House File 469 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 469 BY SMITH , GASKILL , COHOON , LENSING , WINCKLER , HUNTER , McCONKEY , BROWN-POWERS , THEDE , GAINES , HANSON , STAED , BEARINGER , ANDERSON , KEARNS , KELLEY , and STUTSMAN A BILL FOR An Act creating a licensed social worker loan repayment program 1 and revolving fund. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 2315YH (2) 86 tr/nh

H.F. 469 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 261.117 Licensed social worker loan 1 repayment program —— definitions. 2 1. A licensed social worker loan repayment program is 3 established, to be administered by the college student aid 4 commission for the purpose of increasing the number of social 5 workers serving in critical human service areas. 6 2. For purposes of this division: 7 a. “Critical human service area” includes but is not limited 8 to an area of the state with a shortage of social workers 9 providing health, mental health, substance abuse, aging, 10 HIV/AIDS, victim, or child welfare services, or communities 11 with multilingual needs. A critical human service area shall 12 be an area designated as a mental health professional shortage 13 area by the United States department of health and human 14 services health resources and services administration. 15 b. “Licensed social worker” means an individual holding a 16 license issued under chapter 154C who is employed in a critical 17 human service area. 18 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 261.118 Licensed social worker loan 19 repayment revolving fund. 20 1. a. A licensed social worker loan repayment revolving 21 fund is created in the state treasury as a separate fund under 22 the control of the commission. The commission shall deposit 23 moneys appropriated for purposes of the licensed social worker 24 loan repayment program, moneys repaid by loan repayment award 25 recipients who fail to meet the service area requirements, and 26 any other moneys obtained or accepted by the commission for 27 deposit into the fund. 28 b. Moneys in the fund shall be used for purposes of the 29 licensed social worker loan repayment program. Notwithstanding 30 section 8.33, moneys deposited in the fund shall not revert 31 to any fund of the state at the end of any fiscal year but 32 shall remain in the fund and be continuously available for the 33 program. 34 2. Notwithstanding section 12C.7, subsection 2, interest 35 -1- LSB 2315YH (2) 86 tr/nh 1/ 4

H.F. 469 or earnings on moneys deposited in the fund shall be credited 1 to the fund. 2 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 261.119 Loan payment awards. 3 1. Each applicant for loan repayment shall, in accordance 4 with the rules of the commission, do the following: 5 a. Complete and file an application for licensed social 6 worker loan repayment. The individual shall be responsible 7 for the prompt submission of any information required by the 8 commission. 9 b. File a new application and submit information as 10 required by the commission annually on the basis of which the 11 applicant’s eligibility for the renewed loan repayment will be 12 evaluated and determined. 13 c. Complete and return on a form approved by the commission 14 an affidavit of practice verifying that the applicant is a 15 licensed social worker in a critical human service area. 16 2. Loan repayment awards shall be made annually to 17 applicants in the following order of priority: 18 a. Applicants who have received payment of an award pursuant 19 to this section in a prior year and who have provided social 20 work services in a critical human service area in the year 21 prior to such application. 22 b. Applicants who have not received payment of an award 23 pursuant to this section in a prior year and who have provided 24 social work services in a critical human service area in the 25 year prior to such application. 26 c. Applicants from underrepresented racial, cultural, and 27 ethnic groups and individuals with disabilities. 28 3. The contract for the loan repayment shall stipulate the 29 time period the licensed social worker shall practice in a 30 critical human service area. In addition, the contract shall 31 stipulate that the licensed social worker shall repay any funds 32 paid on the person’s loan by the commission if the person fails 33 to practice in a critical human service area for the required 34 period of time. 35 -2- LSB 2315YH (2) 86 tr/nh 2/ 4

H.F. 469 4. a. The annual amount of a licensed social worker loan 1 repayment award shall be six thousand five hundred dollars or 2 twenty percent of the licensed social worker’s total federally 3 guaranteed Stafford loan amount under the federal family 4 education loan program or the federal direct loan program, 5 including principal and interest, whichever amount is less. A 6 recipient shall not receive loan repayment that exceeds the 7 total remaining balance of the recipient’s student loan debt or 8 twenty-five thousand dollars, whichever is less. 9 b. Awards shall be within the amounts appropriated for such 10 purpose and shall be based on the availability of funds. 11 5. The commission shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A 12 to administer this division. 13 EXPLANATION 14 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 15 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 16 This bill creates a licensed social worker loan repayment 17 program administered by the college student aid commission. 18 Applicants for the program must enter into an agreement with 19 the commission, agreeing to work for a specific period of time 20 in a “critical human service area”, defined as a geographic 21 area in Iowa with a shortage of social workers in health, 22 mental health, substance abuse, aging, HIV/AIDS, victim, or 23 child welfare concerns, or communities with multilingual needs. 24 The program provides a specific annual benefit, up to 25 $6,500, for licensed social workers who have worked in a 26 critical human service area in the previous year. No recipient 27 shall receive loan repayment that exceeds the total remaining 28 balance of the student loan debt and no recipient shall receive 29 cumulative awards in excess of $25,000. 30 The program is funded by a special revolving fund in 31 the state treasury, controlled by the college student aid 32 commission. The fund consists of moneys appropriated for 33 purposes of the program, repayments by participants who fail 34 to meet the service area requirements, and any other available 35 -3- LSB 2315YH (2) 86 tr/nh 3/ 4

H.F. 469 moneys. Moneys deposited in the fund do not revert to any 1 other fund at the end of any fiscal year but shall remain in the 2 fund and be continuously available for the program. Interest 3 or earnings on moneys deposited in the fund shall also be 4 credited to the fund. 5 -4- LSB 2315YH (2) 86 tr/nh 4/ 4