[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3828 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3828
To provide student loan forgiveness to health care workers who are on
the front line in response to COVID-19.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 14, 2022
Mr. Whitehouse (for himself and Mr. Padilla) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide student loan forgiveness to health care workers who are on
the front line in response to COVID-19.
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 ``Student Loan Forgiveness for
Frontline Health Workers Act''.
SEC. 2. FEDERAL STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR FRONTLINE HEALTH CARE
WORKERS.
(a) Forgiveness Required.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, the Secretary of Education shall carry out a program in accordance
with this Act to forgive the outstanding balance of interest and
principal due on the applicable eligible Federal student loans of
borrowers who are frontline health care workers.
(b) Method of Loan Forgiveness.--In carrying out the loan
forgiveness program required under subsection (a), as soon as
practicable after the Secretary of Education has confirmed that an
applicant is a frontline health care worker who is a borrower of an
eligible Federal student loan, the Secretary of Education shall--
(1) through the holder of a loan, assume the obligation to
repay the outstanding balance of interest and principal due on
the applicable eligible Federal student loans of the borrower
made, insured, or guaranteed under part B of title IV of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq.); and
(2) cancel the outstanding balance of interest and
principal due on the applicable eligible Federal student loans
of the borrower made under part D or part E of such title.
(c) Repayment Refunds Prohibited.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed to authorize any refunding of any eligible Federal student
loan repayment made before the date a borrower's loans are forgiven in
accordance with this section.
(d) Exclusion From Taxable Income.--The amount of a borrower's
eligible Federal student loans forgiven under this section shall not be
included in the gross income of the borrower for purposes of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(e) Notice to Borrowers in Statements.--With each billing statement
sent to a borrower during the two-year period beginning on the 15th day
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Education
shall include, and shall require each holder of eligible Federal
student loans to include, a notice informing the borrower of the
availability of the Federal student loan forgiveness and private
student loan repayment programs for frontline health care workers under
this Act, including where to find information about how to qualify as a
frontline health care worker, how to apply to such programs, and the
application deadline for such programs.
SEC. 3. PRIVATE STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENT FOR FRONTLINE HEALTH CARE
WORKERS.
(a) Repayment Required.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, the Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out a program in
accordance with this Act under which the Secretary of the Treasury
shall repay in full the outstanding balance of principal and interest
due on the applicable eligible private student loans of borrowers who
are frontline health care workers.
(b) Method of Loan Repayment.--In carrying out the program required
under subsection (a), as soon as practicable after the Secretary of the
Treasury has confirmed that an applicant is a frontline health care
worker who is a borrower of an eligible private student loan, the
Secretary of the Treasury shall pay to the private educational lender
of each of the applicable eligible private student loans of the
borrower an amount equal to the sum of the unpaid principal, accrued
unpaid interest, and late charges of such applicable eligible private
student loans, as calculated on the date of the repayment of such loans
by the Secretary of the Treasury, in order to discharge the borrower
from any remaining obligation to the private educational lender with
respect to such applicable eligible private student loans.
(c) Repayment Refunds Prohibited.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed to authorize any refunding of any repayment of a loan made
before the date a borrower's loans are paid by the Secretary of the
Treasury in accordance with this section.
(d) Exclusion From Taxable Income.--The amount of a borrower's
eligible private student loans paid by the Secretary of the Treasury
under this section shall not be included in the gross income of the
borrower for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(e) Notice to Borrowers in Statements.--Section 128(e) of the Truth
in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1638(e)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new paragraph:
``(12) Notice required along with billing statements.--With
each billing statement sent to the borrower during the two-year
period beginning on the 15th day after the date of enactment of
the Student Loan Forgiveness for Frontline Health Workers Act,
the private educational lender shall include a notice informing
the borrower of the availability of the Federal student loan
forgiveness and private student loan repayment programs for
frontline health care workers under the Student Loan
Forgiveness for Frontline Health Workers Act, including where
to find information about how to qualify as a frontline health
care worker, how to apply to such programs, and the application
deadline for such programs.''.
SEC. 4. COORDINATED PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.
The Secretaries concerned shall jointly develop the programs
required under section 2 and section 3 of this Act, and shall
coordinate and consult with one another in carrying out such programs
to ensure that--
(1) determinations of eligibility are uniform and
consistent across both programs;
(2) frontline health care workers who are borrowers of both
eligible Federal student loans and eligible private student
loans may apply for both loan forgiveness under section 2 and
loan repayment under section 3 with submission of only one
application;
(3) borrowers with outstanding eligible Federal student
loans and borrowers with outstanding eligible private student
loans are notified of the availability of both programs
required under this Act; and
(4) such programs are made available to frontline health
care workers who were borrowers of eligible Federal student
loans, eligible private student loans, or both, and who died as
a result of the coronavirus, to relieve the families and
estates of such deceased frontline health care workers of the
burden of the student loans of the such workers.
SEC. 5. NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC.
Not later than 15 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Secretaries concerned, in consultation with institutions of higher
education and lenders and holders of Federal student loans and private
education loans, shall take such actions as may be necessary to ensure
that borrowers who have outstanding eligible Federal student loans,
outstanding eligible private student loans, or both, are aware of the
loan forgiveness and loan repayment programs authorized by this Act.
Such information shall--
(1) be presented in a form that is widely available to the
public, especially to borrowers with eligible Federal student
loans, eligible private student loans, or both;
(2) be easily understandable; and
(3) clearly notify borrowers that to be considered for loan
forgiveness or loan repayment (or both) under this Act,
borrowers must submit an application to the Secretaries
concerned, and must do so during the application period
described in section 6.
SEC. 6. APPLICATION AND DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY.
(a) Application Period.--An individual may apply for loan
forgiveness under section 2, loan repayment under section 3, or both,
by submitting an application to the Secretaries concerned during the
period that begins on the date that is 60 days after the date of
enactment of this Act and that ends on the date that is 2 years after
the end of the qualifying period.
(b) Determination of Eligibility.--
(1) Development of application.--Not later than 60 days
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretaries
concerned shall jointly, in consultation with the Secretary of
Health and Human Services and the Intergovernmental Working
Group (in accordance with section 7), develop one application
for borrowers of both eligible Federal student loans and
eligible private student loans to apply for loan forgiveness or
loan repayment, or both, under this Act.
(2) Application requirements.--The application required
under paragraph (1) may only include such information as is
necessary for the Secretaries concerned to make a determination
of whether the applicant--
(A) is a frontline health care worker, without
consideration of the period of time the applicant
served as such a worker; and
(B) is a borrower of an applicable eligible Federal
student loan, an applicable eligible private student
loan, or both.
(3) Determination.--Not later than 30 days after the date
on which the Secretaries concerned receive an application from
an individual in accordance with this Act, the Secretaries
concerned shall--
(A) confirm that such individual is a frontline
health care worker who is a borrower of an applicable
eligible Federal student loan, an applicable eligible
private student loan, or both, then notify the
individual of such confirmation, and grant the
individual loan forgiveness or loan repayment, or both,
in accordance with sections 2 and 3 of this Act; or
(B) determine that such individual is not a
frontline health care worker who is a borrower of an
applicable eligible Federal student loan, an eligible
private student loan, or both, then deny such
application, and provide a notification to the
individual that includes--
(i) that the application was denied;
(ii) the reason for such denial; and
(iii) if the application was denied because
the Secretaries concerned determined that the
applicant was not a frontline health care
worker, an explanation that the individual may
appeal the denial to the Intergovernmental
Working Group within 30 days of the date of
such denial, and information on how the
applicant may submit such an appeal.
(4) Treatment after successful appeal.--In the case that an
individual appeals the denial of an application to the
Intergovernmental Working Group in accordance with section 7,
and the individual is determined by the Intergovernmental
Working Group to be a frontline health care worker, the
Secretaries concerned shall grant the individual loan
forgiveness or loan repayment, or both, in accordance with
sections 2 and 3 of this Act not later than 30 days after the
Secretaries concerned are notified of the outcome of the appeal
by the Intergovernmental Working Group.
SEC. 7. INTERGOVERNMENTAL WORKING GROUP.
(a) Establishment.--Not later than 30 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretaries concerned and the Secretary of
Health and Human Services shall jointly establish an Intergovernmental
Working Group to assist, in accordance with this section, with the
administration of the programs required under this Act.
(b) Membership.--The Intergovernmental Working Group shall have 9
members, of whom--
(1) five members shall be selected by the Secretary of
Health and Human Services from employees of the Department of
Health and Human Services who are knowledgeable concerning the
education, training, employment, and medical practices of
health care professionals and the health care workforce;
(2) two members shall be selected by the Secretary of
Education from employees of the Department of Education who are
knowledgeable concerning eligible Federal student loans and the
administration of such loans; and
(3) two members shall be selected by the Secretary of the
Treasury from employees of the Department of the Treasury who
are knowledgeable concerning eligible private student loans,
the administration of such loans, and private educational
lenders.
(c) Duties.--The Intergovernmental Working Group established under
this section shall--
(1) develop a procedure or list of requirements to
determine whether an individual has made significant
contributions to the medical response to the qualifying
emergency for purposes of determining whether the individual is
a frontline health care worker as defined in section 9(1)(C);
(2) determine what information an individual needs to
provide for the Secretaries concerned to determine whether the
individual has made significant contributions to the medical
response to the qualifying emergency for purposes of
determining whether the individual is a frontline health care
worker as defined in section 9(1)(B);
(3) not later than 15 days after the date on which the
Council is established, report the information described in
paragraphs (1) and (2) to the Secretaries concerned for
inclusion in the application developed in accordance with
section 6(b)(1);
(4) not later than 60 days after the date on which the
Council is established, develop a process by which--
(A) an applicant who is denied loan forgiveness or
loan repayment (or both) under this Act by the
Secretaries concerned because of a determination that
the applicant is not a frontline health care worker
may, within 30 days of the date of such denial, submit
an appeal of such denial to the Intergovernmental
Working Group; and
(B) the Intergovernmental Working Group will review
the appeal and make a determination with respect to
whether the applicant is a frontline health care
worker; and
(5) upon the request for an appeal by an applicant
described in paragraph (4), using the appeals process developed
under such paragraph, determine within 30 days after submission
of the appeal by the applicant, whether the applicant is a
frontline health care worker, and notify the Secretaries
concerned and the applicant of the outcome of such appeal
within 15 days of such determination.
SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.
The authority of the Secretaries concerned to carry out the loan
forgiveness program under section 2 and loan repayment program under
section 3, and the authority of the Intergovernmental Working Group to
carry out the activities authorized under section 7, shall cease on the
date that is 180 days after the end date of the application period
described in section 6(a).
SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Applicable loan.--For the purposes of this Act, the
term ``applicable loan'', when used with respect to an eligible
Federal student loan or an eligible private student loan,
means--
(A) in the case of a frontline health care worker
who has obtained a graduate education degree or
certificate--
(i) any eligible Federal student loan for
the graduate education of such worker
(including a consolidation loan, to the extent
that such consolidation loan was used to repay
loans for graduate education); and
(ii) any eligible private student loan for
the graduate education of such worker; or
(B) in the case of a frontline health care worker
who has not obtained a graduate education degree or
certificate--
(i) any eligible Federal student loan for
the undergraduate education of such worker
(including a consolidation loan, to the extent
that such consolidation loan was used to repay
loans for undergraduate education), provided
that such loan was used for undergraduate
education in a relevant health care program of
study that is necessary for an individual to
enter or advance within the specific health
care-related occupation of the worker; and
(ii) any eligible private student loan for
the undergraduate education of such worker,
provided that such loan was used for
undergraduate education in a relevant health
care program of study that is necessary for an
individual to enter or advance within the
specific health care-related occupation of the
worker.
(2) Coronavirus.--The term ``coronavirus'' has the meaning
given the term in section 506 of the Coronavirus Preparedness
and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020 (Public Law
116-123).
(3) COVID-related health care services.--The term ``COVID-
related health care services'' means any health care services
that relate to--
(A) the diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of the
coronavirus, including through telehealth services;
(B) the assessment or care of the health of a human
being related to an actual or suspected case of the
coronavirus, including through telehealth services; or
(C) patient care in a setting where there is a
reasonable expectation of risk of exposure to the
coronavirus.
(4) Eligible federal student loan.--The term ``eligible
Federal student loan'' means any loan made, insured, or
guaranteed under part B, part D, or part E of title IV of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 before the date of enactment of
this Act, including a consolidation loan under such title.
(5) Eligible private student loan.--The term ``eligible
private student loan'' means a private education loan, as
defined in section 140(a) of the Truth in Lending Act (15
U.S.C. 1650(a)), that was expressly for the cost of attendance
(as defined in section 472) at an institution of higher
education participating in a loan program under part B, part D,
or part E of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1070 et seq.), as of the date that the loan was
disbursed, and that was made before the date of enactment of
this Act.
(6) Frontline health care worker.--The term ``frontline
health care worker'' means an individual who, in exchange for
payment or as a volunteer, for any period during a qualifying
emergency--
(A) is--
(i) a doctor, medical resident, medical
intern, medical fellow, nurse, home health care
worker, mental health professional, or other
health care professional who is licensed,
registered, or certified under Federal or State
law to provide health care services and who
provides COVID-related health care services;
(ii) a student enrolled at an institution
of higher education in a medical, nursing, or
other relevant health care program of study who
provides COVID-related health care services;
(iii) a laboratory worker who conducts,
evaluates, or analyzes coronavirus testing;
(iv) a medical researcher who conducts
research related to the prevention, treatment,
or cure of the coronavirus; or
(v) an emergency medical services worker
who responds to health emergencies or
transports patients to hospitals or other
medical facilities; or
(B) does not meet the requirements of any of the
clauses under subparagraph (A), but is a health care
professional who is licensed, registered, or certified
under Federal or State law to provide health care and
has made significant contributions to the medical
response to the qualifying emergency.
(7) Graduate education.--The term ``graduate education''
means a postbaccalaureate program of study at an institution of
higher education that--
(A) leads to a master's degree;
(B) leads to a doctoral degree; or
(C) does not lead to a graduate degree, but awards
or is necessary to obtain a professional certification
or licensing credential that is required for
employment.
(8) Institution of higher education.--The term
``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given such
term in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1002).
(9) Private educational lender.--The term ``private
educational lender'' has the meaning given the term in section
140(a) of the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a)).
(10) Qualifying emergency.--The term ``qualifying
emergency'' means--
(A) a public health emergency related to the
coronavirus declared by the Secretary of Health and
Human Services pursuant to section 319 of the Public
Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d);
(B) an event related to the coronavirus for which--
(i) the President declared a major disaster
or an emergency under section 401 or 501,
respectively, of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act
(42 U.S.C. 5170 and 5191); or
(ii) the Governor of a State or territory
of the United States declared an emergency; or
(C) a national emergency related to the coronavirus
declared by the President under section 201 of the
National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.).
(11) Secretaries concerned.--The term ``Secretaries
concerned'' means--
(A) the Secretary of Education, with respect to
eligible Federal student loans and borrowers of such
loans; and
(B) the Secretary of the Treasury, with respect to
eligible private student loans and borrowers of such
loans.
(12) Undergraduate education.--The term ``undergraduate
education'' means a postsecondary program of study at an
institution of higher education that--
(A) leads to an associate's degree;
(B) leads to a baccalaureate degree; or
(C) does not lead to an associate's or
baccalaureate degree, but awards or is necessary to
obtain a certification or licensing credential that is
required for employment.
<all>
Student Loan Forgiveness for Frontline Health Workers Act
#3828 | S Congress #117
Policy Area: Education
Subjects: Administrative remediesCardiovascular and respiratory healthDepartment of EducationDepartment of Health and Human ServicesDepartment of the TreasuryEmergency medical services and trauma careExecutive agency funding and structureGovernment information and archivesGovernment lending and loan guaranteesHealth personnelHigher educationIncome tax exclusionInfectious and parasitic diseasesInterest, dividends, interest ratesStudent aid and college costsWorker safety and health
Last Action: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (3/14/2022)
Bill Text Source: Congress.gov
Summary and Impacts
Original Text