eligible peace officers who agree to continued employment as
full-time peace officers in this state for a specified period.
Sec. 61.9953. INITIAL ELIGIBILITY; AGREEMENT REQUIREMENTS.
(a) To be eligible to receive loan repayment assistance under this
subchapter for the first year for which the person seeks loan
repayment assistance, a person must:
(1) submit to the board an initial application for the
loan repayment assistance, in the manner and on a form prescribed by
board rule, that requires:
(A) employer verification of the person's
employment as a full-time peace officer in this state for at least
four consecutive years and the person's current employment as a
peace officer in this state as of the date of the application; and
(B) a transcript of the person's postsecondary
course work;
(2) have completed an undergraduate or graduate
program at a general academic teaching institution or a private or
independent institution of higher education;
(3) be currently employed, and have completed at least
four consecutive years of employment, as a full-time peace officer
in this state;
(4) enter into an agreement with the board under
Subsection (b); and
(5) comply with any other requirement adopted by the
board under this subchapter.
(b) To receive loan repayment assistance under this
subchapter, a person must enter into an agreement with the board:
(1) under which the person:
(A) agrees to complete four additional
consecutive years of employment as a full-time peace officer in
this state in exchange for an amount of loan repayment assistance in
each of those years as provided by Section 61.9956; and
(B) acknowledges the conditional nature of the
loan repayment assistance; and
(2) that states the total amount of principal, accrued
interest, fees, and other charges due on all outstanding eligible
loans for which the person is applying for repayment assistance.
Sec. 61.9954. CONTINUING ELIGIBILITY. (a) Except as
provided by Subsection (b), after initially qualifying for loan
repayment assistance under Section 61.9953, a person may continue
to receive loan repayment assistance in a subsequent year only if
the person annually submits an application, in the manner and on a
form prescribed by board rule, that requires employer verification
of the person's continuous employment as a full-time peace officer
in this state for the year ending immediately before the date the
application is submitted under this section.
(b) A person may not receive loan repayment assistance under
this subchapter for more than four years.
Sec. 61.9955. EXCEPTION TO CONSECUTIVE YEARS OF FULL-TIME
EMPLOYMENT REQUIREMENT. The board shall excuse an otherwise
eligible person from a requirement imposed by Section 61.9953 or
61.9954 that the employment qualifying the person for loan
repayment assistance be performed in consecutive years if the break
in employment is a result of the person's:
(1) 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;
(2) temporary total disability for a period of not
more than 36 months, as established by the affidavit of a qualified
physician;
(3) inability to secure employment as required by
Section 61.9953 or 61.9954 for a period not to exceed 12 months
because of care required for a disabled spouse or child;
(4) inability, despite reasonable efforts, to secure
for a single period not to exceed 12 months employment as required
by Section 61.9953 or 61.9954; or
(5) satisfaction of the provisions of any other
exception adopted by the board for purposes of this section.
Sec. 61.9956. AWARD. (a) Except as provided by this
section, an eligible person is entitled to receive an annual amount
of loan repayment assistance payments under this subchapter payable
to the holders of the eligible person's eligible loans for each year
of eligibility approved by the board under Section 61.9953 or
61.9954 in the following amounts, subject to the amount of
available funding:
(1) the lesser of $3,000 or 10 percent of the amount
described in Section 61.9953(b)(2) for the first year of
eligibility;
(2) the lesser of $6,000 or 20 percent of the amount
described in Section 61.9953(b)(2) for the second year of
eligibility;
(3) the lesser of $9,000 or 30 percent of the amount
described in Section 61.9953(b)(2) for the third year of
eligibility; and
(4) the lesser of $12,000 or 40 percent of the amount
described in Section 61.9953(b)(2) for the fourth year of
eligibility.
(b) The total amount of repayment assistance provided under
this subchapter to an eligible person may not exceed $30,000.
(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 cover all the payments for the
year for all eligible loans of all eligible persons, the board shall
establish criteria to determine the amount of available money to
allocate to the holders of student loans of eligible persons as the
board determines appropriate to further the purpose of this
subchapter.
(d) An eligible person whose annual loan repayment
assistance under this section is less than the amount necessary to
cover the amount of principal and interest due on the person's
eligible loans for that year is responsible for the payment of the
remainder of the amount due and for otherwise preventing a default
on the loan.
Sec. 61.9957. ELIGIBLE LOANS. (a) The board may provide
loan repayment assistance under this subchapter for the repayment
of any student loan received by an eligible person through any
lender for the cost of attendance at an institution of higher
education or a private or independent institution of higher
education.
(b) If the loan is not a state or federal guaranteed student
loan, the promissory note or other loan agreement document
governing the terms of the loan must require all 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 an eligible loan that is in default on the
date the person's application for loan repayment assistance is
submitted under Section 61.9953 or 61.9954.
Sec. 61.9958. PAYMENT OF LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE.
(a) The board shall pay any loan repayment assistance under this
subchapter in a lump sum 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 state 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. 61.9959. PEACE OFFICER LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE
PROGRAM INVESTMENT FUND. (a) In this section, "fund" means the
peace officer loan repayment assistance program investment fund.
(b) The fund is a dedicated account in the general revenue
fund and consists of:
(1) gifts, grants, and other donations received from
any public or private source for the fund; and
(2) interest and other earnings from the investment of
the fund.
(c) The fund may be used only to provide loan repayment
assistance for the repayment of loans eligible under Section
61.9957, including any related administrative costs.
(d) The fund is exempt from the application of Sections
403.095 and 404.071, Government Code.
(e) The board may accept grants, gifts, and other donations
from any public or private source for the purposes of this
subchapter. All money received under this subchapter shall be
deposited in the fund.
Sec. 61.9960. RULES. The board shall adopt rules necessary
for the administration of this subchapter, including rules
providing for:
(1) the manner in which a person may apply for loan
repayment assistance; and
(2) a method of awarding loan repayment assistance
under this subchapter that gives first priority to applicants who
are renewing their applications for loan repayment assistance
provided under this subchapter.
SECTION 2. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
shall adopt rules for the peace officer loan repayment assistance
program under Subchapter NN, Chapter 61, Education Code, as added
by this Act, not later than December 1, 2019.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
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