[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2391 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2391

 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to extend and make uniform 
 the repayment plans available under the various Federal student loan 
                               programs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 3, 1997

 Mr. Pascrell introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to extend and make uniform 
 the repayment plans available under the various Federal student loan 
                               programs.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Student Loan 
Repayment Extension Act''.
    (b) References.--Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever 
in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an 
amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference 
shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.).

SEC. 2. REPAYMENT TERMS.

    (a) Insured Loans.--Section 427 is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (B), in the matter preceding 
                clause (i), by striking ``over a period'' through ``nor 
                more than 10 years'' and inserting ``in accordance with 
                the repayment plan selected under subsection (d),'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (C), at the end of the 
                subparagraph, by striking out ``the 10-year period 
                described in subparagraph (B);'' and inserting the 
                following: ``the length of the repayment period under a 
                repayment plan described in subsection (d);'';
                    (C) by striking subparagraph (F);
                    (D) by redesignating subparagraphs (G), (H), and 
                (I) as subparagraphs (F), (G), and (H), respectively; 
                and
                    (E) in subparagraph (G) (as redesignated by 
                subparagraph (D)), by striking ``the option'' through 
                the end of the subparagraph and inserting ``the 
                repayment options described in subsection (d); and'';
            (2) in subsection (c), by striking ``in subsection 
        (a)(2)(H),'' and inserting the following: ``by a repayment plan 
        selected by the borrower under subparagraph (C) or (D) of 
        subsection (d)(1),''; and
            (3) by adding after subsection (c) the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(d) Repayment Plans.--
            ``(1) Design and selection.--In accordance with regulations 
        of the Secretary, the lender shall offer a borrower of a loan 
        made under this part the plans described in this subsection for 
        repayment of such loan, including principal and interest 
        thereon. No plan may require a borrower to repay a loan in less 
        than 5 years. The borrower may choose from--
                    ``(A) a standard repayment plan, with a fixed 
                annual repayment amount paid over a fixed period of 
                time, not to exceed 10 years;
                    ``(B) an extended repayment plan, with a fixed 
                annual repayment amount paid over an extended period of 
                time, not to exceed 30 years, except that the borrower 
                shall repay annually a minimum amount determined in 
                accordance with subsection (c);
                    ``(C) a graduated repayment plan, with annual 
                repayment amounts established at 2 or more graduated 
                levels and paid over an extended period of time, not to 
                exceed 30 years, except that the borrower's scheduled 
                payments shall not be less than 50 percent, nor more 
                than 150 percent, of what the amortized payment on the 
                amount owed would be if the loan were repaid under the 
                standard repayment plan; and
                    ``(D) an income-sensitive repayment plan, with 
                income-sensitive repayment amounts paid over a fixed 
                period of time, not to exceed 25 years.
            ``(2) Lender selection of option if borrower does not 
        select.--If a borrower of a loan made under this part does not 
        select a repayment plan described in paragraph (1), the lender 
        shall provide the borrower with a repayment plan described in 
        paragraph (1)(A).
            ``(3) Changes in selections.--The borrower of a loan made 
        under this part may change the borrower's selection of a 
        repayment plan under paragraph (1), or the lender's selection 
        of a plan for the borrower under paragraph (2), as the case may 
        be, under such conditions as may be prescribed by the Secretary 
        in regulation.
            ``(4) Acceleration permitted.--Under any of the plans 
        described in this subsection, the borrower shall be entitled to 
        accelerate, without penalty, repayment on the borrower's loans 
        under this part.''.
    (b) Guaranteed Loans.--Section 428(b) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (D), by striking clauses (i) 
                and (ii) and the clause designation ``(iii)'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (E)--
                            (i) in clause (i)--
                                    (I) by striking ``or section 
                                428A,'' and inserting ``or section 
                                428H,''; and
                                    (II) by striking ``the option'' 
                                through the end of the clause and 
                                inserting ``the repayment options 
                                described in paragraph (9); and''; and
                            (ii) in clause (ii)--
                                    (I) by striking ``over a period'' 
                                through ``nor more than 10 years'' and 
                                inserting ``in accordance with the 
                                repayment plan selected under paragraph 
                                (9), and''; and
                                    (II) by striking ``of this 
                                subsection;'' at the end of clause (ii) 
                                and inserting a semicolon; and
                    (C) in subparagraph (L)(i), by inserting after the 
                clause designation the following: ``except as otherwise 
                provided by a repayment plan selected by the borrower 
                under paragraph (9)(A) (iii) or (iv),''; and
            (2) by adding after paragraph (8) the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(9) Repayment plans.--
                    ``(A) Design and selection.--In accordance with 
                regulations of the Secretary, the lender shall offer a 
                borrower of a loan made under this part the plans 
                described in this subparagraph for repayment of such 
                loan, including principal and interest thereon. No plan 
                may require a borrower to repay a loan in less than 5 
                years. The borrower may choose from--
                            ``(i) a standard repayment plan, with a 
                        fixed annual repayment amount paid over a fixed 
                        period of time, not to exceed 10 years;
                            ``(ii) an extended repayment plan, with a 
                        fixed annual repayment amount paid over an 
                        extended period of time, not to exceed 30 
                        years, except that the borrower shall repay 
                        annually a minimum amount determined in 
                        accordance with paragraph (2)(L);
                            ``(iii) a graduated repayment plan, with 
                        annual repayment amounts established at 2 or 
                        more graduated levels and paid over an extended 
                        period of time, not to exceed 30 years, except 
                        that the borrower's scheduled payments shall 
                        not be less than 50 percent, nor more than 150 
                        percent, of what the amortized payment on the 
                        amount owed would be if the loan were repaid 
                        under the standard repayment plan; and
                            ``(iv) an income-sensitive repayment plan, 
                        with income-sensitive repayment amounts paid 
                        over a fixed period of time, not to exceed 25 
                        years.
                    ``(B) Lender selection of option if borrower does 
                not select.--If a borrower of a loan made under this 
                part does not select a repayment plan described in 
                subparagraph (A), the lender shall provide the borrower 
                with a repayment plan described in subparagraph (A)(i).
                    ``(C) Changes in selections.--The borrower of a 
                loan made under this part may change the borrower's 
                selection of a repayment plan under subparagraph (A), 
                or the lender's selection of a plan for the borrower 
                under subparagraph (B), as the case may be, under such 
                conditions as may be prescribed by the Secretary in 
                regulation.
                    ``(D) Acceleration permitted.--Under any of the 
                plans described in this paragraph, the borrower shall 
                be entitled to accelerate, without penalty, repayment 
                on the borrower's loans under this part.
                    ``(E) Comparable ffel and direct loan repayment 
                plans.--The Secretary shall ensure that the repayment 
                plans offered to borrowers under this part are 
                comparable, to the extent practicable and not otherwise 
                provided in statute, to the repayment plans offered 
                under part D.''.
    (c) Consolidation Loans.--Section 428C is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(3)(F), by striking ``alternative''; 
        and
            (2) in subsection (c) by amending paragraph (2) to read as 
        follows:
            ``(2) Repayment plans.--
                    ``(A) Design and selection.--In accordance with 
                regulations of the Secretary, the lender shall offer a 
                borrower of a loan made under this section the plans 
                described in this paragraph for repayment of such loan, 
                including principal and interest thereon. No plan may 
                require a borrower to repay a loan in less than 5 
                years. The borrower may choose from--
                            ``(i) a standard repayment plan, with a 
                        fixed annual repayment amount paid over a fixed 
                        period of time, not to exceed 10 years;
                            ``(ii) an extended repayment plan, with a 
                        fixed annual repayment amount paid over an 
                        extended period of time, not to exceed 30 
                        years, except that the borrower shall repay 
                        annually a minimum amount determined in 
                        accordance with paragraph (3);
                            ``(iii) a graduated repayment plan, with 
                        annual repayment amounts established at 2 or 
                        more graduated levels and paid over an extended 
                        period of time, not to exceed 30 years, except 
                        that the borrower's scheduled payments shall 
                        not be less than 50 percent, nor more than 150 
                        percent, of what the amortized payment on the 
                        amount owed would be if the loan were repaid 
                        under the standard repayment plan; and
                            ``(iv) an income-sensitive repayment plan, 
                        with income-sensitive repayment amounts paid 
                        over a fixed period of time, not to exceed 25 
                        years.
                    ``(B) Lender selection of option if borrower does 
                not select.--If a borrower of a loan made under this 
                section does not select a repayment plan described in 
                subparagraph (A), the lender shall provide the borrower 
                with a repayment plan described in subparagraph (A)(i).
                    ``(C) Changes in selections.--The borrower of a 
                loan made under this section may change the borrower's 
                selection of a repayment plan under subparagraph (A), 
                or the lender's selection of a plan for the borrower 
                under subparagraph (B), as the case may be, under such 
                conditions as may be prescribed by the Secretary in 
                regulation.''.
    (d) Direct Loans.--Section 455(d) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (B), by inserting after ``an 
                extended period of time,'' the following: ``not to 
                exceed 30 years,''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``a fixed or 
                extended period of time,'' and inserting the following: 
                ``an extended period of time, not to exceed 30 
                years,''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``subparagraph (A), (B), 
        or (C) of paragraph (1).'' and inserting ``paragraph (1)(A).''.
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