[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 72 (Tuesday, April 27, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2246-S2247]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     CONSIDER TEACHERS ACT OF 2021

  Ms. DUCKWORTH. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions be discharged from 
further consideration of S. 848 and the Senate proceed to its immediate 
consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 848) to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 
     in order to improve the service obligation verification 
     process for TEACH Grant recipients, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the 
Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Ms. DUCKWORTH. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered 
read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be 
considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (S. 848) was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, 
was read the third time, and passed, as follows

                                 S. 848

       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 ``Consider Teachers Act of 
     2021''.

     SEC. 2. TEACH GRANTS.

       Section 420N of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     1070g-2) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (b)(1)--
       (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``(referred to in 
     this section as the `service obligation window')'' after 
     ``under this subpart'';
       (B) in subparagraph (C)(vii), by inserting ``or geographic 
     area'' after ``field''; and
       (C) by striking subparagraphs (D) and (E) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(D) submit a certification of employment by the chief 
     administrative officer of the school in accordance with 
     subsection (d)(5); and
       ``(E) meet all State certification requirements for 
     teaching (which may include meeting such requirements through 
     a certification obtained through alternative routes to 
     teaching);'';
       (2) in subsection (c)--
       (A) by striking ``In the event'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(1) In general.--In the event''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(2) Reconsideration of conversion decisions.--
       ``(A) Request to reconsider.--In any case where the 
     Secretary has determined that a recipient of a grant under 
     this subpart has failed or refused to comply with the service 
     obligation in the agreement under subsection (b) and has 
     converted the grant into a Federal Direct Unsubsidized 
     Stafford Loan under part D in accordance with paragraph (1), 
     (including a TEACH Grant converted to a loan prior to the 
     date of enactment of the Consider Teachers Act of 2021 and 
     including cases where such loans have been fully or partially 
     paid), the recipient may request that the Secretary 
     reconsider such initial determination and may submit 
     additional information to demonstrate satisfaction of the 
     service obligation. Upon receipt of such a request, the 
     Secretary shall reconsider the determination in accordance 
     with this paragraph not later than 90 days after the date 
     that such request was received.
       ``(B) Reconsideration.--If, in reconsidering an initial 
     determination under subparagraph (A) (including 
     reconsideration related to a TEACH Grant that was converted 
     to a loan prior to the date of enactment of the Consider 
     Teachers Act of 2021 and including cases where such loans 
     were fully or partially paid), the Secretary determines that 
     the reason for such determination was the recipient's failure 
     to timely submit a certification required under subsection 
     (b)(1)(D) (as in effect on the day before the date of 
     enactment of the Consider Teachers Act of 2021), an error or 
     processing delay by the Secretary, a change to the fields 
     considered eligible for fulfillment of the service obligation 
     (as described in subsection (b)(1)(C)), a recipient having 
     previously requested to have the TEACH Grant converted to a 
     loan, or another valid reason determined by the Secretary, 
     and that the recipient has, as of the date of the 
     reconsideration, demonstrated that the recipient did meet, or 
     is meeting the service obligation in the agreement under 
     subsection (b), the Secretary shall--
       ``(i) discharge the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford 
     Loan under part D, and reinstate the recipient's grant under 
     this subpart;
       ``(ii) discharge any interest or fees that may have 
     accumulated during the period that the grant was converted to 
     a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D;
       ``(iii) if the recipient has other loans under part D, 
     apply any payments made for the Federal Direct Unsubsidized 
     Stafford Loan under part D during such period to those other 
     loans under part D;
       ``(iv) if the recipient does not have other loans under 
     part D, reimburse the recipient for any amounts paid on the 
     Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D during 
     such period;
       ``(v) request that consumer reporting agencies remove any 
     negative credit reporting due to the conversion of the TEACH 
     Grant to a loan; and
       ``(vi) use the additional information provided under 
     subparagraph (A) to determine the progress the recipient has 
     made in meeting the service obligation.
       ``(C) Extension of time to complete service obligation.--In 
     the case of a recipient whose TEACH Grant was reinstated in 
     accordance with subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall, upon 
     such reinstatement--
       ``(i) extend the time remaining for the recipient to 
     fulfill the service obligation described in subsection (b)(1) 
     to a period of time equal to--

       ``(I) 8 years; minus
       ``(II) the number of full academic years of teaching that 
     the recipient completed prior to the reconversion of the loan 
     to a TEACH Grant under subparagraph (B), including any years 
     of qualifying teaching completed during the period when the 
     TEACH Grant was in loan status; and

       ``(ii) treat any full academic years of teaching described 
     in clause (i)(II) as years that count toward the individual's 
     service obligation (regardless of whether the TEACH Grant 
     funds were in grant or loan status) if that time otherwise 
     meets the requirements of this section.''; and
       (3) in subsection (d), by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) Communication with recipients.--The Secretary shall 
     notify TEACH grant recipients not less than once per calendar 
     year regarding how to submit the employment certification 
     under subsection (b)(1)(D) and the recommendations and 
     requirements for submitting that certification under 
     subsection (d)(5).
       ``(4) Qualifying schools and high-need fields.--The 
     Secretary shall maintain and annually update a list of 
     qualifying schools as described in subsection (b)(1)(B), and 
     a list of high-need fields as described in subsection 
     (b)(1)(C) and shall make such lists publicly available on the 
     Department's website in a sortable and searchable format.''.

     SEC. 3. SUBMISSION OF EMPLOYMENT CERTIFICATION.

       Section 420N(d) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
     U.S.C. 1070g-2(d)), as amended by section 2, is further 
     amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(5) Submission of employment certification.--
       ``(A) Recommended submissions.--The Secretary shall notify 
     TEACH Grant recipients that the Department recommends that 
     TEACH Grant recipients submit the employment certification 
     described in subsection (b)(1)(D) as soon as practicable 
     after the completion of each year of service.
       ``(B) Required submission.--A TEACH Grant recipient shall 
     be required to submit to the Department employment 
     certification within the timeframe that would allow that 
     individual to complete their service obligation before the 
     end of the service obligation window.
       ``(C) Notification.--The Secretary shall notify TEACH Grant 
     recipients of the required submission deadlines described in 
     this paragraph.
       ``(D) Adjustment of deadline.--The Secretary shall adjust 
     the submission deadline described in subparagraph (B) to 
     account for a service obligation window extension.
       ``(E) Alternative to certification.--The Secretary shall 
     provide an alternative to the certification of employment 
     described in subsection (b)(1)(D) for recipients who cannot 
     obtain such required certification of employment from the 
     chief administrative officer of the school because the 
     recipient can demonstrate the school is no longer in 
     existence or the school refuses to cooperate.''.

     SEC. 4. EXTENSION OF TIME TO FULFILL SERVICE OBLIGATION DUE 
                   TO COVID-19.

       (a) Section 3519(a) of the CARES Act (Public Law 116-136; 
     20 U.S.C. 1001 note) is amended--
       (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``For the purpose of section 420N of the Higher Education Act 
     of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070g-2), during a qualifying emergency,'' 
     and inserting ``Notwithstanding any provision of subpart 9 of 
     part A of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
     U.S.C. 1070g et seq.),'';
       (2) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (3) in paragraph (2), by striking ``such section 420N.'' 
     and inserting ``section 420N of such Act; and''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) shall extend the service obligation window (as 
     described in section 420N(b)(1)(A)

[[Page S2247]]

     of such Act) for a period of not more than 3 years, in 
     addition to any extensions provided in accordance with 
     subpart 9 of part A of title IV of the Higher Education Act 
     of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070g et seq.), in the case of a grant 
     recipient whose service obligation window begins during, or 
     includes--
       ``(A) the qualifying emergency period; or
       ``(B) a period of recession or economic downturn related to 
     the qualifying emergency period, as determined by the 
     Secretary in consultation with the Secretary of Labor.''.
       (b) Section 3519 of the CARES Act (Public Law 116-136; 20 
     U.S.C. 1001 note) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:
       ``(c) Federal Perkins Loans.--Notwithstanding section 465 
     of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087ee), the 
     Secretary shall waive the requirements of such section in 
     regard to full-time service and shall consider an incomplete 
     year of service of a borrower as fulfilling the requirement 
     for a complete year of service under such section, if the 
     service was interrupted due to a qualifying emergency.''.
       (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect as if included in the enactment of the 
     CARES Act (Public Law 116-136).

     SEC. 5. IMPLEMENTATION.

       In carrying out this Act and any amendments made by this 
     Act, or any regulations promulgated under this Act or under 
     such amendments, the Secretary of Education may waive the 
     application of--
       (1) subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States 
     Code (commonly known as the ``Paperwork Reduction Act'');
       (2) the master calendar requirements under section 482 of 
     the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1089);
       (3) negotiated rulemaking under section 492 of the Higher 
     Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1098a); and
       (4) the requirement to publish the notices related to the 
     system of records of the agency before implementation 
     required under paragraphs (4) and (11) of section 552a(e) of 
     title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the ``Privacy 
     Act of 1974''), except that the notices shall be published 
     not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
     Act.

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