110 HR 3946 IH: Historically Black Colleges and U.S. House of Representatives 2007-10-23 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

I 110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3946 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES October 23, 2007 Mr. Jefferson (for himself, Mr. Melancon, Mr. Scott of Virginia, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Payne, and Ms. Clarke) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To provide for a temporary waiver under part B of title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965 for undergraduate historically black colleges and universities located in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Katrina and Rita Relief Act of 2007.

2.

Waiver authority

(a)

In general

Not withstanding any other provision of the law, unless enacted with specific reference to this section, the Secretary of Education shall waive or modify any statutory or regulatory provision related to the strengthening institutions program under part B of title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1066 et seq.) in connection with a Gulf hurricane disaster to ensure that— (1)institutions of higher education that were receiving assistance at the time of a Gulf hurricane disaster are not adversely impacted by the formula calculation for the 2007–2012 funding cycle under such part B; and (2)any affected institution of higher education can, under section 322 of such Act, sustain its fiscal year 2006 level of title III funding to assist in institutional recovery from a Gulf hurricane disaster. (b)

Allotments to institutions

For the purpose of calculating the allotments of grants to affected institutions, the Secretary of Education shall waive the allotment calculation under subsections (a), (b), and (c) of section 324 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1051 et seq.), and allot an amount to each affected institution not less than the amount allotted in fiscal year 2006, for fiscal years 2009–2012. (c)

Notice

The Secretary shall notify each institution of higher education affected by the provisions of this section.

3.

Definitions

For purposes of this Act: (1)

Affected institution

The term affected institution means an institution of higher education that is— (A)a part B institution as such term is defined in section 322(2) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1061); (B)located in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster; and (C)able to demonstrate that the institution— (i)incurred physical damage resulting from the impact of Hurricane Katrina or Rita; (ii)has pursued collateral source compensation from insurance, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or the Small Business Administration, as appropriate; and (iii)was not able to fully reopen in existing facilities or fully reopen to the pre-hurricane levels for 30 days or more. (2)

Other terms

The terms area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster and Gulf hurricane disaster have the meanings given such terms in section 209 of the Higher Education Hurricane Relief Act of 2005 (Public Law 109–148, 119 Stat. 2809).