HOUSE FILE 133

BY  HUNTER

A BILL FOR

An Act providing for a worker shortage loan forgiveness program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

   Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  261.115  Worker shortage loan forgiveness program.
   1.  A worker shortage loan forgiveness program is established to be administered by the commission. An individual is eligible for the program if the individual graduated from a school district or accredited nonpublic school in this state on or after January 1, 2010, is a resident of the state, and successfully completed a vocational-technical or career option program or graduated with an associate degree from a community college established pursuant to chapter 260C or graduated with a baccalaureate degree or postbaccalaureate degree from an institution of higher education governed by the state board of regents or from an accredited private institution, and the individual meets either of the following conditions:
   a.  Is employed and residing in this state and has been employed and residing in this state for not less than two consecutive years within three years of successfully completing a vocational-technical or career option program or achieving an associate degree from a community college.
   b.  Is employed and residing in this state and has been employed and residing in this state for not less than four consecutive years within five years of graduating with a baccalaureate degree or postbaccalaureate degree from an institution of higher education governed by the state board of regents or from an accredited private institution.
   2.  Each applicant for loan forgiveness shall, in accordance with the rules of the commission, do the following:
   a.  Complete and file an application for worker shortage loan forgiveness. The individual shall be responsible for the prompt submission of any information required by the commission.
   b.  File a new application and submit information as required by the commission annually on the basis of which the applicant’s eligibility for the renewed loan forgiveness will be evaluated and determined.
   c.  Complete and return on a form approved by the commission an affidavit of eligibility verifying that the applicant met the requirements of subsection 1.
   3.  The annual amount of worker shortage loan forgiveness shall not exceed the following:
   a.  For an individual who meets the conditions of subsection 1, paragraph “a”, the combined resident tuition rate established for the two years following the individual’s successful program completion or graduation from the community college, or one hundred percent of the individual’s total federally guaranteed Stafford loan amount under the federal family education loan program or the federal direct loan program and any private student loan issued by a lender that meets standards prescribed by the commission including principal and interest, whichever amount is less.
   b.  For an individual who meets the conditions of subsection 1, paragraph “b”, the combined resident tuition rate established for institutions of higher learning governed by the state board of regents for the four years following the individual’s graduation from the regents university or accredited private institution, or one hundred percent of the individual’s total federally guaranteed Stafford loan amount under the federal family education loan program or the federal direct loan program and any private student loan issued by a lender that meets standards prescribed by the commission including principal and interest, whichever amount is less.
   4.  The commission shall submit in a report to the general assembly by January 1, annually, the number of individuals who received loan forgiveness pursuant to this section, the postsecondary institutions from which the individuals graduated or successfully completed a vocational-technical or career options program, where in the state program participants are employed, program participants’ employment classifications or types of employment, the amount paid to each program participant, and other information identified by the commission as indicators of outcomes from the program.
   5.  The commission shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A to administer this section.
EXPLANATION
   This bill creates a worker shortage loan forgiveness program to be administered by the college student aid commission. The program is open to individuals who graduated from an Iowa high school in 2010 or later, are employed and reside in the state, and successfully completed a vocational-technical or career option program or received a degree from an accredited postsecondary institution in the state.
   The individual must also have been employed and resided in this state for a period of two consecutive years within three years of successfully completing a vocational-technical or career option program or achieving an associate degree from a community college, or must have been employed and resided in this state for a period of four consecutive years within five years of graduating with a baccalaureate degree or postbaccalaureate degree from a regents university or accredited private institution.
   In the case of an individual who attended a community college, the total amount of worker shortage loan forgiveness shall not exceed the combined resident tuition rate established for the two years following the individual’s successful program completion or graduation from the community college, or 100 percent of the individual’s total federal loan program and private student loan amount including principal and interest, whichever amount is less.
   In the case of an individual who attended a regents university or accredited private institution, the annual amount of worker shortage loan forgiveness shall not exceed the combined resident tuition rate established for regents universities for the four years following the individual’s graduation, or 100 percent of the individual’s total federal loan program and private student loan amount including principal and interest, whichever amount is less. The individual is eligible for the loan forgiveness program for not more than four consecutive years.
   The bill requires the commission to submit a report to the general assembly by January 1, annually, with information identified as indicators of outcomes from the program.