[House Report 109-401]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



109th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     109-401

======================================================================



 
  PROVIDING FOR FURTHER CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 609, COLLEGE ACCESS AND 
                        OPPORTUNITY ACT OF 2005

                                _______
                                

   March 29, 2006.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be 
                                printed

                                _______
                                

    Mr. Bishop of Utah, from the Committee on Rules, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                       [To accompany H. Res. 742]

    The Committee on Rules, having had under consideration 
House Resolution 742, by a nonrecord vote, report the same to 
the House with the recommendation that the resolution be 
adopted.

                SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS OF THE RESOLUTION

    The resolution provides for further consideration of H.R. 
609, the College Access and Opportunity Act of 2005. The rule 
provides that no further general debate is in order. The rule 
makes in order only those amendments printed in this report.
    The rule provides that the amendments printed in this 
report may be offered only in the order printed in this report, 
may be offered only by a Member designated in this report, 
shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time 
specified in this report equally divided and controlled by the 
proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, 
and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the 
question in the House or in the Committee of the Whole. The 
rule waives all points of order against the amendments printed 
in this report.
    Finally, the rule provides one motion to recommit with or 
without instructions.

                         EXPLANATION OF WAIVERS

    The Rules Committee is not aware of any points of order 
that lay against the amendments contained in this report. The 
waiver of all points of order is prophylactic in nature.

                            COMMITTEE VOTES

    Pursuant to clause 3(b) of House rule XIII the results of 
each record vote on an amendment or motion to report, together 
with the names of those voting for and against, are printed 
below:

Rules Committee record vote No. 156

    Date: March 29, 2006.
    Measure: H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act 
of 2005.
    Motion by: Mrs. Slaughter.
    Summary of motion: To make in order and provide the 
appropriate waivers for the amendment offered by Rep. Bishop of 
New York which extends the Tuition Deduction for Higher 
Education through 12/31/2011.
    Results: Defeated 4 to 8.
    Vote by Members: Diaz-Balart--Nay; Hastings (WA)--Nay; 
Sessions--Nay; Capito--Nay; Cole--Nay; Bishop--Nay; Gingrey--
Nay; Slaughter--Yea; McGovern--Yea; Hastings (FL)--Yea; 
Matsui--Yea; Dreier--Nay.

Rules Committee record vote No. 157

    Date: March 29, 2006.
    Measure: H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act 
of 2005.
    Motion by: Mrs. Slaughter.
    Summary of motion: To make in order and provide the 
appropriate waivers for the amendment offered by Rep. Petri of 
Wisconsin and Rep. George Miller of California which inserts at 
the end of part G of title IV of the bill, the provisions of 
H.R. 1425, the Student Aid Reward Program.
    Results: Defeated 4 to 8.
    Vote by Members: Diaz-Balart--Nay; Hastings (WA)--Nay; 
Sessions--Nay; Capito--Nay; Cole--Nay; Bishop--Nay; Gingrey--
Nay; Slaughter--Yea; McGovern--Yea; Hastings (FL)--Yea; 
Matsui--Yea; Dreier--Nay.

Rules Committee record vote No. 158

    Date: March 29, 2006.
    Measure: H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act 
of 2005.
    Motion by: Mr. McGovern.
    Summary of motion: To make in order and provide the 
appropriate waivers for the amendment offered by Rep. Emanuel 
of Illinois which restores the $12 billion to student aid 
programs that the Deficit Reduction Act cut.
    Results: Defeated 4 to 8.
    Vote by Members: Diaz-Balart--Nay; Hastings (WA)--Nay; 
Sessions--Nay; Capito--Nay; Cole--Nay; Bishop--Nay; Gingrey--
Nay; Slaughter--Yea; McGovern--Yea; Hastings (FL)--Yea; 
Matsui--Yea; Dreier--Nay.

Rules Committee record vote No. 159

    Date: March 29, 2006.
    Measure: H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act 
of 2005.
    Motion by: Mr. McGovern.
    Summary of motion: To make in order and provide the 
appropriate waivers for the amendment offered by Rep. Wu and 
Rep. McGovern which allows student loan borrowers to refinance 
their student loans. Upon reconsolidation, the borrower would 
get a variable rate with a cap of 6.8 percent.
    Results: Defeated 4 to 8.
    Vote by Members: Diaz-Balart--Nay; Hastings (WA)--Nay; 
Sessions--Nay; Capito--Nay; Cole--Nay; Bishop--Nay; Gingrey--
Nay; Slaughter--Yea; McGovern--Yea; Hastings (FL)--Yea; 
Matsui--Yea; Dreier--Nay.

Rules Committee record vote No. 160

    Date: March 29, 2006.
    Measure: H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act 
of 2005.
    Motion by: Mr. Hastings of Florida.
    Summary of motion: To make in order and provide the 
appropriate waivers for the amendment offered by Rep. Grijalva 
of Arizona which offers loan forgiveness for teachers who work 
in rural schools located in low-income communities who complete 
five years of service.
    Results: Defeated 4 to 8.
    Vote by Members: Diaz-Balart--Nay; Hastings (WA)--Nay; 
Sessions--Nay; Capito--Nay; Cole--Nay; Bishop--Nay; Gingrey--
Nay; Slaughter--Yea; McGovern--Yea; Hastings (FL)--Yea; 
Matsui--Yea; Dreier--Nay.

Rules Committee record vote No. 161

    Date: March 29, 2006.
    Measure: H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act 
of 2005.
    Motion by: Mr. Hastings of Florida.
    Summary of motion: To make in order and provide the 
appropriate waivers for the amendment offered by Rep. Scott of 
Georgia which establishes a student loan repayment program 
within the Department of Education for borrowers who agree to 
remain employed, for at least three years, as public attorneys 
who are: (1) State or local criminal prosecutors; or (2) State, 
Local, or Federal public defenders in criminal cases. The 
repayment under this program will be limited to $6,000 per 
calendar year and $40,000 total.
    Results: Defeated 4 to 7, 1 present.
    Vote by Members: Diaz-Balart--Nay; Hastings (WA)--Nay; 
Sessions--Nay; Capito--Nay; Cole--Nay; Bishop--Nay; Gingrey--
Present; Slaughter--Yea; McGovern--Yea; Hastings (FL)--Yea; 
Matsui--Yea; Dreier--Nay.

Rules Committee record vote No. 162

    Date: March 29, 2006.
    Measure: H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act 
of 2005.
    Motion by: Mrs. Matsui.
    Summary of motion: To make in order and provide the 
appropriate waivers for the amendment offered by Rep. Inslee of 
Washington which seeks to retain Head Start and Early Head 
Start teachers by increasing the level of discretionary loan 
forgiveness from $5,000 to $17,500 (the level for math and 
science teachers). Seeks to address the unfunded mandate passed 
in School Readiness Act (H.R. 2123) requiring 50 percent of 
Head Start and Early Head Start teachers to obtain a bachelor's 
degree in early education by 2011.
    Results: Defeated 4 to 8.
    Vote by Members: Diaz-Balart--Nay; Hastings (WA)--Nay; 
Sessions--Nay; Capito--Nay; Cole--Nay; Bishop--Nay; Gingrey--
Nay; Slaughter--Yea; McGovern--Yea; Hastings (FL)--Yea; 
Matsui--Yea; Dreier--Nay.

Rules Committee record vote No. 163

    Date: March 29, 2006.
    Measure: H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act 
of 2005.
    Motion by: Mrs. Matsui.
    Summary of motion: To make in order and provide the 
appropriate waivers for the amendment offered by Rep. Kind of 
Wisconsin which provides institutions of higher education with 
grants to institute creative and innovative ways of encouraging 
students to study and enter into careers focused on math, 
science, engineering, and technology.
    Results: Defeated 4 to 8.
    Vote by Members: Diaz-Balart--Nay; Hastings (WA)--Nay; 
Sessions--Nay; Capito--Nay; Cole--Nay; Bishop--Nay; Gingrey--
Nay; Slaughter--Yea; McGovern--Yea; Hastings (FL)--Yea; 
Matsui--Yea; Dreier--Nay.

                  SUMMARY OF AMENDMENTS MADE IN ORDER

    (Summaries derived from information provided by sponsors.)
    1. Biggert (IL): Allows unaccompanied homeless youth be 
considered independent students upon verification of their 
living situation by a McKinney-Vento Act school district 
liaison, a shelter director, or a financial aid administrator. 
(10 minutes)
    2. Gohmert (TX): Strikes certain reporting requirements for 
colleges and universities within Sec. 131(f). Also strikes Sec. 
495(a)(1) that would allow states to apply to the Secretary of 
Education to become recognized accreditors. (10 minutes)
    3. Kennedy (RI)/Ros-Lehtinen (FL): Makes child and 
adolescent mental health professionals eligible for loan 
forgiveness for high need professions under Sec. 421 of the 
bill. (10 minutes)
    4. King (IA): Requires institutions that receive any 
federal funding whatsoever (including grants and scholarships) 
to submit to the U.S. Department of Education an annual report 
answering two questions. First, the report must state whether 
race, color, or national origin is considered in the student 
admissions process. If race, color, or national origin is 
considered in the student admissions process, then the report 
must contain a subsequent analysis of how these factors are 
considered in the process. (10 minutes)
    5. Kirk (IL)/Larsen (WA): Expresses the sense of Congress 
that student exchange and language education programs should 
focus on Chinese and Arabic, in light of the global importance 
of China and the Middle East. (10 minutes)
    6. Souder (IN)/Bishop (NY): Removes language in the bill 
that prohibits schools from denying transfers of credit based 
solely on the accreditation of the sending institution. 
Maintains the requirement that schools publicly disclose their 
transfer policies, and would also require a school to disclose 
any policy that would deny transfers of credit solely on the 
accreditation of the institution where the credit was earned. 
(10 minutes)
    7. Miller (CA)/Kildee (MI)/Grijalva (AZ)/Davis (IL)/Scott 
(VA): Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute. Lowers student 
loan interest rates; establishes a new Predominantly Black 
Serving Institution program to boost college participation 
rates of low-income, black students; establishes a new graduate 
Hispanic Serving Institution program; provides for year-round 
Pell grants; repeals the Single Lender rule. (10 minutes)
    8. McKeon (CA): Pro forma amendment for the purpose of 
debate. (10 minutes)

                    TEXT OF AMENDMENTS MADE IN ORDER


1. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Biggert of Illinois, or 
                 Her Designee, Debatable for 10 Minutes

  Page 230, after line 10, insert the following new subsection:
  (d) Homeless Youth.--Section 480(d) is further amended--
          (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) and (7) as 
        paragraphs (7) and (8), respectively; and
          (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following 
        new paragraph:
          ``(6) has been verified as both a homeless child or 
        youth and an unaccompanied youth, as such terms are 
        defined in section 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 
        Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a), during the school 
        year in which the application for financial assistance 
        is submitted, by--
                  ``(A) a local educational agency liaison for 
                homeless children and youths, as designated 
                under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-
                Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
                11432(g)(1)(J)(ii));
                  ``(B) a director of a homeless shelter, 
                transitional shelter, or independent living 
                program; or
                  ``(C) a financial aid administrator;''.
                              ----------                              


 2. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Gohmert of Texas, or 
                 His Designee, Debatable for 10 Minutes

  Page 31, beginning on line 20, strike subsection (f) and 
insert the following:
  (f) Outcomes and Actions.--
          (1) Response from institution.--Effective on June 30, 
        2010, an institution that has a college affordability 
        index that exceeds 2.0 for any 3-year interval ending 
        on or after that date shall provide a report to the 
        Secretary, in such a form, at such time, and containing 
        such information as the Secretary may require. Such 
        report shall include--
                  (A) a description of the factors contributing 
                to the increase in the institution's costs and 
                in the tuition and fees charged to students; 
                and
                  (B) if determinations of tuition and fee 
                increases are not within the exclusive control 
                of the institution, a description of the agency 
                or instrumentality of State government or other 
                entity that participates in such determinations 
                and the authority exercised by such agency, 
                instrumentality, or entity.
          (2) Quality-efficiency task forces.--
                  (A) Required.--Each institution subject to 
                paragraph (1) that has a college affordability 
                index that is in the highest 5 percent of such 
                indexes of all institutions subject to 
                paragraph (1) shall establish a quality-
                efficiency task force to review the operations 
                of such institution.
                  (B) Membership.--Such task force shall 
                include administrators and business and civic 
                leaders and may include faculty, students, 
                trustees, parents of students, and alumni of 
                such institution.
                  (C) Functions.--Such task force shall analyze 
                institutional operating costs in comparison 
                with such costs at other institutions within 
                the class of institutions. Such analysis should 
                identify areas where, in comparison with other 
                institutions in such class, the institution 
                operates more expensively to produce a similar 
                result. Any identified areas should then be 
                targeted for in-depth analysis for cost 
                reduction opportunities.
                  (D) Report.--The results of the analysis by a 
                quality-efficiency task force under this 
                paragraph shall be included in the report to 
                the Secretary under paragraph (1).
          (3) Consequences for 2-year continuation of 
        failure.--If the Secretary determines that the 
        institution has failed to reduce the college 
        affordability index below 2.0 for such 2 academic 
        years, the Secretary shall place the institution on an 
        affordability alert status and shall make the 
        information regarding the institution's failure 
        available in accordance with subsection (d).
          (4) Information to state agencies.--Any institution 
        that reports under paragraph (1)(A) that an agency or 
        instrumentality of State government or other entity 
        participates in the determinations of tuition and fee 
        increases shall, prior to submitting any information to 
        the Secretary under this subsection, submit such 
        information to, and request the comments and input of, 
        such agency, instrumentality, or entity. With respect 
        to any such institution, the Secretary shall provide a 
        copy of any communication by the Secretary with that 
        institution to such agency, instrumentality, or entity.
          (5) Exemptions.--
                  (A) Relative price exemption.--The Secretary 
                shall, for any 3-year interval for which 
                college affordability indexes are computed 
                under paragraph (1), determine and publish the 
                dollar amount that, for each class of 
                institution described in paragraph (6) 
                represents the maximum tuition and fees charged 
                for a full-time undergraduate student in the 
                least costly quartile of institutions within 
                each such class during the last year of such 3-
                year interval. An institution that has a 
                college affordability index computed under 
                paragraph (1) that exceeds 2.0 for any such 3-
                year interval, but that, on average during such 
                3-year interval, charges less than such maximum 
                tuition and fees shall not be subject to the 
                actions required by paragraph (3), unless such 
                institution, for a subsequent 3-year interval, 
                charges more than such maximum tuition and 
                fees.
                  (B) Dollar increase exemption.--An 
                institution that has a college affordability 
                index computed under paragraph (1) that exceeds 
                2.0 for any 3-year interval, but that exceeds 
                such 2.0 by a dollar amount that is less than 
                $500, shall not be subject to the actions 
                required by paragraph (3), unless such 
                institution has a college affordability index 
                for a subsequent 3-year interval that exceeds 
                2.0 by more than such dollar amount.
          (6) Classes of institutions.--For purposes of this 
        subsection, the classes of institutions shall be those 
        sectors used by the Integrated Postsecondary Education 
        Data System, based on whether the institution is 
        public, nonprofit private, or for-profit private, and 
        whether the institution has a 4-year, 2-year, or less 
        than 2-year program of instruction.
          (7) Data rejection.--Nothing in this subsection shall 
        be construed as allowing the Secretary to reject the 
        data submitted by an individual institution of higher 
        education.
  Page 37, after line 2, insert the following new subsection 
(and redesignate the succeeding subsections accordingly):
  ``(g) Information to the Public.--Upon receipt of an 
institution's report required under subsection (f), the 
Secretary shall make the information in the report available to 
the public in accordance with subsection (d) on the COOL 
website under subsection (b).
  Page 262, beginning on line 19, strike paragraph (1) and 
redesignate the succeeding paragraphs accordingly.
                              ----------                              


   3. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Kennedy of Rhode 
           Island, or His Designee, Debatable for 10 Minutes

  Page 189, line 13, redesignate subparagraph (I) as 
subparagraph (J), and before such subparagraph insert the 
following new subparagraph:
                  ``(I) Child or adolescent mental health 
                professionals.--An individual who is employed 
                as child or adolescent mental health 
                professional and is currently providing a 
                majority of their clinical services to children 
                or adolescents.
  Page 194, after line 14, insert the following new paragraphs:
          ``(8) Child or adolescent mental health 
        professional.--The term `child or adolescent mental 
        health professional' means an individual who is 
        employed as a psychiatrist, psychologist, school 
        psychologist, psychiatric nurse, social worker, school 
        social worker, marriage and family therapist, school 
        counselor, or professional counselor and holds an 
        advanced degree in one of the above areas with 
        specialized training in child or adolescent mental 
        health.
          ``(9) Specialized training in child or adolescent 
        mental health.--The term `specialized training in child 
        or adolescent mental health' means training that
                  ``(A) is part of or occurs after completion 
                of an accredited graduate program in the United 
                States for training mental health service 
                professionals;
                  ``(B) consists of at least 500 hours of 
                training or clinical experience in treating 
                children or adolescents; and
                  ``(C) is comprehensive, coordinated, 
                developmentally appropriate, and of high 
                quality to address the unique ethnic and 
                cultural diversity of the United States 
                population.
                              ----------                              


 4. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative King of Iowa, or His 
                   Designee, Debatable for 10 Minutes

  At the end of part B of title IX of the Amendment add the 
following new section:

SEC. ___. RACIAL AND ETHNIC PREFERENCES.

  (a) Findings.--The Congress finds the following:
          (1) Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 forbids 
        discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national 
        origin by Federally-funded institutions, which includes 
        nearly all colleges and universities.
          (2) The United States Supreme Court has recently set 
        out limitations on such considerations of race, color, 
        and national origin.
          (3) In order to ensure that these limitations are 
        followed, schools must make public their use of race, 
        color, and national origin, for admissions decisions so 
        that Federal and State enforcement agencies and 
        interested persons can monitor the schools.
          (4) Citizens and taxpayers have a right to know 
        whether Federally-funded institutions of higher 
        education are treating student applications differently 
        depending on the student's race, color, or national 
        origin, and, if so, the way in which these factors are 
        weighted and the consequences to students and 
        prospective students of these decisions.
  (b) Reports on Admissions Process Required.--
          (1) Report required.--Every academic year, each 
        institution of higher education that receives funds 
        from the Federal Government shall provide to the Office 
        for Civil Rights of the Department of Education a 
        report regarding its students admissions process, and 
        the report shall be made publicly available.
          (2) Disclosure of consideration of race, color, or 
        national origin.--
                  (A) Disclosure.--The report required by this 
                section shall begin with a statement of whether 
                race, color, or national origin is given any 
                weight in the student admissions process.
                  (B) Departmental disclosures.--If different 
                departments within the institution have 
                separate admission processes and any of those 
                departments give any weight to race, color, and 
                national origin, then the report shall provide 
                the information required by subparagraph (A) of 
                this paragraph and paragraph (3) for each 
                department separately.
          (3) Additional disclosures.--If the disclosure 
        required by paragraph (2) states that race, color, or 
        national origin is given weight in the student 
        admission process, then the report under this section 
        shall also provide the following information:
                  (A) The racial, color, and national origin 
                groups for which membership is considered a 
                plus factor or a minus factor and, in addition, 
                how membership in a group is determined for 
                individual students.
                  (B) A description of how group membership is 
                considered, including the weight given to such 
                consideration and whether targets, goals, or 
                quotas are used.
                  (C) A statement of why group membership is 
                given weight, including the determination of 
                the desired level claimed and, with respect to 
                the diversity rationale, its relationship to 
                the particular institution's educational 
                mission.
                  (D) A description of the consideration that 
                has been given to racially neutral alternatives 
                as a means for achieving the same goals for 
                which group membership is considered.
                  (E) A description of how frequently the need 
                to give weight to group membership is 
                reassessed and how that reassessment is 
                conducted.
                  (F) A statement of the factors other than 
                race, color, or national origin that are 
                collected in the admissions process. Where 
                those factors include grades or class rank in 
                high school, scores on standardized tests 
                (including the ACT and SAT), legacy status, 
                sex, State residency, economic status, or other 
                quantifiable criteria, then all raw admissions 
                data for applicants regarding these factors, 
                along with each individual applicant's race, 
                color, and national origin and the admissions 
                decision made by the school regarding that 
                applicant, shall accompany the report in 
                computer-readable form, with the name of the 
                individual student redacted but with 
                appropriate links, so that it is possible for 
                the Office for Civil Rights or other interested 
                persons to determine through statistical 
                analysis the weight being given to race, color, 
                and national origin, relative to other factors.
                  (G) An analysis, and also the underlying data 
                needed to perform an analysis, of whether there 
                is a correlation--
                          (i) between membership in a group 
                        favored on account of race, color, or 
                        national origin and the likelihood of 
                        enrollment in a remediation program, 
                        relative to membership in other groups;
                          (ii) between such membership and 
                        graduation rates, relative to 
                        membership in other groups; and
                          (iii) between such membership and the 
                        likelihood of defaulting on education 
                        loans, relative to membership in other 
                        groups.
          (4) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this Act shall 
        be construed to allow or permit preference or 
        discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national 
        origin.
                              ----------                              


 5. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Kirk of Illinois, or 
                 His Designee, Debatable for 10 Minutes

  At the end of section 601 add the following new subsection:
  (k) Sense of the Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress 
that due to the diplomatic, economic, and military importance 
of China and the Middle East, international exchange and 
foreign language education programs under the Higher Education 
Act of 1965 should focus on the learning of Chinese and Arabic 
language and culture.
                              ----------                              


 6. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Souder of Indiana, or 
                 His Designee, Debatable for 10 Minutes

  Page 267, beginning on line 14, strike paragraph (8) and 
insert the following:
          ``(8) confirms as a part of its review for 
        accreditation or reaccreditation that the institution 
        has transfer policies that are publicly disclosed and 
        specifically state whether the institution denies a 
        transfer of credit based solely on the accreditation of 
        the institution at which the credit was earned;
                              ----------                              


    7. An Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute To Be Offered by 
  Representative George Miller of California, or His Designee, To Be 
                        Debatable for 30 Minutes

  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Reverse the Raid on Student 
Aid Act of 2006''.

SEC. 2. REFERENCES; EFFECTIVE DATE.

  (a) References.--Except as otherwise expressly provided, 
whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in 
terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other 
provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 
section or other provision of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.).
  (b) Effective Date.--Except as otherwise provided in this 
Act, the amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the 
date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE.

  Title II (20 U.S.C. 1021 et seq.) is amended by adding at the 
end the following:

                    ``PART C--CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE

``SEC. 231. PURPOSES; DEFINITIONS.

  ``(a) Purposes.--The purposes of this part are--
          ``(1) to help recruit and prepare teachers, including 
        minority teachers, to meet the national demand for a 
        highly qualified teacher in every classroom; and
          ``(2) to increase opportunities for Americans of all 
        educational, ethnic, class, and geographic backgrounds 
        to become highly qualified teachers.
  ``(b) Definitions.--As used in this part:
          ``(1) Eligible institution.--The term `eligible 
        institution' means--
                  ``(A) an institution of higher education that 
                has a teacher preparation program that meets 
                the requirements of section 203(b)(2) and that 
                is--
                          ``(i) a part B institution (as 
                        defined in section 322);
                          ``(ii) a Hispanic-serving institution 
                        (as defined in section 502);
                          ``(iii) a Tribal College or 
                        University (as defined in section 316);
                          ``(iv) an Alaska Native-serving 
                        institution (as defined in section 
                        317(b)); or
                          ``(v) a Native Hawaiian-serving 
                        institution (as defined in section 
                        317(b));
                  ``(B) a consortium of institutions described 
                in subparagraph (A); or
                  ``(C) an institution described in 
                subparagraph (A), or a consortium described in 
                subparagraph (B), in partnership with any other 
                institution of higher education, but only if 
                the center of excellence established under 
                section 232 is located at an institution 
                described in subparagraph (A).
          ``(2) Highly qualified.--The term `highly qualified' 
        when used with respect to an individual means that the 
        individual is highly qualified as determined under 
        section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
        Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801) or section 602 of the 
        Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 
        1401).
          ``(3) Scientifically based reading research.--The 
        term `scientifically based reading research' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 1208 of the 
        Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 6368).
          ``(4) Scientifically based research.--The term 
        `scientifically based research' has the meaning given 
        such term in section 9101 of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).

``SEC. 232. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE.

  ``(a) Program Authorized.--From the amounts appropriated to 
carry out this part, the Secretary is authorized to award 
competitive grants to eligible institutions to establish 
centers of excellence.
  ``(b) Use of Funds.--Grants provided by the Secretary under 
this part shall be used to ensure that current and future 
teachers are highly qualified, by carrying out one or more of 
the following activities:
          ``(1) Implementing reforms within teacher preparation 
        programs to ensure that such programs are preparing 
        teachers who are highly qualified, are able to 
        understand scientifically based research, and are able 
        to use advanced technology effectively in the 
        classroom, including use for instructional techniques 
        to improve student academic achievement, by--
                  ``(A) retraining faculty; and
                  ``(B) designing (or redesigning) teacher 
                preparation programs that--
                          ``(i) prepare teachers to close 
                        student achievement gaps, are based on 
                        rigorous academic content, 
                        scientifically based research 
                        (including scientifically based reading 
                        research), and challenging State 
                        student academic content standards; and
                          ``(ii) promote strong teaching 
                        skills.
          ``(2) Providing sustained and high-quality preservice 
        clinical experience, including the mentoring of 
        prospective teachers by exemplary teachers, 
        substantially increasing interaction between faculty at 
        institutions of higher education and new and 
        experienced teachers, principals, and other 
        administrators at elementary schools or secondary 
        schools, and providing support, including preparation 
        time, for such interaction.
          ``(3) Developing and implementing initiatives to 
        promote retention of highly qualified teachers and 
        principals, including minority teachers and principals, 
        including programs that provide--
                  ``(A) teacher or principal mentoring from 
                exemplary teachers or principals; or
                  ``(B) induction and support for teachers and 
                principals during their first 3 years of 
                employment as teachers or principals, 
                respectively.
          ``(4) Awarding scholarships based on financial need 
        to help students pay the costs of tuition, room, board, 
        and other expenses of completing a teacher preparation 
        program.
          ``(5) Disseminating information on effective 
        practices for teacher preparation and successful 
        teacher certification and licensure assessment 
        preparation strategies.
          ``(6) Activities authorized under sections 202, 203, 
        and 204.
  ``(c) Application.--Any eligible institution desiring a grant 
under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary 
at such a time, in such a manner, and accompanied by such 
information the Secretary may require.
  ``(d) Minimum Grant Amount.--The minimum amount of each grant 
under this part shall be $500,000.
  ``(e) Limitation on Administrative Expenses.--An eligible 
institution that receives a grant under this part may not use 
more than 2 percent of the grant funds for purposes of 
administering the grant.
  ``(f) Regulations.--The Secretary shall prescribe such 
regulations as may be necessary to carry out this part.

``SEC. 233. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

  ``There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
part $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2007 and such sums as may be 
necessary for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years.''.

SEC. 4. TITLE III GRANTS FOR AMERICAN INDIAN TRIBALLY CONTROLLED 
                    COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES.

  (a) Eligible Institutions.--Subsection (b) of section 316 (20 
U.S.C. 1059c(b)) is amended to read as follows:
  ``(b) Definitions.--
          ``(1) Eligible institutions.--For purposes of this 
        section, Tribal Colleges and Universities are the 
        following:
                  ``(A) any of the following institutions that 
                qualify for funding under the Tribally 
                Controlled College or University Assistance Act 
                of 1978 or is listed in Equity in Educational 
                Land Grant Status Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 301 
                note): Bay Mills Community College; Blackfeet 
                Community College; Cankdeska Cikana Community 
                College; Chief Dull Knife College; College of 
                Menominee Nation; Crownpoint Institute of 
                Technology; Dine College; D-Q University; Fond 
                du Lac Tribal and Community College; Fort 
                Belknap College; Fort Berthold Community 
                College; Fort Peck Community College; Haskell 
                Indian Nations University; Institute of 
                American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and 
                Arts Development; Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa 
                Community College; Leech Lake Tribal College; 
                Little Big Horn College; Little Priest Tribal 
                College; Nebraska Indian Community College; 
                Northwest Indian College; Oglala Lakota 
                College; Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College; 
                Salish Kootenai College; Si Tanka University--
                Eagle Butte Campus; Sinte Gleska University; 
                Sisseton Wahpeton Community College; Sitting 
                Bull College; Southwestern Indian Polytechnic 
                Institute; Stone Child College; Tohono O'Odham 
                Community College; Turtle Mountain Community 
                College; United Tribes Technical College; and 
                White Earth Tribal and Community College; and
                  ``(B) any other institution that meets the 
                definition of tribally controlled college or 
                university in section 2 of the Tribally 
                Controlled College or University Assistance Act 
                of 1978, and meets all other requirements of 
                this section.
          ``(2) Indian.--The term `Indian' has the meaning 
        given the term in section 2 of the Tribally Controlled 
        College or University Assistance Act of 1978.''.
  (b) Distance Learning.--Subsection (c)(2) of such section is 
amended--
          (1) by amending subparagraph (B) to read as follows:
                  ``(B) construction, maintenance, renovation, 
                and improvement in classrooms, libraries, 
                laboratories, and other instructional 
                facilities, including purchase or rental of 
                telecommunications technology equipment or 
                services, and the acquisition of real property 
                adjacent to the campus of the institution on 
                which to construct such facilities;'';
          (2) in subparagraph (C), by inserting before the 
        semicolon at the end the following: ``, or advanced 
        degrees in tribal governance or tribal public policy'';
          (3) in subparagraph (D), by inserting before the 
        semicolon at the end the following: ``, in tribal 
        governance, or tribal public policy'';
          (4) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph 
        (K);
          (5) by redesignating subparagraph (L) as subparagraph 
        (M); and
          (6) by inserting after subparagraph (K) the following 
        new subparagraph:
                  ``(L) developing or improving facilities for 
                Internet use or other distance learning 
                academic instruction capabilities; and''.
  (c) Application and Allotment.--Subsection (d) of such 
section is amended to read as follows:
  ``(d) Application and Allotment.--
          ``(1) Institutional eligibility.--To be eligible to 
        receive assistance under this section, a Tribal College 
        or University shall be an eligible institution under 
        section 312(b).
          ``(2) Application.--Any Tribal College or University 
        desiring to receive assistance under this section shall 
        submit an application to the Secretary at such time, 
        and in such manner, as the Secretary may reasonably 
        require.
          ``(3) Minimum grant.--The amount allotted to each 
        institution under this section shall not be less than 
        $500,000.
          ``(4) Special rules.--
                  ``(A) Concurrent funding.--For the purposes 
                of this part, no Tribal College or University 
                that is eligible for and receives funds under 
                this section shall concurrently receive funds 
                under other provisions of this part or part B.
                  ``(B) Exemption.--Section 313(d) shall not 
                apply to institutions that are eligible to 
                receive funds under this section.''.
  (d) Construction Grants.--After subsection (d) of section 316 
(20 U.S.C. 1059c(d)), as amended by subsection (c) of this 
section, add the following new subsections:
  ``(e) Construction Grants.--
          ``(1) In general.--Of the amount appropriated to 
        carry out this section for any fiscal year, the 
        Secretary may reserve 30 percent of such amount for the 
        purpose of awarding 1-year grants of not less than 
        $1,000,000 to address construction, maintenance, and 
        renovation needs at eligible institutions.
          ``(2) Preference.--In providing grants under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give preference to 
        eligible institutions that have not yet received an 
        award under this section.
  ``(f) Allotment of Remaining Funds.--The Secretary shall 
distribute any funds appropriated to carry out this section for 
any fiscal year that remain available after the Secretary has 
awarded grants under subsection (e), to each eligible 
institution as follows:
          ``(1) 60 percent of the remaining appropriated funds 
        shall be distributed among the eligible Tribal Colleges 
        and Universities on a pro rata basis, based on the 
        respective Indian student counts (as defined in section 
        2(a) of the Tribally Controlled College or University 
        Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801(a)) of the 
        Tribal Colleges and Universities; and
          ``(2) the remaining 40 percent shall be distributed 
        in equal shares to the eligible Tribal Colleges and 
        Universities. ''.

SEC. 5. PREDOMINANTLY BLACK INSTITUTIONS.

  (a) Predominantly Black Institutions.--Part A of title III is 
amended by inserting after section 317 (20 U.S.C. 1059d) the 
following new section:

``SEC. 318. PREDOMINANTLY BLACK INSTITUTIONS.

  ``(a) Findings and Purpose.--
          ``(1) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
                  ``(A) although Black Americans have made 
                significant progress in closing the `gap' 
                between black and white enrollment in higher 
                education--
                          ``(i) Black Americans continue to 
                        trail whites in the percentage of the 
                        college-age cohort who enroll and 
                        graduate from college;
                          ``(ii) the college participation rate 
                        of whites was 46 percent from 2000-
                        2002, while that for blacks was only 39 
                        percent; and
                          ``(iii) the gap between white and 
                        black baccalaureate degree attainment 
                        rates also remains high, continuing to 
                        exceed 10 percent;
                  ``(B) a growing number of Black American 
                students are participating in higher education 
                and are enrolled at a growing number of urban 
                and rural Predominantly Black Institutions that 
                have included in their mission the provision of 
                academic training and education for both 
                traditional and non-traditional minority 
                students;
                  ``(C) the overwhelming majority of students 
                attending Predominantly Black Institutions come 
                from low- and middle-income families and 
                qualify for participation in the Federal 
                student assistance programs or other need-based 
                Federal programs; and recent data from the 
                National Postsecondary Student Aid Study 
                indicate that 47 percent of Pell grant 
                recipients were black compared to only 21 
                percent of whites;
                  ``(D) many of these students are also `first 
                generation' college students who lack the 
                appropriate academic preparation for success in 
                college and whose parents lack the ordinary 
                knowledge and information regarding financing a 
                college education;
                  ``(E) there is a particular national need to 
                aid institutions of higher education that have 
                become Predominantly Black Institutions by 
                virtue of the fact that they have expanded 
                opportunities for Black American and other 
                minority students;
                  ``(F) Predominantly Black Institutions 
                fulfill a unique mission and represent a vital 
                component of the American higher education 
                landscape, far beyond that which was initially 
                envisioned;
                  ``(G) Predominantly Black Institutions serve 
                the cultural and social advancement of low-
                income, Black American and other minority 
                students and are a significant access point for 
                these students to higher education and the 
                opportunities offered by American society;
                  ``(H) the concentration of these students in 
                a limited number of two-year and four-year 
                Predominantly Black Institutions and their 
                desire to secure a degree to prepare them for a 
                successful career places special burdens on 
                those institutions who attract, retain, and 
                graduate these students; and
                  ``(I) financial assistance to establish or 
                strengthen the physical plants, financial 
                management, academic resources, and endowments 
                of the Predominantly Black Institutions are 
                appropriate methods to enhance these 
                institutions and facilitate a decrease in 
                reliance on governmental financial support and 
                to encourage reliance on endowments and private 
                sources.
          ``(2) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this section to 
        assist Predominantly Black Institutions in expanding 
        educational opportunity through a program of Federal 
        assistance.
  ``(b) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
          ``(1) Predominantly black institution.--The term 
        `Predominantly Black Institution' means an institution 
        of higher education--
                  ``(A) that is an eligible institution (as 
                defined in paragraph (5)(A) of this subsection) 
                with a minimum of 1,000 undergraduate students;
                  ``(B) at which at least 50 percent of the 
                undergraduate students enrolled at the 
                institution are low-income individuals or 
                first-generation college students (as that term 
                is defined in section 402A(g)); and
                  ``(C) at which at least 50 percent of the 
                undergraduate students are enrolled in an 
                educational program leading to a bachelor's or 
                associate's degree that the institution is 
                licensed to award by the State in which it is 
                located.
          ``(2) Low-income individual.--The term `low-income 
        individual' has the meaning given such term in section 
        402A(g).
          ``(3) Means-tested federal benefit program.--The term 
        `means-tested Federal benefit program' means a program 
        of the Federal Government, other than a program under 
        title IV, in which eligibility for the programs' 
        benefits, or the amount of such benefits, or both, are 
        determined on the basis of income or resources of the 
        individual or family seeking the benefit.
          ``(4) State.--The term `State' means each of the 50 
        States and the District of Columbia.
          ``(5) Other definitions.--For purposes of this 
        section, the terms defined by section 312 have the 
        meanings provided by that section, except as follows:
                  ``(A) Eligible institution.--
                          ``(i) The term `eligible institution' 
                        means an institution of higher 
                        education that--
                                  ``(I) has an enrollment of 
                                needy undergraduate students as 
                                required and defined by 
                                subparagraph (B);
                                  ``(II) except as provided in 
                                section 392(b), the average 
                                educational and general 
                                expenditure of which are low, 
                                per full-time equivalent 
                                undergraduate student in 
                                comparison with the average 
                                educational and general 
                                expenditure per full-time 
                                equivalent undergraduate 
                                student of institutions that 
                                offer similar instruction;
                                  ``(III) has an enrollment of 
                                undergraduate students that is 
                                at least 40 percent Black 
                                American students;
                                  ``(IV) is legally authorized 
                                to provide, and provides within 
                                the State, an educational 
                                program for which the 
                                institution awards a bachelors 
                                degree, or in the case of a 
                                junior or community college, an 
                                associate's degree; and
                                  ``(V) is accredited by a 
                                nationally recognized 
                                accrediting agency or 
                                association determined by the 
                                Secretary to be a reliable 
                                authority as to the quality of 
                                training offered, or is, 
                                according to such an agency or 
                                association, making reasonable 
                                progress toward accreditation.
                          ``(ii) For purposes of the 
                        determination of whether an institution 
                        is an eligible institution under this 
                        subparagraph, the factor described 
                        under clause (i)(I) shall be given 
                        twice the weight of the factor 
                        described under clause (i)(III).
                  ``(B) Enrollment of needy students.--The term 
                `enrollment of needy students' means the 
                enrollment at an eligible institution with 
                respect to which at least 50 percent of the 
                undergraduate students enrolled in an academic 
                program leading to a degree--
                          ``(i) in the second fiscal year 
                        preceding the fiscal year for which the 
                        determination is made, were Pell Grant 
                        recipients in such year;
                          ``(ii) come from families that 
                        receive benefits under a means-tested 
                        Federal benefits program (as defined in 
                        subsection (b)(3));
                          ``(iii) attended a public or 
                        nonprofit private secondary school 
                        which is in the school district of a 
                        local educational agency which was 
                        eligible for assistance pursuant to 
                        title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
                        Education Act of 1965 in any year 
                        during which the student attended that 
                        secondary school, and which for the 
                        purpose of this paragraph and for that 
                        year was determined by the Secretary 
                        (pursuant to regulations and after 
                        consultation with the State educational 
                        agency of the State in which the school 
                        is located) to be a school in which the 
                        enrollment of children counted under 
                        section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary 
                        and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
                        exceeds 30 percent of the total 
                        enrollment of that school; or
                          ``(iv) are `first-generation college 
                        students' as that term is defined in 
                        section 402A(g), and a majority of such 
                        first-generation college students are 
                        low-income individuals.
  ``(c) Authorized Activities.--
          ``(1) Types of activities authorized.--Grants awarded 
        pursuant to subsection (d) shall be used by 
        Predominantly Black Institutions--
                  ``(A) to assist the institution to plan, 
                develop, undertake, and implement programs to 
                enhance the institution's capacity to serve 
                more low- and middle-income Black American 
                students;
                  ``(B) to expand higher education 
                opportunities for title IV eligible students by 
                encouraging college preparation and student 
                persistence in secondary and postsecondary 
                education; and
                  ``(C) to strengthen the institution's 
                financial ability to serve the academic needs 
                of the students described in subparagraphs (A) 
                and (B).
          ``(2) Authorized activities.--Grants made to an 
        institution under subsection (d) shall be used for one 
        or more of the following activities:
                  ``(A) The activities described in section 
                311(a)(1) through (11).
                  ``(B) Academic instruction in disciplines in 
                which Black Americans are underrepresented.
                  ``(C) Establishing or enhancing a program of 
                teacher education designed to qualify students 
                to teach in a public elementary or secondary 
                school in the State that shall include, as part 
                of such program, preparation for teacher 
                certification.
                  ``(D) Establishing community outreach 
                programs which will encourage elementary and 
                secondary students to develop the academic 
                skills and the interest to pursue postsecondary 
                education.
                  ``(E) Other activities proposed in the 
                application submitted pursuant to subsection 
                (e) that--
                          ``(i) contribute to carrying out the 
                        purposes of this section; and
                          ``(ii) are approved by the Secretary 
                        as part of the review and acceptance of 
                        such application.
          ``(3) Endowment fund.--
                  ``(A) In general.--A Predominantly Black 
                Institution may use not more than 20 percent of 
                the grant funds provided under this section to 
                establish or increase an endowment fund at the 
                institution.
                  ``(B) Matching requirement.--In order to be 
                eligible to use grant funds in accordance with 
                subparagraph (A), the Predominantly Black 
                Institution shall provide matching funds from 
                non-Federal sources, in an amount equal to or 
                greater than the Federal funds used in 
                accordance with subparagraph (A), for the 
                establishment or increase of the endowment 
                fund.
                  ``(C) Comparability.--The provisions of part 
                C regarding the establishment or increase of an 
                endowment fund, that the Secretary determines 
                are not inconsistent with this subsection, 
                shall apply to funds used under subparagraph 
                (A).
          ``(4) Limitation.--Not more than 50 percent of the 
        allotment of any Predominantly Black Institution may be 
        available for the purpose of constructing or 
        maintaining a classroom, library, laboratory, or other 
        instructional facility.
  ``(d) Allotments to Predominantly Black Institutions.--
          ``(1) Allotment: pell grant basis.--From the amounts 
        appropriated to carry out this section for any fiscal 
        year, the Secretary shall allot to each Predominantly 
        Black Institution a sum which bears the same ratio to 
        one-half that amount as the number of Pell Grant 
        recipients in attendance at such institution at the end 
        of the academic year preceding the beginning of that 
        fiscal year bears to the total number of Pell Grant 
        recipients at all institutions eligible under this 
        section.
          ``(2) Allotment: graduates basis.--From the amounts 
        appropriated to carry out this section for any fiscal 
        year, the Secretary shall allot to each Predominantly 
        Black Institution a sum which bears the same ratio to 
        one-fourth that amount as the number of graduates for 
        such school year at such institution bears to the total 
        number of graduates for such school year at all 
        intuitions eligible under this section.
          ``(3) Allotment: graduates seeking a higher degree 
        basis.--From the amounts appropriated to carry out this 
        section for any fiscal year, the Secretary shall allot 
        to each Predominantly Black Institution a sum which 
        bears the same ratio to one-fourth of that amount as 
        the percentage of graduates per institution who are 
        admitted to and in attendance at, within 2 years of 
        graduation with an associates degree or a baccalaureate 
        degree, either a baccalaureate degree-granting 
        institution or a graduate or professional school in a 
        degree program in disciplines in which Black American 
        students are underrepresented, bears to the percentage 
        of such graduates per institution for all eligible 
        institutions.
          ``(4) Minimum allotment.--(A) Notwithstanding 
        paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), the amount allotted to 
        each Predominantly Black Institution under this section 
        shall not be less than $250,000.
          ``(B) If the amount appropriated pursuant to section 
        399 for any fiscal year is not sufficient to pay the 
        minimum allotment, the amount of such minimum allotment 
        shall be ratably reduced. If additional sums become 
        available for such fiscal year, such reduced allocation 
        shall be increased on the same basis as it was reduced 
        until the amount allotted equals the minimum allotment 
        required by subparagraph (A).
          ``(5) Reallotment.--The amount of a Predominantly 
        Black Institution's allotment under paragraph (1), (2), 
        (3), or (4) for any fiscal year, which the Secretary 
        determines will not be required for such institution 
        for the period such allotment is available, shall be 
        available for reallotment to other Predominantly Black 
        Institutions in proportion to the original allotment to 
        such other institutions under this section for such 
        fiscal year. The Secretary shall reallot such amounts 
        from time to time, on such date and during such period 
        as the Secretary deems appropriate.
  ``(e) Applications.--No Predominantly Black Institution shall 
be entitled to its allotment of Federal funds for any grant 
under subsection (d) for any period unless the institution 
submits an application to the Secretary at such time, in such 
manner, and containing or accompanied by such information as 
the Secretary may reasonably require.
  ``(f) Application Review Process.--Section 393 shall not 
apply to applications under this section.
  ``(g) Prohibition.--No Predominantly Black Institution that 
applies for and receives a grant under this section may apply 
for or receive funds under any other program under this part or 
part B of this title.
  ``(h) Duration and Carryover.--Any funds paid to a 
Predominantly Black Institution under this section and not 
expended or used for the purposes for which the funds were paid 
within 10 years following the date of the grant awarded to such 
institution under this section shall be repaid to the Treasury 
of the United States.''.
  (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 399(a)(1) (20 
U.S.C. 1068h(a)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new subparagraph:
                  ``(D) There are authorized to be appropriated 
                to carry out section 318, $25,000,000 for 
                fiscal year 2007 and such sums as may be 
                necessary for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal 
                years.''.

SEC. 6. GRANTS TO PART B INSTITUTIONS.

  (a) Use of Funds.--
          (1) Facilities and equipment.--
                  (A) Undergraduate institutions.--Paragraph 
                (2) of section 323(a) (20 U.S.C. 1062(a)) is 
                amended to read as follows:
          ``(2) Construction, maintenance, renovation, and 
        improvement in classrooms, libraries, laboratories, and 
        other instructional facilities, including purchase or 
        rental of telecommunications technology equipment or 
        services, and the acquisition of real property adjacent 
        to the campus of the institution on which to construct 
        such facilities.''.
                  (B) Graduate and professional schools.--
                Paragraph (2) of section 326(c) is amended to 
                read as follows:
          ``(2) construction, maintenance, renovation, and 
        improvement in classrooms, libraries, laboratories, and 
        other instructional facilities, including purchase or 
        rental of telecommunications technology equipment or 
        services, and the acquisition of real property adjacent 
        to the campus of the institution on which to construct 
        such facilities;''.
          (2) Outreach and collaboration.--Paragraph (11) of 
        section 323(a) is amended to read as follows:
          ``(11) Establishing community outreach programs and 
        collaborative partnerships between part B institutions 
        and local elementary or secondary schools. Such 
        partnerships may include mentoring, tutoring, or other 
        instructional opportunities that will boost student 
        academic achievement and assist elementary and 
        secondary school students in developing the academic 
        skills and the interest to pursue postsecondary 
        education.''.
  (b) Technical Assistance.--Section 323 (20 U.S.C. 1062) is 
amended--
          (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection 
        (d); and
          (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following 
        new subsection:
  ``(c) Technical Assistance.--
          ``(1) In general.--An institution may not use more 
        than 2 percent of the grant funds provided under this 
        part to secure technical assistance services.
          ``(2) Technical assistance services.--Technical 
        assistance services may include assistance with 
        enrollment management, financial management, and 
        strategic planning.
          ``(3) Report.--The institution shall report to the 
        Secretary on an annual basis, in such form as the 
        Secretary requires, on the use of funds under this 
        subsection.''.
  (c) Distance Learning.--Section 323(a)(2) (20 U.S.C. 
1062(a)(2)) (as amended by subsection (a)(1)(A)) is further 
amended by inserting ``development or improvement of facilities 
for Internet use or other distance learning academic 
instruction capabilities and'' after ``including''.
  (d) Minimum Grants.--Section 324(d)(1) (20 U.S.C. 1063(d)(1)) 
is amended by inserting before the period at the end the 
following: ``, except that, if the amount appropriated to carry 
out this part for any fiscal year exceeds the amount required 
to provide to each institution an amount equal to the total 
amount received by such institution under subsections (a), (b), 
and (c) for the preceding fiscal year, then the amount of such 
excess appropriation shall first be applied to increase the 
minimum allotment under this subsection to $750,000''.
  (e) Eligible Graduate or Professional Schools.--
          (1) General authority.--Section 326(a)(1) (20 U.S.C. 
        1063b(a)(1)) is amended--
                  (A) by inserting ``(A)'' after ``subsection 
                (e) that'';
                  (B) by inserting before the period at the end 
                the following: ``, (B) is accredited by a 
                nationally recognized accrediting agency or 
                association determined by the Secretary to be a 
                reliable authority as to the quality of 
                training offered, and (C) according to such an 
                agency or association, is in good standing''.
          (2) Eligible institutions.--Section 326(e)(1) (20 
        U.S.C. 1063b(e)(1)) is amended--
                  (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of 
                subparagraph (Q);
                  (B) by striking the period at the end of 
                subparagraph (R) and inserting a semicolon; and
                  (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraphs:
                  ``(S) Alabama State University qualified 
                graduate program;
                  ``(T) Prairie View A & M University 
                qualified graduate program;
                  ``(U) Coppin State University qualified 
                graduate program; and
                  ``(V) Delaware State University qualified 
                graduate program.''.
          (3) Conforming amendment.--Section 326(e)(3) (20 
        U.S.C. 1063b(e)(3)) is amended--
                  (A) by striking ``1998'' and inserting 
                ``2005''; and
                  (B) by striking ``(Q) and (R)'' and inserting 
                ``(S), (T), (U), and (V)''.
  (f) Professional or Graduate Institutions.--Section 326(f) 
(20 U.S.C. 1063b(f)) is amended--
          (1) in paragraph (1)--
                  (A) by striking ``$26,600,000'' and inserting 
                ``$54,500,000''; and
                  (B) by striking ``(P)'' and inserting 
                ``(R)'';
          (2) in paragraph (2)--
                  (A) by striking ``$26,600,000, but not in 
                excess of $28,600,000'' and inserting 
                ``$54,500,000, but not in excess of 
                $58,500,000''; and
                  (B) by striking ``subparagraphs (Q) and (R)'' 
                and inserting ``subparagraphs (S), (T), (U), 
                and (V)''; and
          (3) in paragraph (3)--
                  (A) by striking ``$28,600,000'' and inserting 
                ``$58,500,000''; and
                  (B) by striking ``(R)'' and inserting 
                ``(V)''.
  (g) Hold Harmless.--Section 326(g) (20 U.S.C. 1063b(g)) is 
amended by striking ``1998'' each place it appears and 
inserting ``2005''.

SEC. 7. PELL GRANTS.

  (a) Tuition Sensitivity.--Section 401(b) is further amended--
          (1) by striking paragraph (3); and
          (2) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (8) as 
        paragraphs (3) through (7), respectively.
  (b) Multiple Grants.--Paragraph (5) of section 401(b) (as 
redesignated by subsection (a)(2)) is amended to read as 
follows:
          ``(5) Year-round pell grants.--
                  ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall, for 
                students enrolled full time in a baccalaureate 
                or associate's degree program of study at an 
                eligible institution, award such students two 
                Pell grants during a single award year to 
                permit such students to accelerate progress 
                toward their degree objectives by enrolling in 
                academic programs for 12 months rather than 9 
                months.
                  ``(B) Limitation.--The Secretary shall limit 
                the awarding of additional Pell grants under 
                this paragraph in a single award year to 
                students attending--
                          ``(i) baccalaureate degree granting 
                        institutions that have a graduation 
                        rate as reported by the Integrated 
                        Postsecondary Education Data System for 
                        the 4 preceding academic years of at 
                        least 30 percent; or
                          ``(ii) two-year institutions that 
                        have a graduation rate as reported by 
                        the Integrated Postsecondary Education 
                        Data Systems, in at least one of the 
                        last 3 years for which data is 
                        available, that is above the average 
                        for the applicable year for the 
                        institution's type and control.
                  ``(C) Evaluation.--The Secretary shall 
                conduct an evaluation of the program under this 
                paragraph and submit to the Congress an 
                evaluation report no later than October 1, 
                2011.
                  ``(D) Regulations required.--The Secretary 
                shall promulgate regulations implementing this 
                paragraph.''.

SEC. 8. INTEREST RATE REDUCTIONS.

  (a) FFEL Interest Rates.--Section 427A(l)(1) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1077a(l)(1)) is amended--
          (1) by striking ``6.8 percent'' and inserting ``3.4 
        percent''; and
          (2) by inserting before the period at the end the 
        following: ``, except that for any loan made pursuant 
        to section 428H for which the first disbursement is 
        made on or after July 1, 2006, the applicable rate of 
        interest shall be 6.8 percent on the unpaid principal 
        balance of the loan''.
  (b) Direct Loans.--Section 455(b)(7)(A) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(b)(7)(A)) is amended--
          (1) by striking ``and Federal Direct Unsubsidized 
        Stafford Loans'';
          (2) by striking ``6.8 percent'' and inserting ``3.4 
        percent''; and
          (3) by inserting before the period at the end the 
        following: ``, and for any Federal Direct Unsubsidized 
        Loan made for which the first disbursement is made on 
        or after July 1, 2006, the applicable rate of interest 
        shall be 6.8 percent on the unpaid principal balance of 
        the loan''.
  (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
shall be effective for loans made on or after July 1, 2006 and 
before July 1, 2007.

SEC. 9. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR SERVICE IN AREAS OF NATIONAL NEED.

  Section 428K (20 U.S.C. 1078-11) is amended to read as 
follows:

``SEC. 428K. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR SERVICE IN AREAS OF NATIONAL NEED.

  ``(a) Purposes.--The purposes of this section are--
          ``(1) to encourage highly trained individuals to 
        enter and continue in service in areas of national 
        need; and
          ``(2) to reduce the burden of student debt for 
        Americans who dedicate their careers to service in 
        areas of national need.
  ``(b) Program Authorized.--
          ``(1) In general.--The Secretary is authorized to 
        carry out a program of assuming the obligation to 
        repay, pursuant to paragraphs (2) of subsection (c) and 
        subsection (d), a qualified loan amount for a loan 
        made, insured, or guaranteed under this part or part D 
        (other than loans made under section 428B and 428C and 
        comparable loans made under part D), for any new 
        borrower after the date of enactment of the Reverse the 
        Raid on Student Aid Act of 2006, who--
                  ``(A) has been employed full-time for at 
                least 5 consecutive complete school, academic, 
                or calendar years, as appropriate, in an area 
                of national need described in subsection (c); 
                and
                  ``(B) is not in default on a loan for which 
                the borrower seeks forgiveness.
          ``(2) Award basis.--Loan repayment under this section 
        shall be on a first-come, first-served basis pursuant 
        to the designation under subsection (c) and subject to 
        the availability of appropriations.
          ``(3) Regulations.--The Secretary is authorized to 
        issue such regulations as may be necessary to carry out 
        the provisions of this section.
  ``(c) Areas of National Need.--
          ``(1) Statutory categories.--For purposes of this 
        section, an individual shall be treated as employed in 
        an area of national need if the individual is employed 
        full time and is any of the following:
                  ``(A) Early childhood educators.--An 
                individual who is employed as an early 
                childhood educator in an eligible preschool 
                program or child care facility in a low-income 
                community, and who is involved directly in the 
                care, development and education of infants, 
                toddlers, or young children through age five.
                  ``(B) Nurses.--An individual who is 
                employed--
                          ``(i) as a nurse in a clinical 
                        setting; or
                          ``(ii) as a member of the nursing 
                        faculty at an accredited school of 
                        nursing (as those terms are defined in 
                        section 801 of the Public Health 
                        Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296)).
                  ``(C) Foreign language specialists.--An 
                individual who has obtained a baccalaureate 
                degree in a critical foreign language and is 
                employed--
                          ``(i) in an elementary or secondary 
                        school as a teacher of a critical 
                        foreign language; or
                          ``(ii) in an agency of the United 
                        States Government in a position that 
                        regularly requires the use of such 
                        critical foreign language.
                  ``(D) Librarians.--An individual who is 
                employed full-time as a libarian in--
                          ``(i) a public library that serves a 
                        geographic area within which the public 
                        schools have a combined average of 30 
                        percent or more of their total student 
                        enrollments composed of children 
                        counted under section 1113(a)(5) of the 
                        Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
                        of 1965; or
                          ``(ii) an elementary or secondary 
                        school which is in the school district 
                        of a local educational agency which is 
                        eligible in such year for assistance 
                        pursuant to title I of the Elementary 
                        and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 
                        and which for the purpose of this 
                        paragraph and for that year has been 
                        determined by the Secretary (pursuant 
                        to regulations and after consultation 
                        with the State educational agency of 
                        the State in which the school is 
                        located) to be a school in which the 
                        enrollment of children counted under 
                        section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary 
                        and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
                        exceeds 30 percent of the total 
                        enrollment of that school.
                  ``(E) Highly qualified teachers: bilingual 
                education and low-income communities.--An 
                individual who--
                          ``(i) is highly qualified as such 
                        term is defined in section 9101 of the 
                        Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
                        of 1965; and
                          ``(ii)(I) is employed as a full-time 
                        teacher of bilingual education; or
                          ``(II) is employed as a teacher for 
                        service in a public or nonprofit 
                        private elementary or secondary school 
                        which is in the school district of a 
                        local educational agency which is 
                        eligible in such year for assistance 
                        pursuant to title I of the Elementary 
                        and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 
                        and which for the purpose of this 
                        paragraph and for that year has been 
                        determined by the Secretary (pursuant 
                        to regulations and after consultation 
                        with the State educational agency of 
                        the State in which the school is 
                        located) to be a school in which the 
                        enrollment of children counted under 
                        section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary 
                        and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
                        exceeds 40 percent of the total 
                        enrollment of that school.
                  ``(F) First responders in low-income 
                communities.--An individual who--
                          ``(i) is employed as a firefighter, 
                        police officer, or emergency medical 
                        technician; and
                          ``(ii) serves as such in a low-income 
                        community.
                  ``(G) Child welfare workers.--An individual 
                who--
                          ``(i) has obtained a degree in social 
                        work or a related field with a focus on 
                        serving children and families; and
                          ``(ii) is employed in public or 
                        private child welfare services.
                  ``(H) Speech-language pathologists.--An 
                individual who is a speech-language 
                pathologist, who is employed in an eligible 
                preschool program or an elementary or secondary 
                school, and who has, at a minimum, a graduate 
                degree in speech-language pathology, or 
                communication sciences and disorders.
                  ``(I) Additional areas of national need.--An 
                individual who is employed in an area 
                designated by the Secretary under paragraph (2) 
                and has completed a baccalaureate or advanced 
                degree related to such area.
          ``(2) Designation of areas of national need.--After 
        consultation with appropriate Federal, State, and 
        community-based agencies and organizations, the 
        Secretary shall designate areas of national need. In 
        making such designations, the Secretary shall take into 
        account the extent to which--
                  ``(A) the national interest in the area is 
                compelling;
                  ``(B) the area suffers from a critical lack 
                of qualified personnel; and
                  ``(C) other Federal programs support the area 
                concerned.
  ``(d) Qualified Loan Amount.--The Secretary shall repay not 
more than $5,000 in the aggregate of the loan obligation on a 
loan made under section 428 or 428H that is outstanding after 
the completion of the fifth consecutive school, academic, or 
calendar year, as appropriate, described in subsection (b)(1).
  ``(e) Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to authorize the refunding of any repayment of a loan 
made under section 428 or 428H.
  ``(f) Ineligibility of National Service Award Recipients.--No 
student borrower may, for the same service, receive a benefit 
under both this section and subtitle D of title I of the 
National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12601 et 
seq.).
  ``(g) Ineligibility for Double Benefits.--No borrower may 
receive a reduction of loan obligations under both this section 
and section 428J or 460.
  ``(h) Definitions.--In this section
          ``(1) Child care facility.--The term `child care 
        facility' means a facility, including a home, that--
                  ``(A) provides for the education and care of 
                children from birth through age 5; and
                  ``(B) meets any applicable State or local 
                government licensing, certification, approval, 
                or registration requirements.
          ``(2) Critical foreign language.--The term `critical 
        foreign language' includes the languages of Arabic, 
        Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Pashto, Persian-Farsi, 
        Serbian-Croatian, Russian, Portuguese, and any other 
        language identified by the Secretary of Education, in 
        consultation with the Defense Language Institute, the 
        Foreign Service Institute, and the National Security 
        Education Program, as a critical foreign language need.
          ``(3) Early childhood educator.--The term `early 
        childhood educator' means an early childhood educator 
        employed in an eligible preschool program who has 
        completed a baccalaureate or advanced degree in early 
        childhood development, early childhood education, or in 
        a field related to early childhood education.
          ``(4) Eligible preschool program.--The term `eligible 
        preschool program' means a program that provides for 
        the care, development, and education of infants, 
        toddlers, or young children through age 5, meets any 
        applicable State or local government licensing, 
        certification, approval, and registration requirements, 
        and is operated by--
                  ``(A) a public or private school that may be 
                supported, sponsored, supervised, or 
                administered by a local educational agency;
                  ``(B) a Head Start agency serving as a 
                grantee designated under the Head Start Act (42 
                U.S.C. 9831 et seq.);
                  ``(C) a nonprofit or community based 
                organization; or
                  ``(D) a child care program, including a home.
          ``(5) Low-income community.--In this subsection, the 
        term `low-income community' means a community in which 
        70 percent of households earn less than 85 percent of 
        the State median household income.
          ``(6) Nurse.--The term `nurse' means a nurse who 
        meets all of the following:
                  ``(A) The nurse graduated from--
                          ``(i) an accredited school of nursing 
                        (as those terms are defined in section 
                        801 of the Public Health Service Act 
                        (42 U.S.C. 296));
                          ``(ii) a nursing center; or
                          ``(iii) an academic health center 
                        that provides nurse training.
                  ``(B) The nurse holds a valid and 
                unrestricted license to practice nursing in the 
                State in which the nurse practices in a 
                clinical setting.
                  ``(C) The nurse holds one or more of the 
                following:
                          ``(i) A graduate degree in nursing, 
                        or an equivalent degree.
                          ``(ii) A nursing degree from a 
                        collegiate school of nursing (as 
                        defined in section 801 of the Public 
                        Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296)).
                          ``(iii) A nursing degree from an 
                        associate degree school of nursing (as 
                        defined in section 801 of the Public 
                        Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296)).
                          ``(iv) A nursing degree from a 
                        diploma school of nursing (as defined 
                        in section 801 of the Public Health 
                        Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296)).
          ``(7) Speech-language pathologist.--The term `speech-
        language pathologist' means a speech-language 
        pathologist who meets all of the following:
                  ``(A) the speech-language pathologist has 
                received, at a minimum, a graduate degree in 
                speech-language pathology or communication 
                sciences and disorders from an institution of 
                higher education accredited by an agency or 
                association recognized by the Secretary 
                pursuant to section 496(a) of this Act; and
                  ``(B) the speech-language pathologist meets 
                or exceeds the qualifications as defined in 
                section 1861(ll) of the Social Security Act (42 
                U.S.C. 1395x).
  ``(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
to be appropriated to carry out this section such sums as may 
be necessary for fiscal year 2007 and such sums as may be 
necessary for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years.''.

SEC. 10. ADDITIONAL CONSOLIDATION LOAN CHANGES.

  (a) Additional Amendments.--Section 428C(b)(1) (20 U.S.C. 
1078-3(b)(1)) is amended--
          (1) by striking everything after ``under this 
        section'' the first place it appears in subparagraph 
        (A);
          (2) by striking ``(i) which'' and all that follows 
        through ``and (ii)'' in subparagraph (C);
          (3) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph 
        (E);
          (4) by redesignating subparagraph (F) as subparagraph 
        (G); and
          (5) by inserting after subparagraph (E) the following 
        new subparagraph:
                  ``(F) that the lender of the consolidation 
                loan shall, upon application for such loan, 
                provide the borrower with a clear and 
                conspicuous notice of at least the following 
                information:
                          ``(i) the effects of consolidation on 
                        total interest to be paid, fees to be 
                        paid, and length of repayment;
                          ``(ii) the effects of consolidation 
                        on a borrower's underlying loan 
                        benefits, including loan forgiveness, 
                        cancellation, deferment, and reduced 
                        interest rates on those underlying 
                        loans;
                          ``(iii) the ability of the borrower 
                        to prepay the loan, pay on a shorter 
                        schedule, and to change repayment 
                        plans;
                          ``(iv) that borrower benefit programs 
                        may vary among different loan holders, 
                        and a description of how the borrower 
                        benefits may vary among different loan 
                        holders;
                          ``(v) the tax benefits for which 
                        borrowers may be eligible;
                          ``(vi) the consequences of default; 
                        and
                          ``(vii) that by making the 
                        application the applicant is not 
                        obligated to agree to take the 
                        consolidation loan; and''.
  (b) Effective Date for Single Holder Amendment.--The 
amendment made by subsection (a)(1) shall apply with respect to 
any loan made under section 428C of the Higher Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078-3) for which the application is received 
by an eligible lender on or after July 1, 2006.

SEC. 11. SIGNIFICANTLY SIMPLIFYING THE STUDENT AID APPLICATION PROCESS.

  (a) Improvements to Paper and Electronic Forms.--
          (1) Common financial aid form development and 
        processing.--Section 483(a) (20 U.S.C. 1090(a)) is 
        amended--
                  (A) by striking paragraphs (1), (2), and (5);
                  (B) by redesignating paragraphs (3), (4), 
                (6), and (7), as paragraphs (9), (10), (11), 
                and (12), respectively;
                  (C) by inserting before paragraph (9), as 
                redesignated by subparagraph (B), the 
                following:
          ``(1) In general.--The Secretary, in cooperation with 
        representatives of agencies and organizations involved 
        in student financial assistance, shall produce, 
        distribute, and process free of charge common financial 
        reporting forms as described in this subsection to be 
        used for application and reapplication to determine the 
        need and eligibility of a student for financial 
        assistance under parts A through E (other than subpart 
        4 of part A). These forms shall be made available to 
        applicants in both paper and electronic formats and 
        shall be referred to as the `Free Application for 
        Federal Student Aid' or the `FAFSA'.
          ``(2) Early estimates.--
                  ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall permit 
                applicants to complete such forms as described 
                in this subsection in the 4 years prior to 
                enrollment in order to obtain a non-binding 
                estimate of the family contribution, as defined 
                in section 473. The estimate shall clearly and 
                conspicuously indicate that it is only an 
                estimate of family contribution, and may not 
                reflect the actual family contribution of the 
                applicant that shall be used to determine the 
                grant, loan, or work assistance that the 
                applicant may receive under this title when 
                enrolled in a program of postsecondary 
                education. Such applicants shall be permitted 
                to update information submitted on forms 
                described in this subsection using the process 
                required under paragraph (5)(A).
                  ``(B) Evaluation.--Two years after the early 
                estimates are implemented under this paragraph 
                and from data gathered from the early 
                estimates, the Secretary shall evaluate the 
                differences between initial, non-binding early 
                estimates and the final financial aid award 
                made available under this title.
                  ``(C) Report.--The Secretary shall provide a 
                report to the authorizing committees on the 
                results of the evaluation.
          ``(3) Paper format.--
                  ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall 
                produce, distribute, and process common forms 
                in paper format to meet the requirements of 
                paragraph (1). The Secretary shall develop a 
                common paper form for applicants who do not 
                meet the requirements of subparagraph (B).
                  ``(B) Ez fafsa.--
                          ``(i) In general.--The Secretary 
                        shall develop and use a simplified 
                        paper application form, to be known as 
                        the `EZ FAFSA', to be used for 
                        applicants meeting the requirements of 
                        section 479(c).
                          ``(ii) Reduced data requirements.--
                        The form under this subparagraph shall 
                        permit an applicant to submit, for 
                        financial assistance purposes, only the 
                        data elements required to make a 
                        determination of whether the applicant 
                        meets the requirements under section 
                        479(c).
                          ``(iii) State data.--The Secretary 
                        shall include on the form under this 
                        subparagraph such data items as may be 
                        necessary to award State financial 
                        assistance, as provided under paragraph 
                        (6), except that the Secretary shall 
                        not include a State's data if that 
                        State does not permit its applicants 
                        for State assistance to use the form 
                        under this subparagraph.
                          ``(iv) Free availability and 
                        processing.--The provisions of 
                        paragraph (7) shall apply to the form 
                        under this subparagraph, and the data 
                        collected by means of the form under 
                        this subparagraph shall be available to 
                        institutions of higher education, 
                        guaranty agencies, and States in 
                        accordance with paragraph (9).
                          ``(v) Testing.--The Secretary shall 
                        conduct appropriate field testing on 
                        the form under this subparagraph.
                  ``(C) Promoting the use of electronic 
                fafsa.--
                          ``(i) In general.--The Secretary 
                        shall make an effort to encourage 
                        applicants to utilize the electronic 
                        forms described in paragraph (4).
                          ``(ii) Maintenance of the fafsa in a 
                        printable electronic file.--The 
                        Secretary shall maintain a version of 
                        the paper forms described in 
                        subparagraphs (A) and (B) in a 
                        printable electronic file that is 
                        easily portable. The printable 
                        electronic file will be made easily 
                        accessible and downloadable to students 
                        on the same website used to provide 
                        students with the electronic 
                        application forms described in 
                        paragraph (4) of this subsection. The 
                        Secretary shall enable students to 
                        submit a form created under this 
                        subparagraph that is downloaded and 
                        printed from an electronic file format 
                        in order to meet the filing 
                        requirements of this section and in 
                        order to receive aid from programs 
                        under this title.
                          ``(iii) Reporting requirement.--The 
                        Secretary shall report annually to 
                        Congress on the impact of the digital 
                        divide on students completing 
                        applications for title IV aid described 
                        under this paragraph and paragraph (4). 
                        The Secretary will also report on the 
                        steps taken to eliminate the digital 
                        divide and phase out the paper form 
                        described in subparagraph (A) of this 
                        paragraph. The Secretary's report will 
                        specifically address the impact of the 
                        digital divide on the following student 
                        populations: dependent students, 
                        independent students without 
                        dependents, and independent students 
                        with dependents other than a spouse.
          ``(4) Electronic format.--
                  ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall 
                produce, distribute, and process common forms 
                in electronic format to meet the requirements 
                of paragraph (1). The Secretary shall develop 
                common electronic forms for applicants who do 
                not meet the requirements of subparagraph (C) 
                of this paragraph.
                  ``(B) State data.--The Secretary shall 
                include on the common electronic forms space 
                for information that needs to be submitted from 
                the applicant to be eligible for State 
                financial assistance, as provided under 
                paragraph (6), except the Secretary shall not 
                require applicants to complete data required by 
                any State other than the applicant's State of 
                residence.
                  ``(C) Simplified applications: fafsa on the 
                web.--
                          ``(i) In general.--The Secretary 
                        shall develop and use a simplified 
                        electronic application form to be used 
                        by applicants meeting the requirements 
                        under subsection (c) of section 479 and 
                        an additional, separate simplified 
                        electronic application form to be used 
                        by applicants meeting the requirements 
                        under subsection (b) of section 479.
                          ``(ii) Reduced data requirements.--
                        The simplified electronic application 
                        forms shall permit an applicant to 
                        submit for financial assistance 
                        purposes, only the data elements 
                        required to make a determination of 
                        whether the applicant meets the 
                        requirements under subsection (b) or 
                        (c) of section 479.
                          ``(iii) State data.--The Secretary 
                        shall include on the simplified 
                        electronic application forms such data 
                        items as may be necessary to award 
                        state financial assistance, as provided 
                        under paragraph (6), except that the 
                        Secretary shall not require applicants 
                        to complete data required by any State 
                        other than the applicant's State of 
                        residence.
                          ``(iv) Availability and processing.--
                        The data collected by means of the 
                        simplified electronic application forms 
                        shall be available to institutions of 
                        higher education, guaranty agencies, 
                        and States in accordance with paragraph 
                        (9).
                          ``(v) Testing.--The Secretary shall 
                        conduct appropriate field testing on 
                        the forms developed under this 
                        subparagraph.
                  ``(D) Use of forms.--Nothing in this 
                subsection shall be construed to prohibit the 
                use of the forms developed by the Secretary 
                pursuant to this paragraph by an eligible 
                institution, eligible lender, guaranty agency, 
                State grant agency, private computer software 
                provider, a consortium thereof, or such other 
                entities as the Secretary may designate.
                  ``(E) Privacy.--The Secretary shall ensure 
                that data collection under this paragraph 
                complies with section 552a of title 5, United 
                States Code, and that any entity using the 
                electronic version of the forms developed by 
                the Secretary pursuant to this paragraph shall 
                maintain reasonable and appropriate 
                administrative, technical, and physical 
                safeguards to ensure the integrity and 
                confidentiality of the information, and to 
                protect against security threats, or 
                unauthorized uses or disclosures of the 
                information provided on the electronic version 
                of the forms. Data collected by such electronic 
                version of the forms shall be used only for the 
                application, award, and administration of aid 
                awarded under this title, State aid, or aid 
                awarded by eligible institutions or such 
                entities as the Secretary may designate. No 
                data collected by such electronic version of 
                the forms shall be used for making final aid 
                awards under this title until such data have 
                been processed by the Secretary or a contractor 
                or designee of the Secretary, except as may be 
                permitted under this title.
                  ``(F) Signature.--Notwithstanding any other 
                provision of this Act, the Secretary may permit 
                an electronic form under this paragraph to be 
                submitted without a signature, if a signature 
                is subsequently submitted by the applicant.
          ``(5) Streamlining.--
                  ``(A) Streamlined reapplication process.--
                          ``(i) In general.--The Secretary 
                        shall develop streamlined reapplication 
                        forms and processes, including both 
                        paper and electronic reapplication 
                        processes, consistent with the 
                        requirements of this subsection, for an 
                        applicant who applies for financial 
                        assistance under this title--
                                  ``(I) in the academic year 
                                succeeding the year in which 
                                such applicant first applied 
                                for financial assistance under 
                                this title; or
                                  ``(II) in any succeeding 
                                academic years.
                          ``(ii) Mechanisms for 
                        reapplication.--The Secretary shall 
                        develop appropriate mechanisms to 
                        support reapplication.
                          ``(iii) Identification of updated 
                        data.--The Secretary shall determine, 
                        in cooperation with States, 
                        institutions of higher education, 
                        agencies, and organizations involved in 
                        student financial assistance, the data 
                        elements that can be updated from the 
                        previous academic year's application.
                          ``(iv) Reduced data authorized.--
                        Nothing in this title shall be 
                        construed as limiting the authority of 
                        the Secretary to reduce the number of 
                        data elements required of reapplicants.
                          ``(v) Zero family contribution.--
                        Applicants determined to have a zero 
                        family contribution pursuant to section 
                        479(c) shall not be required to provide 
                        any financial data in a reapplication 
                        form, except that which is necessary to 
                        determine eligibility under such 
                        section.
                  ``(B) Reduction of data elements.--
                          ``(i) Reduction encouraged.--Of the 
                        number of data elements on the FAFSA on 
                        the date of enactment of the Reverse 
                        the Raid on Student Aid Act of 2006 
                        (including questions on the FAFSA for 
                        the purposes described in paragraph 
                        (6)), the Secretary, in cooperation 
                        with representatives of agencies and 
                        organizations involved in student 
                        financial assistance, shall continue to 
                        reduce the number of such data elements 
                        following the date of enactment. 
                        Reductions of data elements under 
                        paragraph (3)(B), (4)(C), or (5)(A)(iv) 
                        shall not be counted towards the 
                        reduction referred to in this paragraph 
                        unless those data elements are reduced 
                        for all applicants.
                          ``(ii) Report.--The Secretary shall 
                        annually report to the House of 
                        Representatives and the Senate on the 
                        progress made of reducing data 
                        elements.
          ``(6) State requirements.--
                  ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall 
                include on the forms developed under this 
                subsection, such State-specific data items as 
                the Secretary determines are necessary to meet 
                State requirements for State need-based 
                financial aid under section 415C, except as 
                provided in paragraphs (3)(B)(iii) and 
                (4)(C)(iii) of this subsection. Such items 
                shall be selected in consultation with State 
                agencies in order to assist in the awarding of 
                State financial assistance in accordance with 
                the terms of this subsection, except as 
                provided in paragraphs (3)(B)(iii) and 
                (4)(C)(iii) of this subsection. The number of 
                such data items shall not be less than the 
                number included on the form on October 7, 1998, 
                unless a State notifies the Secretary that the 
                State no longer requires those data items for 
                the distribution of State need-based financial 
                aid.
                  ``(B) Annual review.--The Secretary shall 
                conduct an annual review process to determine 
                which forms and data items the States require 
                to award State need-based financial aid and 
                other application requirements that the States 
                may impose.
                  ``(C) State use of simplified forms.--The 
                Secretary shall encourage States to take such 
                steps as necessary to encourage the use of 
                simplified application forms, including those 
                described in paragraphs (3)(B) and (4)(C), to 
                meet the requirements under subsection (b) or 
                (c) of section 479.
                  ``(D) Federal register notice.--The Secretary 
                shall publish on an annual basis a notice in 
                the Federal Register requiring State agencies 
                to inform the Secretary--
                          ``(i) if the State agency is unable 
                        to permit applicants to utilize the 
                        simplified application forms described 
                        in paragraphs (3)(B) and (4)(C); and
                          ``(ii) of the State-specific data 
                        that the State agency requires for 
                        delivery of State need-based financial 
                        aid.
                  ``(E) State notification to the secretary.--
                          ``(i) In general.--Each State agency 
                        shall notify the Secretary--
                                  ``(I) whether the State 
                                permits an applicant to file a 
                                form described in paragraph 
                                (3)(B) or paragraph (4)(C) of 
                                this subsection for purposes of 
                                determining eligibility for 
                                State need-based financial aid; 
                                and
                                  ``(II) the State-specific 
                                data that the State agency 
                                requires for delivery of State 
                                need-based financial aid.
                          ``(ii) Acceptance of forms.--In the 
                        event that a State does not permit an 
                        applicant to file a form described in 
                        paragraph (3)(B) or paragraph (4)(C) of 
                        this subsection for purposes of 
                        determining eligibility for State need-
                        based financial aid--
                                  ``(I) the State shall notify 
                                the Secretary if the State is 
                                not permitted to do so because 
                                of either State law or because 
                                of agency policy; and
                                  ``(II) the notification under 
                                subclause (I) shall include an 
                                estimate of the program cost to 
                                permit applicants to complete 
                                simplified application forms 
                                under paragraphs (3)(B) and 
                                paragraph (4)(C) of this 
                                subsection.
                          ``(iii) Lack of notification by the 
                        state.--If a State does not notify the 
                        Secretary pursuant to clause (i), the 
                        Secretary shall--
                                  ``(I) permit residents of 
                                that State to complete 
                                simplified application forms 
                                under paragraphs (3)(B) and 
                                paragraph (4)(C) of this 
                                subsection; and
                                  ``(II) not require any 
                                resident of that State to 
                                complete any data previously 
                                required by that State under 
                                this section.
          ``(7) Charges to students and parents for use of 
        forms prohibited.--
                  ``(A) Fees prohibited.--The FAFSA, in 
                whatever form (including the EZ-FAFSA, paper, 
                electronic, simplified, or reapplication), 
                shall be produced, distributed, and processed 
                by the Secretary and no parent or student shall 
                be charged a fee for the collection, 
                processing, or delivery of financial aid 
                through the use of the FAFSA. The need and 
                eligibility of a student for financial 
                assistance under parts A through E of this 
                title (other than under subpart 4 of part A) 
                may only be determined by using the FAFSA 
                developed by the Secretary pursuant to this 
                subsection. No student may receive assistance 
                under parts A through E of this title (other 
                than under subpart 4 of part A), except by use 
                of the FAFSA developed by the Secretary 
                pursuant to this subsection. No data collected 
                on a form for which a fee is charged shall be 
                used to complete the FAFSA.
                  ``(B) Notice.--Any entity that provides to 
                students or parents, or charges students or 
                parents for, any value-added services with 
                respect to or in connection with the FAFSA, 
                such as completion of the FAFSA, submission of 
                the FAFSA, or tracking of the FAFSA for a 
                student, shall provide to students and parents 
                clear and conspicuous notice that--
                          ``(i) the FAFSA is a free Federal 
                        student aid application;
                          ``(ii) the FAFSA can be completed 
                        without professional assistance; and
                          ``(iii) includes the current Internet 
                        address for the FAFSA on the 
                        Department's web site.
          ``(8) Application processing cycle.--The Secretary 
        shall enable students to submit a form created under 
        this subsection in order to meet the filing 
        requirements of this section and in order to receive 
        aid from programs under this title and shall initiate 
        the processing of applications under this subsection as 
        early as practicable prior to January 1 of the 
        student's planned year of enrollment.''.
          (2) Master calendar.--Section 482(a)(1)(B) (20 U.S.C. 
        1089) is amended to read as follows:
                  ``(B) by March 1: proposed modifications, 
                updates, and notices pursuant to sections 478, 
                479(c)(2)(C), and 483(a)(6) published in the 
                Federal Register;''.
  (b) Increasing Access to Technology.--Section 483 (20 U.S.C. 
1090) is further amended by adding at the end the following:
  ``(f) Addressing the Digital Divide.--The Secretary shall 
utilize savings accrued by moving more applicants to the 
electronic forms described in subsection (a)(4) to improve 
access to the electronic forms described in subsection (a)(4) 
for applicants meeting the requirements of section 479(c).''.
  (c) Expanding the Definition of an Independent Student.--
Section 480(d) (20 U.S.C.1087vv(d)) is amended by striking 
paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
          ``(2) is an orphan, in foster care, or a ward of the 
        court, or was in foster care or a ward of the court 
        until the individual reached the age of 18;''.

SEC. 12. DISCRETION OF STUDENT FINANCIAL AID ADMINISTRATORS.

  Section 479A(a) (20 U.S.C. 1087tt(a)) is amended--
          (1) by striking ``(a) In General.--'' and inserting 
        the following:
  ``(a) Authority to Make Adjustments.--
          ``(1) Adjustments for special circumstances.--'';
          (2) by inserting before ``Special circumstances may'' 
        the following:
          ``(2) Special circumstances defined.--'';
          (3) by inserting ``a student's status as a ward of 
        the court at any time prior to attaining 18 years of 
        age, a student's status as an individual who was 
        adopted at or after age 13, a student's status as a 
        homeless or unaccompanied youth (as defined in section 
        725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act),'' 
        after ``487,'';
          (4) by inserting before ``Adequate documentation'' 
        the following:
          ``(3) Documentation and use of supplementary 
        information.--''; and
          (5) by inserting before ``No student'' the following:
          ``(4) Fees for supplementary information 
        prohibited.--''.

SEC. 13. POSTBACCALAUREATE OPPORTUNITIES FOR HISPANIC AMERICANS.

  (a) Establishment of Program.--Title V is amended--
          (1) by redesignating part B as part C;
          (2) by redesignating sections 511 through 518 as 
        sections 521 through 528, respectively; and
          (3) by inserting after section 505 (20 U.S.C. 1101d) 
        the following new part:

   ``PART B--PROMOTING POSTBACCALAUREATE OPPORTUNITIES FOR HISPANIC 
                               AMERICANS

``SEC. 511. PURPOSES.

  ``The purposes of this part are--
          ``(1) to expand postbaccalaureate educational 
        opportunities for, and improve the academic attainment 
        of, Hispanic students; and
          ``(2) to expand the postbaccalaureate academic 
        offerings and enhance the program quality in the 
        institutions that are educating the majority of 
        Hispanic college students and helping large numbers of 
        Hispanic and low-income students complete postsecondary 
        degrees.

``SEC. 512. PROGRAM AUTHORITY AND ELIGIBILITY.

  ``(a) Program Authorized.--Subject to the availability of 
funds appropriated to carry out this part, the Secretary shall 
award competitive grants to Hispanic-serving institutions 
determined by the Secretary to be making substantive 
contributions to graduate educational opportunities for 
Hispanic students.
  ``(b) Eligibility.--For the purposes of this part, an 
`eligible institution' means an institution of higher education 
that--
          ``(1) is an eligible institution under section 
        502(a)(2); and
          ``(2) offers a postbaccalaureate certificate or 
        degree granting program.

``SEC. 513. AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.

  ``Grants awarded under this part shall be used for one or 
more of the following activities:
          ``(1) Purchase, rental, or lease of scientific or 
        laboratory equipment for educational purposes, 
        including instructional and research purposes.
          ``(2) Construction, maintenance, renovation, and 
        improvement of classrooms, libraries, laboratories, and 
        other instructional facilities, including purchase or 
        rental of telecommunications technology equipment or 
        services.
          ``(3) Purchase of library books, periodicals, 
        technical and other scientific journals, microfilm, 
        microfiche, and other educational materials, including 
        telecommunications program materials.
          ``(4) Support for needy postbaccalaureate students 
        including outreach, academic support services, 
        mentoring, scholarships, fellowships, and other 
        financial assistance to permit the enrollment of such 
        students in postbaccalaureate certificate and degree 
        granting programs.
          ``(5) Support of faculty exchanges, faculty 
        development, faculty research, curriculum development, 
        and academic instruction.
          ``(6) Creating or improving facilities for Internet 
        or other distance learning academic instruction 
        capabilities, including purchase or rental of 
        telecommunications technology equipment or services.
          ``(7) Collaboration with other institutions of higher 
        education to expand postbaccalaureate certificate and 
        degree offerings.
          ``(8) Other activities proposed in the application 
        submitted pursuant to section 514 that--
                  ``(A) contribute to carrying out the purposes 
                of this part; and
                  ``(B) are approved by the Secretary as part 
                of the review and acceptance of such 
                application.

``SEC. 514. APPLICATION AND DURATION.

  ``(a) Application.--Any eligible institution may apply for a 
grant under this part by submitting an application to the 
Secretary at such time and in such manner as determined by the 
Secretary. Such application shall demonstrate how the grant 
funds will be used to improve postbaccalaureate education 
opportunities in programs and professions in which Hispanic 
Americans are underrepresented.
  ``(b) Duration.--Grants under this part shall be awarded for 
a period not to exceed 5 years.
  ``(c) Limitation.--The Secretary shall not award more than 
one grant under this part in any fiscal year to any Hispanic-
serving institution.''.
  (b) Cooperative Arrangements.--Section 524(a) (as 
redesignated by subsection (a)(2)) (20 U.S.C. 1103c(a)) is 
amended by inserting ``and section 513'' after ``section 503''.
  (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--Subsection (a) of 
section 528 (as redesignated by subsection (a)(2) of this 
section) (20 U.S.C. 1103g) is amended to read as follows:
  ``(a) Authorizations.--
          ``(1) Part a.--There are authorized to be 
        appropriated to carry out part A and part C of this 
        title $96,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 and such sums as 
        may be necessary for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal 
        years.
          ``(2) Part b.--There are authorized to be 
        appropriated to carry out part B of this title 
        $59,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 and such sums as may 
        be necessary for each of the 5 succeeding fiscal 
        years.''.

SEC. 14. CANCELLATION OF STUDENT LOAN INDEBTEDNESS FOR SURVIVORS OF 
                    VICTIMS OF THE SEPTEMBER 11, 2001, ATTACKS.

  (a) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
          (1) Eligible public servant.--The term ``eligible 
        public servant'' means an individual who, as determined 
        in accordance with regulations of the Secretary--
                  (A) served as a police officer, firefighter, 
                other safety or rescue personnel, or as a 
                member of the Armed Forces; and
                  (B) died (or dies) or became (or becomes) 
                permanently and totally disabled due to 
                injuries suffered in the terrorist attack on 
                September 11, 2001.
          (2) Eligible victim.--The term ``eligible victim'' 
        means an individual who, as determined in accordance 
        with regulations of the Secretary, died (or dies) or 
        became (or becomes) permanently and totally disabled 
        due to injuries suffered in the terrorist attack on 
        September 11, 2001.
          (3) Eligible parent.--The term ``eligible parent'' 
        means the parent of an eligible victim if--
                  (A) the parent owes a Federal student loan 
                that is a consolidation loan that was used to 
                repay a PLUS loan incurred on behalf of such 
                eligible victim; or
                  (B) the parent owes a Federal student loan 
                that is a PLUS loan incurred on behalf of an 
                eligible victim.
          (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the 
        Secretary of Education.
          (5) Federal student loan.--The term ``Federal student 
        loan'' means any loan made, insured, or guaranteed 
        under part B, D, or E of title IV of the Higher 
        Education Act of 1965.
  (b) Relief From Indebtedness.--
          (1) In general.--The Secretary shall provide for the 
        discharge or cancellation of--
                  (A) the Federal student loan indebtedness of 
                the spouse of an eligible public servant, as 
                determined in accordance with regulations of 
                the Secretary, including any consolidation loan 
                that was used jointly by the eligible public 
                servant and his or her spouse to repay the 
                Federal student loans of the spouse and the 
                eligible public servant;
                  (B) the portion incurred on behalf of the 
                eligible victim (other than an eligible public 
                servant), of a Federal student loan that is a 
                consolidation loan that was used jointly by the 
                eligible victim and his or her spouse, as 
                determined in accordance with regulations of 
                the Secretary, to repay the Federal student 
                loans of the eligible victim and his or her 
                spouse;
                  (C) the portion of the consolidation loan 
                indebtedness of an eligible parent that was 
                incurred on behalf of an eligible victim; and
                  (D) the PLUS loan indebtedness of an eligible 
                parent that was incurred on behalf of an 
                eligible victim.
          (2) Method of discharge or cancellation.--A loan 
        required to be discharged or canceled under paragraph 
        (1) shall be discharged or canceled by the method used 
        under section 437(a), 455(a)(1), or 464(c)(1)(F) of the 
        Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087(a), 
        1087e(a)(1), 1087dd(c)(1)(F)), whichever is applicable 
        to such loan.
  (c) Facilitation of Claims.--The Secretary shall--
          (1) establish procedures for the filing of 
        applications for discharge or cancellation under this 
        section by regulations that shall be prescribed and 
        published within 90 days after the date of enactment of 
        this Act and without regard to the requirements of 
        section 553 of title 5, United States Code; and
          (2) take such actions as may be necessary to 
        publicize the availability of discharge or cancellation 
        of Federal student loan indebtedness under this 
        section.
  (d) Availability of Funds for Payments.--Funds available for 
the purposes of making payments to lenders in accordance with 
section 437(a) for the discharge of indebtedness of deceased or 
disabled individuals shall be available for making payments 
under section 437(a) to lenders of loans as required by this 
section.
  (e) Applicable to Outstanding Debt.--The provisions of this 
section shall be applied to discharge or cancel only Federal 
student loans (including consolidation loans) on which amounts 
were owed on September 11, 2001. Nothing in this section shall 
be construed to authorize any refunding of any repayment of a 
loan.

SEC. 15. GENERAL EXTENSION OF HIGHER EDUCATION PROGRAMS.

  (a) Extension of Duration.--Except as otherwise provided in 
this Act, the authorization of appropriations for, and the 
duration of, each program authorized under the Higher Education 
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) shall be extended through 
July 1, 2012.
  (b) Performance of Required and Authorized Functions.--If the 
Secretary of Education, a State, an institution of higher 
education, a guaranty agency, a lender, or another person or 
entity--
          (1) is required, in or for fiscal year 2004, to carry 
        out certain acts or make certain determinations or 
        payments under a program under the Higher Education Act 
        of 1965, such acts, determinations, or payments shall 
        be required to be carried out, made, or continued 
        during the period of the extension under this section; 
        or
          (2) is permitted or authorized, in or for fiscal year 
        2004, to carry out certain acts or make certain 
        determinations or payments under a program under the 
        Higher Education Act of 1965, such acts, 
        determinations, or payments are permitted or authorized 
        to be carried out, made, or continued during the period 
        of the extension under this section.
  (c) Extension at Current Levels.--Unless the amount 
authorized to be appropriated for a program described in 
subsection (a) is otherwise amended by another section of this 
Act, the amount authorized to be appropriated for such a 
program during the period of extension under this section shall 
be the amount authorized to be appropriated for such program 
for fiscal year 2004, or the amount appropriated for such 
program for such fiscal year, whichever is greater. Except as 
provided in any amendment to the Higher Education Act of 1965 
enacted during fiscal year 2005 or 2006, the amount of any 
payment required or authorized under subsection (b) in or for 
the period of the extension under this section shall be 
determined in the same manner as the amount of the 
corresponding payment required or authorized in or for fiscal 
year 2004.
  (d) Advisory Committees and Other Entities Continued.--Any 
advisory committee, interagency organization, or other entity 
that was, during fiscal year 2004, authorized or required to 
perform any function under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), or in relation to programs under that 
Act, shall continue to exist and is authorized or required, 
respectively, to perform such function for the period of the 
extension under this section.
                              ----------                              


   8. A Pro Forma Amendment for the Purpose of Debate if Offered by 
      Representative McKeon of California Debatable for 10 Minutes


                                  
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