[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 360 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 360

  To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to expand expenses which 
     qualify for the Hope Scholarship Credit and to make the Hope 
    Scholarship Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit refundable.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 23, 2007

Mr. Bingaman (for himself and Mr. Smith) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to expand expenses which 
     qualify for the Hope Scholarship Credit and to make the Hope 
    Scholarship Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit refundable.

    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 ``Greater Access To Education Act of 
2007''.

SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF EDUCATIONAL EXPENSES ALLOWED AS PART OF HOPE 
              SCHOLARSHIP CREDIT.

    (a) Qualified Tuition and Related Expenses Expanded To Include Room 
and Board, Books, Supplies, and Equipment.--Paragraph (1) of section 
25A(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (defining qualified tuition 
and related expenses) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph:
                    ``(D) Additional expenses allowed for hope 
                scholarship credit.--For purposes of the Hope 
                Scholarship Credit, such term shall, with respect to 
                any academic period, include--
                            ``(i) reasonable costs for such period 
                        incurred by the eligible student for room and 
                        board while attending the eligible educational 
                        institution, and
                            ``(ii) fees, books, supplies, and equipment 
                        required for such period for courses of 
                        instruction at the eligible educational 
                        institution.''.
    (b) Hope Scholarship Credit Not Reduced by Federal Pell Grants and 
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants.--Subsection (g) of section 
25A of such Code (relating to special rules) is amended by adding at 
the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(8) Pell and seog grants.--For purposes of the Hope 
        Scholarship Credit, paragraph (2) shall not apply to amounts 
        paid for an individual as a Federal Pell Grant or a Federal 
        supplemental educational opportunity grant under subparts 1 and 
        3, respectively, of part A of title IV of the Higher Education 
        Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a and 1070b et seq., 
        respectively).''.
    (c) Expanded Hope Expenses Not Subject to Information Reporting 
Requirements.--Subsection (e) of section 6050S of such Code (relating 
to definitions) is amended by striking ``subsection (g)(2)'' and 
inserting ``subsections (f)(1)(D) and (g)(2)''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to expenses paid after December 31, 2006 (in tax years ending 
after such date), for education furnished in academic periods beginning 
after such date.

SEC. 3. HOPE AND LIFETIME LEARNING CREDITS TO BE REFUNDABLE.

    (a) Credit To Be Refundable.--Section 25A of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986 (relating to Hope and Lifetime Learning credits), as 
amended by section 2, is hereby moved to subpart C of part IV of 
subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code (relating to refundable credits) 
and inserted after section 35.
    (b) Technical Amendments.--
            (1) Section 36 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 
        redesignated as section 37.
            (2) Section 25A of such Code (as moved by subsection (a)) 
        is redesignated as section 36.
            (3) Paragraph (1) of section 36(a) of such Code (as 
        redesignated by paragraph (2)) is amended by striking ``this 
        chapter'' and inserting ``this subtitle''.
            (4) Subparagraph (B) of section 72(t)(7) of such Code is 
        amended by striking ``section 25A(g)(2)'' and inserting 
        ``section 36(g)(2)''.
            (5) Subparagraph (A) of section 135(d)(2) of such Code is 
        amended by striking ``section 25A'' and inserting ``section 
        36''.
            (6) Section 221(d) of such Code is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``section 25A(g)(2)'' in paragraph 
                (2)(B) and inserting ``section 36(g)(2)'',
                    (B) by striking ``section 25A(f)(2)'' in the matter 
                following paragraph (2)(B) and inserting ``section 
                36(f)(2)'', and
                    (C) by striking ``section 25A(b)(3)'' in paragraph 
                (3) and inserting ``section 36(b)(3)''.
            (7) Section 222 of such Code is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``section 25A'' in subparagraph (A) 
                of subsection (c)(2) and inserting ``section 36'',
                    (B) by striking ``section 25A(f)'' in subsection 
                (d)(1) and inserting ``section 36(f)'', and
                    (C) by striking ``section 25A(g)(2)'' in subsection 
                (d)(1) and inserting ``section 36(g)(2)''.
            (8) Section 529 of such Code is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``section 25A(g)(2)'' in subclause 
                (I) of subsection (c)(3)(B)(v) and inserting ``section 
                36(g)(2)'',
                    (B) by striking ``section 25A'' in subclause (II) 
                of subsection (c)(3)(B)(v) and inserting ``section 
                36'', and
                    (C) by striking ``section 25A(b)(3)'' in clause (i) 
                of subsection (e)(3)(B) and inserting ``section 
                36(b)(3)''.
            (9) Section 530 of such Code is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``section 25A(g)(2)'' in subclause 
                (I) of subsection (d)(2)(C)(i) and inserting ``section 
                36(g)(2)'',
                    (B) by striking ``section 25A'' in subclause (II) 
                of subsection (d)(2)(C)(i) and inserting ``section 
                36'', and
                    (C) by striking ``section 25A(g)(2)'' in clause 
                (iii) of subsection (d)(4)(B) and inserting ``section 
                36(g)(2)''.
            (10) Subsection (e) of section 6050S of such Code is 
        amended by striking ``section 25A'' and inserting ``section 
        36''.
            (11) Subparagraph (J) of section 6213(g)(2) of such Code is 
        amended by striking ``section 25A(g)(1)'' and inserting 
        ``section 36(g)(1)''.
            (12) Paragraph (2) of section 1324(b) of title 31, United 
        States Code, is amended by inserting before the period ``or 
        from section 36 of such Code''.
            (13) The table of sections for subpart C of part IV of 
        subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
        is amended by striking the item relating to section 36 and 
        inserting the following:

``Sec. 36. Hope and Lifetime Learning credits.
``Sec. 37. Overpayments of tax.''.
            (14) The table of sections for subpart A of such part IV is 
        amended by striking the item relating to section 25A.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2006.
                                 <all>