[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 442 Reported in Senate (RS)]






                                                       Calendar No. 113
110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 442

                          [Report No. 110-51]

  To provide for loan repayment for prosecutors and public defenders.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 31, 2007

Mr. Durbin (for himself, Mr. Specter, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Smith, Mr. Kerry, 
   Ms. Collins, Ms. Landrieu, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Biden, Mr. Cochran, Mr. 
Kennedy, Mr. Feingold, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Schumer, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. 
Coleman, Mr. Kohl, and Mr. Harkin) introduced the following bill; which 
     was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

                             April 10, 2007

                 Reported by Mr. Leahy, with amendments
  [Omit the part struck through and insert the part printed in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide for loan repayment for prosecutors and public defenders.

    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 ``John R. Justice Prosecutors and 
Defenders Incentive Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. LOAN REPAYMENT FOR PROSECUTORS AND DEFENDERS.

    Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 
(42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

     ``PART JJ--LOAN REPAYMENT FOR PROSECUTORS AND PUBLIC DEFENDERS

``SEC. 3111. GRANT AUTHORIZATION.

    ``(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to encourage 
qualified individuals to enter and continue employment as prosecutors 
and public defenders.
    ``(b) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Prosecutor.--The term `prosecutor' means a full-time 
        employee of a State or local agency who--
                    ``(A) is continually licensed to practice law; and
                    ``(B) prosecutes criminal or juvenile delinquency 
                cases at the State or local <DELETED>level</DELETED> 
                level (including supervision, education, or training of 
                other persons prosecuting such cases).
            ``(2) Public defender.--The term `public defender' means an 
        attorney who--
                    ``(A) is continually licensed to practice law; and
                    ``(B) is--
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) a full-time employee of a 
                        State or local agency or a nonprofit 
                        organization operating under a contract with a 
                        State or unit of local government, that 
                        provides legal representation to indigent 
                        persons in criminal cases; or</DELETED>
                            ``(i) a full-time employee of a State or 
                        local agency who provides legal representation 
                        to indigent persons in criminal or juvenile 
                        delinquency cases (including supervision, 
                        education, or training of other persons 
                        providing such representation);
                            ``(ii) a full-time employee of a nonprofit 
                        organization operating under a contract with a 
                        State or unit of local government, who devotes 
                        substantially all of his or her full-time 
                        employment to providing legal representation to 
                        indigent persons in criminal or juvenile 
                        delinquency cases, (including supervision, 
                        education, or training of other persons 
                        providing such representation); or
                            ``<DELETED>(ii)</DELETED> (iii) employed as 
                        a full-time Federal defender attorney in a 
                        defender organization established pursuant to 
                        subsection (g) of section 3006A of title 18, 
                        United States Code, that provides legal 
                        representation to indigent persons in criminal 
                        or juvenile delinquency cases.
            ``(3) Student loan.--The term `student loan' means--
                    ``(A) a loan made, insured, or guaranteed under 
                part B of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
                (20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq.);
                    ``(B) a loan made under part D or E of title IV of 
                the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087a et 
                seq. and 1087aa et seq.); and
                    ``(C) a loan made under section 428C or 455(g) of 
                the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078-3 and 
                1087e(g)) to the extent that such loan was used to 
                repay a Federal Direct Stafford Loan, a Federal Direct 
                Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, or a loan made under 
                section 428 or 428H of such Act.
    ``(c) Program Authorized.--The Attorney General shall establish a 
program by which the Department of Justice shall assume the obligation 
to repay a student loan, by direct payments on behalf of a borrower to 
the holder of such loan, in accordance with subsection (d), for any 
borrower who--
            ``(1) is employed as a prosecutor or public defender; and
            ``(2) is not in default on a loan for which the borrower 
        seeks forgiveness.
    ``(d) Terms of Agreement.--
            ``(1) In general.--To be eligible to receive repayment 
        benefits under subsection (c), a borrower shall enter into a 
        written agreement that specifies that--
                    ``(A) the borrower will remain employed as a 
                prosecutor or public defender for a required period of 
                service of not less than 3 years, unless involuntarily 
                separated from that employment;
                    ``(B) if the borrower is involuntarily separated 
                from employment on account of misconduct, or 
                voluntarily separates from employment, before the end 
                of the period specified in the agreement, the borrower 
                will repay the Attorney General the amount of any 
                benefits received by such employee under this section;
                    ``(C) if the borrower is required to repay an 
                amount to the Attorney General under subparagraph (B) 
                and fails to repay such amount, a sum equal to that 
                amount shall be recoverable by the Federal Government 
                from the employee (or such employee's estate, if 
                applicable) by such methods as are provided by law for 
                the recovery of amounts owed to the Federal Government;
                    ``(D) the Attorney General may waive, in whole or 
                in part, a right of recovery under this subsection if 
                it is shown that recovery would be against equity and 
                good conscience or against the public interest; and
                    ``(E) the Attorney General shall make student loan 
                payments under this section for the period of the 
                agreement, subject to the availability of 
                appropriations.
            ``(2) Repayments.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Any amount repaid by, or 
                recovered from, an individual or the estate of an 
                individual under this subsection shall be credited to 
                the appropriation account from which the amount 
                involved was originally paid.
                    ``(B) Merger.--Any amount credited under 
                subparagraph (A) shall be merged with other sums in 
                such account and shall be available for the same 
                purposes and period, and subject to the same 
                limitations, if any, as the sums with which the amount 
                was merged.
            ``(3) Limitations.--
                    ``(A) Student loan payment amount.--Student loan 
                repayments made by the Attorney General under this 
                section shall be made subject to such terms, 
                limitations, or conditions as may be mutually agreed 
                upon by the borrower and the Attorney General in an 
                agreement under paragraph (1), except that the amount 
                paid by the Attorney General under this section shall 
                not exceed--
                            ``(i) $10,000 for any borrower in any 
                        calendar year; or
                            ``(ii) an aggregate total of $60,000 in the 
                        case of any borrower.
                    ``(B) Beginning of payments.--Nothing in this 
                section shall authorize the Attorney General to pay any 
                amount to reimburse a borrower for any repayments made 
                by such borrower prior to the date on which the 
                Attorney General entered into an agreement with the 
                borrower under this subsection.
    ``(e) Additional Agreements.--
            ``(1) In general.--On completion of the required period of 
        service under an agreement under subsection (d), the borrower 
        and the Attorney General may, subject to paragraph (2), enter 
        into an additional agreement in accordance with subsection (d).
            ``(2) Term.--An agreement entered into under paragraph (1) 
        may require the borrower to remain employed as a prosecutor or 
        public defender for less than 3 years.
<DELETED>    ``(f) Award Basis; Priority.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) Award basis.--Subject to paragraph (2), the 
        Attorney General shall provide repayment benefits under this 
        section on a first-come, first-served basis, and subject to the 
        availability of appropriations.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) Priority.--The Attorney General shall give 
        priority in providing repayment benefits under this section in 
        any fiscal year to a borrower who--</DELETED>
    ``(f) Award Basis; Priority.--
            ``(1) Award basis.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Attorney 
        General shall provide repayment benefits under this section--
                    ``(A) giving priority to borrowers who have the 
                least ability to repay their loans, except that the 
                Attorney General shall determine a fair allocation of 
                repayment benefits among prosecutors and public 
                defenders, and among employing entities nationwide; and
                    ``(B) subject to the availability of 
                appropriations.
            ``(2) Priority.--The Attorney General shall give priority 
        in providing repayment benefits under this section in any 
        fiscal year to a borrower who--
                    ``(A) received repayment benefits under this 
                section during the preceding fiscal year; and
                    ``(B) has completed less than 3 years of the first 
                required period of service specified for the borrower 
                in an agreement entered into under subsection (d).
    ``(g) Regulations.--The Attorney General is authorized to issue 
such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of 
this section.
    ``(h) Study.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this section, the Government Accountability Office shall study and 
report to Congress on the impact of law school accreditation 
requirements and other factors on law school costs and access, 
including the impact of such requirements on racial and ethnic 
minorities.
    ``<DELETED>(h)</DELETED>(i) Authorization of appropriations.--There 
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $25,000,000 
for fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for each 
succeeding fiscal year.''.
                                                       Calendar No. 113

110th CONGRESS

  1st Session

                                 S. 442

                          [Report No. 110-51]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

  To provide for loan repayment for prosecutors and public defenders.

_______________________________________________________________________

                             April 10, 2007

                        Reported with amendments