SB 0069

CHAPTER 235

SB 69-FN-A - FINAL VERSION

AN ACT combining the career incentive program and the nursing leveraged scholarship loan program within the department of postsecondary education, and establishing a workforce incentive program within the department of postsecondary education, and making an appropriation therefor.

SPONSORS: Sen. D'Allesandro, Dist 20; Sen. Martel, Dist 18

This bill consolidates the career incentive loan program and the nursing leveraged scholarship loan program into the workforce incentive program which contains a forgivable loan component and a loan repayment program for individuals who work in designated shortage areas. The bill also makes an appropriation to the department of postsecondary education for the purposes of the workforce incentive program.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

235:1 New Subdivision; Workforce Incentive Program. Amend RSA 188-D by inserting after section 18-e the following new subdivision:

I. The postsecondary education commission shall administer the workforce incentive program in accordance with state statutes and accounting procedures. The program shall include a forgivable loan component and a loan repayment component. The commission shall have the authority to:

(d) Adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, to carry out components of the program, including establishing a reasonable maximum amount of money provided to a recipient under the program, a reasonable frequency of such loans, setting minimum qualifications of applicants, determining the terms of repayment and a schedule and amount of loan repayment, making grants, and paying loan incentives under this subdivision.

II. Application for and disbursement of all moneys shall be made in the form and manner designated by the postsecondary education commission. No moneys may be disbursed by the postsecondary education commission under this subdivision until the postsecondary education commission has adopted rules under subparagraph I(d), and has filed such rules with the fiscal committee of the general court and the governor and council.

I. Financial assistance in the form of a forgivable loan shall be provided to qualified individuals who are residents of this state and need such assistance to attend education programs approved by the commission. The loans shall be for education in programs given in New Hampshire, which prepare recipients for careers in shortage areas as determined by the commission.

II. Recipients shall be chosen only on the basis of financial need. Each loan recipient shall sign a note to the state treasurer for the amount of each payment. The commission shall require recipients to agree in writing to work in the shortage area for which funds were received in New Hampshire for a specified period following completion of training.

III. Educational institutions which are eligible for receipt of money provided to students under this subdivision shall match funds provided by the state in order to receive such money. The total amount of matching funds shall not exceed any amount provided by the state during each fiscal year. Such matching funds shall be provided in addition to any other sums provided by the state.

IV. The loans shall be paid through the financial aid office of the school in which the recipient is enrolled. The commission shall establish the maximum amount of money to be provided to a student and the frequency of such loans for completion of studies over the course of training, provided that such amount and frequency shall be reasonable.

I. The commission shall establish repayment schedules that reflect the differing career demands of the shortage areas. All repayment schedules shall contain a component that allows for repayment through service in New Hampshire for a specified period of time.

II. If the note is not cancelled because of service, the recipient shall repay the loan within 2 years after withdrawing from, or completing the training program or from the inception of monetary repayment.

III. The commission shall have the authority to enter into contracts for the administration of the repayment provisions of this program.

IV. If a recipient refuses to repay a loan, the commission, or its designee, shall turn the account over to the appropriate collection agency.

V. The state treasurer shall credit all loan repayments to the forgivable loan fund for use under this program. Loan repayments credited to the loan fund shall be in addition to any other moneys appropriated to that fund.

VI. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to alter any rights or obligations incurred under RSA 326-B relative to the granting and repayment of scholarship loans.

VII. A recipient shall not be considered in violation of the repayment schedule if he or she is:

(a) Engaged in a course of study, at least on a half-time basis, at an institution of higher education;

(b) Serving on active duty as a member of the armed services of the United States, or

serving as a member of VISTA, the Peace Corps, or Americorps, for a period not to exceed 3 years;

(c) Temporarily totally disabled, as established by sworn affidavit of a qualified physician, for a period not to exceed 3 years; or

(d) Unable to secure employment by reason of the care required by a disabled spouse, child or parent for a period not to exceed 12 months.

VIII. To qualify for any of the exceptions in paragraph VII of this section, a recipient shall notify the commission of such claim to the exception and provide supporting documentation as required by the postsecondary education commission.

IX. During the time the recipient qualified for any of the exceptions in paragraph VII of this section, such recipient need not make the repayments required under paragraph II of this section and the postsecondary education commission shall extend the 2-year repayment period established under paragraph II of this section by a period equal to the length of time a recipient meets any of the conditions listed in paragraph VII of this section, or if a recipient's inability to complete the loan repayments within this 2-year period, because of a financial condition, has been established to the satisfaction of the postsecondary education commission.

X. The commission, or its designee, shall cancel a recipient's repayment obligation if it determines that he or she is:

(a) Permanently totally disabled, as established by an affidavit of a qualified physician; or

(b) Deceased as established by a death certificate or other evidence deemed conclusive under state law.

XI. The commission shall cancel a recipient's repayment obligation when the recipient has received relief under federal bankruptcy laws only if the recipient's loans under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 have been cancelled as a result of that bankruptcy.

XII. The commission, or its designee, shall have the power to close the accounts of recipients who have completed their repayment obligation either through service or monetary repayment, and deem accounts as uncollectable if all reasonable means of collection have been exhausted.

I. The commission shall repay a percent of loan debt for recipients based on each complete year of qualifying service in a shortage area.

II. The commission, or its designee, shall determine the maximum amount of repayment an individual shall be eligible to receive, and the qualifying service to be covered under this section.

III. Only loan debt that was incurred as a result of postsecondary education and which were part of a financial aid award shall be eligible for repayment.

235:2 Applicability. Loans granted and notes signed under the career incentive program or the nursing leveraged scholarship loan program, prior to their repeal by section 5 of this act, shall be enforced in accordance with the original terms of such loans or notes.

235:3 Application of Receipts; Loan Fund. RSA 6:12, I(tttttt) is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:

(tttttt) Moneys deposited in the postsecondary education loan fund under RSA 188-D:18-h.

235:4 Higher Education Corporations; Reports Required. Amend RSA 292:8-kk to read as follows:

292:8-kk Reports Required. When any institution of higher learning ceases the regular conduct of instruction, either temporarily or permanently, whether or not the corporation is dissolved, the academic record, or a legible, certified copy thereof, of each student who has been registered for instruction at the institution shall be forwarded to the postsecondary education commission together with an explanation of the institution's credit and grading system. The postsecondary education commission shall preserve these records and upon request of the individual concerned, shall furnish a certified copy, or reasonable number of such copies, of the individual's record. The fee for each record so furnished to be paid to the commission shall be [~~$2 per copy of a student transcript~~] a reasonable fee based on average fees collected by United States institutions. Said fees shall be credited to the appropriation for the commission.

II. RSA 188-D:18-a-188-D:18-e, relative to the nursing leveraged scholarship loan program.

235:6 Appropriation. The sum of $1 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2004 is hereby appropriated to the postsecondary education commission to fund the workforce incentive program set forth in this act. The governor is authorized to draw a warrant for said sum out of any money in the treasury not otherwise appropriated.