[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1628 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1628

    To provide the Secretary of Education with waiver authority for 
  students who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants and are adversely 
                    affected by a natural disaster.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 7, 2005

  Mr. Martinez (for himself and Mr. Vitter) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To provide the Secretary of Education with waiver authority for 
  students who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants and are adversely 
                    affected by a natural disaster.

    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 ``Federal Pell Grant Hurricane and 
Disaster Relief Act''.

SEC. 2. WAIVERS OF FEDERAL PELL GRANT REPAYMENT BY STUDENTS AFFECTED BY 
              DISASTERS.

    Section 484B(b)(2) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1091b(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph:
                    ``(D) Waivers of federal pell grant repayment by 
                students affected by disasters.--The Secretary may 
                waive the amounts that students are required to return 
                under this section with respect to Federal Pell Grants 
                if the withdrawals on which the returns are based are 
                withdrawals--
                            ``(i) by students--
                                    ``(I) who were residing in, 
                                employed in, or attending an 
                                institution of higher education that is 
                                located in an area that is designated 
                                by the President to warrant major 
                                disaster assistance under section 401 
                                of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 
                                Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 
                                U.S.C. 5170); and
                                    ``(II) whose attendance was 
                                interrupted because of the impact of 
                                the disaster on the student or the 
                                institution; and
                            ``(ii) that end within the academic year 
                        during which the designation occurred or during 
                        the next succeeding academic year.''.
                                 <all>