[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6792 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 6792

 To amend the public service loan forgiveness program under the Higher 
   Education Act of 1965 to require an on-line portal, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 14, 2023

     Mr. Boyle of Pennsylvania (for himself and Mr. Joyce of Ohio) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                      Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the public service loan forgiveness program under the Higher 
   Education Act of 1965 to require an on-line portal, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``PSLF Administrative Improvements 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL PUBLIC SERVICE LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS 
              FOR THE SECRETARY OF EDUCATION.

    Section 455(m) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1087e(m)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) Database of public service jobs.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not later than 18 months after 
                the date of enactment of the PSLF Administrative 
                Improvements Act, the Secretary of Education, in 
                conjunction with the Secretary of Labor, shall--
                            ``(i) establish and regularly update a 
                        publicly accessible database of public service 
                        employers, which shall include information 
                        required for the process for completion of the 
                        employment certifications forms required under 
                        this subsection; and
                            ``(ii) ensure that such employment 
                        certification forms are available in languages 
                        other than English.
                    ``(B) Definitions.--For purposes of this 
                subsection:
                            ``(i) Public service employer.--The term 
                        `public service employer' has the meaning given 
                        the term `public service organization' in 
                        section 685.219(b) of title 34, Code of Federal 
                        Regulations (or successor regulations).
                            ``(ii) TEPSLF program.--The term `TEPSLF 
                        program' means the Temporary Expanded Public 
                        Service Loan Forgiveness program carried out by 
                        the Department of Education, including the 
                        program carried out under section 311 of 
                        division H of the Consolidated Appropriations 
                        Act, 2022 (Public Law 117-103).
            ``(6) Notice of pslf requirements.--
                    ``(A) Employers.--With respect to each employer 
                whose contact information is maintained in the database 
                described in paragraph (5), the Secretary shall, on an 
                annual basis and in a manner that is consistent with 
                Federal laws on data privacy--
                            ``(i) provide each such employer with 
                        standardized information on the program under 
                        this subsection, including eligibility 
                        requirements;
                            ``(ii) encourage the employer to provide 
                        such information to new employees; and
                            ``(iii) in the case of an employer that is 
                        likely to be subject to a determination by the 
                        Secretary that the employer is failing to meet 
                        the definition of public service employer--
                                    ``(I) notify such employer that 
                                such a determination is likely, prior 
                                to such determination; and
                                    ``(II) provide the employer an 
                                opportunity to make changes in order to 
                                avoid such determination, and if 
                                applicable, an opportunity to appeal 
                                such determination.
                    ``(B) Institutions of higher education.--With 
                respect to each institution of higher education 
                participating in any program under this title, the 
                Secretary shall, on an annual basis, provide each such 
                institution with standardized information on the 
                program under this subsection, including eligibility 
                requirements.
                    ``(C) Borrowers.--With respect to each borrower who 
                was denied loan cancellation under this subsection, the 
                Secretary shall--
                            ``(i) without any further action by the 
                        borrower and subject to the limitation on total 
                        loan volume specified under the TEPSLF program 
                        and the availability of appropriations for such 
                        section 315, determine whether the borrower 
                        qualifies for the loan cancellation program 
                        under the TEPSLF, and if so, cancel the 
                        borrower's loans in accordance with such 
                        program; and
                            ``(ii) in a case in which a borrower's 
                        loans were not cancelled under clause (i), 
                        notify the borrower of other options (such as 
                        loan consolidation) to qualify for loan 
                        cancellation under this subsection, and how to 
                        successfully pursue such options.
            ``(7) Data matching agreements.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall enter into 
                data matching agreements with relevant Federal agencies 
                who possess records about the status of borrowers of 
                loans made under this part as employees of public 
                service employers for the purpose of eliminating, to 
                the extent practicable, the need for a borrower or an 
                employer to submit a certification of employment to the 
                Secretary.
                    ``(B) Specific federal agencies.--Notwithstanding 
                any Federal law, the Secretary of Labor, the 
                Commissioner of Internal Revenue, and the Commissioner 
                of Social Security shall disclose any relevant records 
                to the Secretary for the purposes of meeting the 
                Secretary's obligations to reduce barriers to 
                certification of employment as described in 
                subparagraph (A).
                    ``(C) Notice to borrowers.--If the Secretary 
                receives employer or employment information regarding a 
                borrower from a Federal agency pursuant to this 
                paragraph, the Secretary shall timely notify the 
                borrower that--
                            ``(i) the Secretary received the 
                        information; and
                            ``(ii) the borrower, for the duration of 
                        the borrower's employment by the employer--
                                    ``(I) is not required to submit a 
                                certification of employment for the 
                                employer under paragraph (8); or
                                    ``(II) if the information is not 
                                complete, only needs to submit a 
                                reduced set of information to the 
                                Secretary for the certification of 
                                employment.
            ``(8) On-line portal.--
                    ``(A) Borrowers.--Not later than 18 months after 
                the date of enactment of the PSLF Administrative 
                Improvements Act, the Secretary shall ensure that 
                borrowers have access to an on-line portal, integrated 
                with the Federal Student Aid dashboard (or any 
                successor dashboard or similar website) that provides 
                each borrower who signs on to such portal with the 
                following:
                            ``(i) Instructions on how to access the 
                        database under paragraph (5) so that the 
                        borrower can determine whether the borrower is 
                        employed in a public service job.
                            ``(ii) An identification of the loans of 
                        the borrower that are eligible Federal Direct 
                        Loans.
                            ``(iii) With respect to each such eligible 
                        Federal Direct Loan, the number of monthly 
                        payments on such loan that qualify as a monthly 
                        payment under paragraph (1)(A), and the 
                        estimated number of monthly payments under 
                        paragraph (1)(A) remaining on such loan before 
                        the borrower may be eligible for loan 
                        cancellation under this subsection.
                            ``(iv) With respect to each loan of the 
                        borrower that is not eligible for loan 
                        cancellation under this subsection, an 
                        explanation of why the loan is not so eligible 
                        and instructions on what, if anything, the 
                        borrower may do to make the loan so eligible.
                            ``(v) Instructions for the submission of 
                        any forms associated with such loan 
                        cancellation, and an ability for the borrower 
                        to use the portal to electronically sign and 
                        submit such forms.
                            ``(vi) In the case of a borrower who 
                        disputes a determination of the Secretary 
                        relating to the entitlement of the borrower to 
                        loan cancellation under paragraph (2) or with 
                        respect to a determination that a loan is not 
                        eligible pursuant to clause (iv)--
                                    ``(I) an ability for the borrower 
                                to file a claim with the Secretary to 
                                dispute such determination through the 
                                portal; and
                                    ``(II) in the case of such a claim 
                                that has been filed the status of such 
                                claim, for which updates shall be 
                                provided not fewer than once every 90 
                                days.
                    ``(B) Employers.--The Secretary shall ensure that 
                an employer of a borrower has the ability to 
                electronically sign and submit any forms associated 
                with loan cancellation under this subsection.
                    ``(C) Information.--The Secretary shall ensure that 
                any information provided through the on-line portal 
                described in this paragraph--
                            ``(i) is up-to-date information; and
                            ``(ii) that such information is also 
                        provided in a written-format through email or 
                        regular mail, if so requested by the borrower 
                        or employer.
            ``(9) Standard procedures.--Not later than 180 days after 
        the date of enactment of the PSLF Administrative Improvements 
        Act, the Secretary shall develop and make publicly available 
        the procedures the Secretary (including the contractors and 
        servicers involved) uses to determine whether a borrower meets 
        the requirements for loan cancellation under this subsection.
            ``(10) Annual report.--The Secretary shall submit to the 
        authorizing committees, an annual report with respect to the 
        preceding fiscal year, on--
                    ``(A) the number of borrowers who received loan 
                cancellation under this subsection, and the number of 
                such borrowers whose application for such loan 
                cancellation had been previously rejected, 
                disaggregated by each category of public service job 
                listed in the employment certification form required 
                under this subsection;
                    ``(B) the number of borrowers whose application for 
                loan cancellation under this subsection was rejected, 
                and a description of why each such application was so 
                rejected, disaggregated by each category of public 
                service job described in subparagraph (A);
                    ``(C) the number of borrowers whose application for 
                loan cancellation under this subsection had been 
                rejected and who contacted the Secretary to determine 
                how to qualify for such loan cancellation or loan 
                cancellation under the TEPSLF program;
                    ``(D) each reason why a payment made on an eligible 
                Federal Direct Loan did not qualify as one of the 120 
                monthly payments under paragraph (1)(A);
                    ``(E) the number of borrowers employed by an 
                employer that--
                            ``(i) is not an organization described in 
                        section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code 
                        of 1986 and exempt from taxation under section 
                        501(a) of such Code; and
                            ``(ii) was determined to meet the 
                        definition of public service employer; and
                    ``(F) the number of borrowers employed by an 
                employer described in subparagraph (E)(i) that was 
                determined to not meet the definition of public service 
                employer.''.

SEC. 3. CLARIFICATION OF TEPSLF.

    A borrower may qualify for loan forgiveness under the Temporary 
Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness program carried out by the 
Department of Education, including the program carried out under 
section 311 of division H of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 
(Public Law 117-103), without regard to whether the borrower's 
application for loan cancellation under section 455(m) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(m)), as amended by this Act, is 
rejected.
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