II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 963 

To provide enhanced student loan relief to educators. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 23, 2023 

Mr. LUJA ́N (for himself, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. BROWN, Mr. 

BLUMENTHAL, Mr. CASEY, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. 

HEINRICH, Mr. KAINE, Mr. KELLY, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. 

MERKLEY, Mr. PADILLA, Mr. REED, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, and Mr. 

WYDEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To provide enhanced student loan relief to educators. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Loan Forgiveness for 

5 Educators Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. LOAN FORGIVENESS AND CANCELLATION FOR EDU7 CATORS. 

8 (a) ENHANCED TEACHER LOAN FORGIVENESS

9 UNDER THE FFEL PROGRAM.—Section 428J of the 


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1 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–10) is 

2 amended to read as follows: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 428J. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR EDUCATORS. 

4 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this section to 

5 enhance student access to a well-prepared, diverse, and 

6 stable educator workforce by eliminating debt burdens for 

7 educators in return for service teaching and leading in 

8 high need schools or early childhood education programs. 

9 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—Not later than 270 

10 days after the date of enactment of the Loan Forgiveness 

11 for Educators Act, the Secretary shall carry out a pro12 gram, through the holder of the loan, of assuming, as re13 quired under subsection (c), the obligation to repay a cov14 ered loan for qualifying educators engaged in qualifying 

15 service. A qualifying educator may apply for the program 

16 under this section after the Secretary has begun carrying 

17 out the program. 

18 ‘‘(c) FORGIVENESS OF COVERED LOANS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) FORGIVENESS OF LOANS UPON COMPLE20 TION OF QUALIFYING SERVICE.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For each qualifying 

22 educator who has completed 5 years of quali23 fying service (including any qualifying service, 

24 as defined under this section as in effect after 

25 the date of implementation of the Loan ForVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:18 Apr 05, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S963.IS S963

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1 giveness for Educators Act, that may have been 

2 completed or performed before or after such 

3 date of implementation, or a combination of 

4 qualifying service), the Secretary shall assume 

5 the obligation to repay an amount equal to 100 

6 percent of the aggregate of the loan obligations 

7 (including interest and fees) on all covered 

8 loans that are outstanding as of the date of 

9 completion of such fifth year of qualifying serv10 ice. 

11 ‘‘(B) TIMING.—The years of qualifying 

12 service required under subparagraph (A) may 

13 be consecutive or nonconsecutive, and the quali14 fying educator may elect which years of quali15 fying service to use for purposes of subpara16 graph (A). 

17 ‘‘(2) MONTHLY LOAN FORGIVENESS.—Upon ap18 plication by any qualifying educator who has a cov19 ered loan and who is engaged in qualifying service, 

20 and in addition to any loan forgiveness under para21 graph (1), the Secretary shall enter into an agree22 ment with such qualifying educator, under which— 

23 ‘‘(A) during the period of qualifying service 

24 (for qualifying service that occurs after the date 

25 of implementation of this Act), the Secretary 


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1 agrees to assume the obligation to repay the 

2 minimum monthly obligation on all covered 

3 loans of the qualifying educator, based on the 

4 repayment plan selected by the qualifying edu5 cator, for— 

6 ‘‘(i) each month of qualifying service; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(ii) any summer or other school or 

9 program year calendar breaks scheduled by 

10 a high need school or early childhood edu11 cation program during a school or program 

12 year in which the qualifying educator is en13 gaged in qualifying service; 

14 ‘‘(B) during the period of qualifying serv15 ice, the assumption of the monthly loan obliga16 tion provided will serve as a monthly payment, 

17 considered paid in full by the qualifying educa18 tor, based on the repayment plan selected by 

19 the qualifying educator (which, if the qualifying 

20 educator chooses, shall include any income driv21 en repayment plan); and 

22 ‘‘(C) during the period of qualifying serv23 ice, each monthly obligation that is repaid by 

24 the Secretary under this paragraph on a cov25 ered loan shall be deemed to be a qualifying 


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1 monthly payment made by the qualifying educa2 tor for purposes of the loan forgiveness pro3 gram under section 455(m), if applicable. 

4 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION.—The Secretary shall de5 velop and make publicly available an application for 

6 qualifying educators who wish to receive loan for7 giveness under this subsection. The application 

8 shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) be available for qualifying educators 

10 to file for loan forgiveness under paragraph (1) 

11 and for monthly loan forgiveness under para12 graph (2); 

13 ‘‘(B) include any certification requirements 

14 that the Secretary determines are necessary to 

15 verify qualifying service; and 

16 ‘‘(C) allow for the verification of the quali17 fying service— 

18 ‘‘(i) in the case of an early childhood 

19 educator or an elementary or secondary 

20 school teacher serving in a high need 

21 school, by a school leader or the adminis22 trator of a local educational agency, edu23 cational service agency, Bureau of Indian 

24 Education, Native Hawaiian education sys25 tem, or State educational agency that 


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1 serves the school (or the administrator’s 

2 designee); 

3 ‘‘(ii) in the case of an early childhood 

4 educator serving in an early childhood edu5 cation program, by the director of that 

6 program (or the director’s designee); 

7 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a school leader 

8 serving in a high need school, by the ad9 ministrator of a local educational agency, 

10 educational service agency, Bureau of In11 dian Education, Native Hawaiian edu12 cation system, or State educational agency 

13 that serves the school (or the administra14 tor’s designee); 

15 ‘‘(iv) in the case of a director of an 

16 early childhood education program, a lead17 er of the entity overseeing the early child18 hood education program; and 

19 ‘‘(v) in the case of a family child care 

20 provider or the director of an early child21 hood education program that operates as a 

22 standalone center-based program (for ex23 ample, a case in which the center is not 

24 part of a larger company) that is an early 

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1 tification with supporting documents, such 

2 as a business license, a listing with a pub3 lic Child Care Resources and Referral 

4 website, or proof of participation in a Fed5 eral child care or preschool subsidy pro6 gram. 

7 ‘‘(4) PARENT PLUS LOANS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) PARENT PLUS LOAN ON BEHALF OF

9 A STUDENT WHO IS A QUALIFYING EDUCA10 TOR.—A borrower of a parent loan under sec11 tion 428B issued on behalf of a student who is 

12 a qualifying educator shall qualify for loan for13 giveness and any other benefits under this sec14 tion for the qualifying service of the student in 

15 the same manner and to the same extent as the 

16 student borrower qualifies for such loan forgive17 ness and other benefits. 

18 ‘‘(B) PARENT PLUS LOAN BORROWED BY A

19 PARENT WHO IS A QUALIFYING EDUCATOR.— 

20 The borrower of a parent loan under section 

21 428B issued on behalf of a student who is not 

22 a qualifying educator shall also qualify for loan 

23 forgiveness and any other benefits under this 

24 section for qualifying service if that parent borVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:18 Apr 05, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S963.IS S963

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1 rower is engaged in qualifying service and 

2 meets the requirements of this section. 

3 ‘‘(5) RECIPIENTS OF PRIOR FORGIVENESS.—A 

4 qualifying educator who received loan forgiveness 

5 under this section as in effect before the date of en6 actment of the Loan Forgiveness for Educators Act 

7 of 2022— 

8 ‘‘(A) shall be eligible for loan forgiveness 

9 of covered loans in accordance with paragraph 

10 (1), including any remaining covered loans; and 

11 ‘‘(B) may count the service completed that 

12 qualified the qualifying educator for previous 

13 loan forgiveness as qualifying service for pur14 poses of paragraph (1). 

15 ‘‘(6) PROHIBITION ON REQUIRING REPAY16 MENT.—A qualifying educator shall not be required 

17 to repay any amounts paid under this subsection if 

18 that qualifying educator who engages in qualifying 

19 service ends the qualifying service before the end of 

20 a school or program year, or before the end of the 

21 5-year period described in paragraph (1). 

22 ‘‘(d) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to 

23 issue such regulations as may be necessary to carry out 

24 the provisions of this section. 


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1 ‘‘(e) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall 

2 be construed to authorize any refunding of any repayment 

3 of a loan. 

4 ‘‘(f) LIST.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, shall— 

6 ‘‘(A) as soon as practicable, produce and 

7 make publicly available a list of high need 

8 schools for purposes of this section; and 

9 ‘‘(B) annually update such list. 

10 ‘‘(2) LIST FROM PREVIOUS YEAR.—If the list of 

11 high need schools in which a qualifying educator 

12 may perform qualifying service is not available be13 fore May 1 of any year, the Secretary may use the 

14 list for the year preceding the year for which the de15 termination is made to make a determination about 

16 whether an individual meets the requirements for 

17 qualifying service. 

18 ‘‘(g) ADDITIONAL ELIGIBILITY PROVISIONS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY.—Any qualifying 

20 educator who performs qualifying service in a school 

21 that— 

22 ‘‘(A) is a high need school in any school 

23 year during such service; and 

24 ‘‘(B) in a subsequent school year fails to 

25 meet the definition of a high need school 


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1 may continue to serve in such school and shall be el2 igible for loan forgiveness pursuant to subsection 

3 (b). 

4 ‘‘(2) PREVENTION OF DOUBLE BENEFITS.—No 

5 qualifying educator may, for the same service, re6 ceive a benefit under both this section and— 

7 ‘‘(A) section 428K; or 

8 ‘‘(B) subtitle D of title I of the National 

9 and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

10 12601 et seq.). 

11 ‘‘(3) NO PENALTY FOR PROMOTIONS.—Any 

12 qualifying educator who performs qualifying service 

13 in an early childhood education program or high 

14 need school and who is promoted to another position 

15 within that early childhood program or high need 

16 school after 1 or more years of qualifying service 

17 may continue to be employed in such position in 

18 such program or school and shall be eligible to count 

19 the period of employment in such position as quali20 fying service for loan forgiveness pursuant to sub21 section (b). 

22 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

23 ‘‘(1) BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION FUNDED

24 ELEMENTARY OR SECONDARY SCHOOL.—The term 


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1 ‘Bureau of Indian Education funded elementary or 

2 secondary school’ means— 

3 ‘‘(A) an elementary or secondary school or 

4 dormitory operated by the Bureau of Indian 

5 Education; 

6 ‘‘(B) an elementary or secondary school or 

7 dormitory operated pursuant to a grant under 

8 the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988 (25 

9 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.); and 

10 ‘‘(C) an elementary or secondary school or 

11 dormitory operated pursuant to a contract 

12 under the Indian Self-Determination and Edu13 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.). 

14 ‘‘(2) BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION EARLY

15 CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.—The term 

16 ‘Bureau of Indian Education early childhood devel17 opment program’ means— 

18 ‘‘(A) a program operating under a grant 

19 authorized by section 1139 of the Education 

20 Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2019); or 

21 ‘‘(B) an early childhood education program 

22 operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian 

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1 tion 1121 of the Education Amendments of 

2 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2001)). 

3 ‘‘(3) COVERED LOAN.—The term ‘covered loan’ 

4 means a loan made, insured, or guaranteed under 

5 this part. 

6 ‘‘(4) EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION PRO7 GRAM.—The term ‘early childhood education pro8 gram’ means— 

9 ‘‘(A) a high-need early childhood education 

10 program as defined in section 200; 

11 ‘‘(B) a Head Start program (including an 

12 Early Head Start program) carried out under 

13 the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.); 

14 ‘‘(C) an early childhood education pro15 gram, as defined in section 103; 

16 ‘‘(D) a Bureau of Indian Education early 

17 childhood development program; 

18 ‘‘(E) a Native Hawaiian education system 

19 early childhood education program; 

20 ‘‘(F) a Tribal early childhood education 

21 program; or 

22 ‘‘(G) a consortium of entities described in 

23 any of subparagraphs (A) through (F). 

24 ‘‘(5) HIGH NEED SCHOOL.—The term ‘high 

25 need school’ means— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a public elementary or secondary 

2 school— 

3 ‘‘(i) with respect to which the number 

4 of children meeting a measure of poverty 

5 under section 1113(a)(5) of the Elemen6 tary and Secondary Education Act of 

7 1965, exceeds 30 percent of the total num8 ber of children enrolled in such school; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) that is served by a local edu10 cational agency that is eligible for assist11 ance pursuant to part A of title I of the 

12 Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

13 of 1965; 

14 ‘‘(B) a public elementary or secondary 

15 school or location operated by an educational 

16 service agency in which the number of children 

17 meeting a measure of poverty under section 

18 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary 

19 Education Act of 1965 exceeds 30 percent of 

20 the total number of children enrolled in such 

21 school or location; 

22 ‘‘(C) a public elementary or secondary 

23 school identified by the State for comprehensive 

24 support and improvement, targeted support and 

25 improvement, or additional targeted support 


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1 and improvement, under section 1111 of the El2 ementary and Secondary Education Act of 

3 1965; 

4 ‘‘(D) a Bureau of Indian Education funded 

5 elementary or secondary school; 

6 ‘‘(E) an elementary or secondary school 

7 operated by a Tribal educational agency; or 

8 ‘‘(F) a Native Hawaiian education system. 

9 ‘‘(6) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 

10 means the recognized governing body of any Indian 

11 or Alaska Native Tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, 

12 community, component band, or component reserva13 tion, individually identified (including parentheti14 cally) in the list published most recently as of the 

15 date of enactment of this subtitle pursuant to sec16 tion 104 of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe 

17 List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131). 

18 ‘‘(7) NATIVE HAWAIIAN EDUCATION SYSTEM.— 

19 The term ‘Native Hawaiian education system’ means 

20 an entity eligible to receive direct grants or enter 

21 into contracts with the Secretary under section 6205 

22 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

23 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7515) to carry out the authorized 

24 activities under that section. 


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1 ‘‘(8) QUALIFYING EDUCATOR.—Subject to sub2 section (i), the term ‘qualifying educator’ means— 

3 ‘‘(A) an elementary or secondary school 

4 teacher who— 

5 ‘‘(i) has obtained full State or Tribal 

6 certification and licensure requirements for 

7 such employment; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) has not had such certification or 

9 licensure requirements waived on an emer10 gency, temporary, or provisional basis; 

11 ‘‘(B) an early childhood educator who pro12 vides care or instruction to children; 

13 ‘‘(C) a school leader of an elementary or 

14 secondary school who— 

15 ‘‘(i) has obtained full State or Tribal 

16 certification and licensure requirements for 

17 such employment; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) has not had such certification or 

19 licensure requirements waived on an emer20 gency, temporary, or provisional basis; or 

21 ‘‘(D) an early childhood education program 

22 director (including a family child care provider). 

23 ‘‘(9) QUALIFYING SERVICE.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara2 graph (B), the term ‘qualifying service’ 

3 means— 

4 ‘‘(i) in the case of a qualifying educa5 tor described in subparagraph (A) or (C) 

6 of paragraph (8), employment as a full7 time qualifying educator in a high need 

8 school; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a qualifying educa10 tor described in subparagraph (B) or (D) 

11 of paragraph (8), employment as a full12 time qualifying educator in an early child13 hood education program (including school14 based programs). 

15 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—In the case of a quali16 fying educator who is unable to complete a full 

17 school or program year of service, that year 

18 may still be counted toward the required quali19 fying service period under paragraphs (1) and 

20 (2) of subsection (c) if— 

21 ‘‘(i) the qualifying educator completed 

22 at least one-half of the school or program 

23 year; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the employer considers the quali25 fying educator to have fulfilled the contract 


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1 requirements for the school or program 

2 year for the purposes of salary increases, 

3 tenure, and retirement; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) the qualifying educator was un5 able to complete the school or program 

6 year because— 

7 ‘‘(I) the qualifying educator re8 turned to postsecondary education, on 

9 at least a half-time basis, in an area 

10 of study directly related to the per11 formance of the qualifying service; 

12 ‘‘(II) the qualifying educator ex13 perienced a condition described in sec14 tion 102 of the Family and Medical 

15 Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2612); 

16 ‘‘(III) the qualifying educator 

17 was called or ordered to Federal or 

18 State active duty status, or Active 

19 Service as a member of a Reserve 

20 Component of the Armed Forces 

21 named in section 10101 of title 10, 

22 United States Code, or service as a 

23 member of the National Guard on 

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1 fined in section 101(d)(5) of title 10, 

2 United States Code; or 

3 ‘‘(IV) the qualifying educator re4 sides in or is employed in a disaster 

5 area, as declared by any Federal, 

6 State, or local official in connection 

7 with a national emergency. 

8 ‘‘(10) SCHOOL LEADER.—The term ‘school 

9 leader’ has the meaning given that term in section 

10 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

11 Act of 1965. 

12 ‘‘(11) TRIBAL EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

13 PROGRAM.—The term ‘Tribal early childhood edu14 cation program’ means any of the following pro15 grams: 

16 ‘‘(A) An American Indian or Alaska Native 

17 Head Start or Early Head Start program car18 ried out under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

19 9831 et seq.). 

20 ‘‘(B) A Tribal child care and development 

21 program carried out under the Child Care and 

22 Development Block Grant of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

23 9858 et seq.). 

24 ‘‘(C) A program serving children from 

25 birth through age 6 that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) receives funding support from the 

2 Native American language preservation 

3 and maintenance program carried out 

4 under section 803C of the Native Amer5 ican Programs Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 

6 2991b–3); 

7 ‘‘(ii) is a Tribal prekindergarten pro8 gram; 

9 ‘‘(iii) is a program authorized under 

10 section 619 or part C of the Individuals 

11 with Disabilities Education Act; or 

12 ‘‘(iv) is a center-based or group-based 

13 early childhood learning or development 

14 program that the Secretary determines 

15 shall be included under this definition, 

16 after receiving a request from an Indian 

17 Tribe. 

18 ‘‘(12) TRIBAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The 

19 term ‘Tribal educational agency’ has the meaning 

20 given the term (without respect to capitalization) in 

21 section 6132(b) of the Elementary and Secondary 

22 Education Act of 1965. 

23 ‘‘(13) YEAR.—The term ‘year’, when applied to 

24 service as a qualifying educator, means a school or 

25 program year as defined by the Secretary or the 


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1 Secretary of Health and Human Services, as appli2 cable. 

3 ‘‘(i) SPECIAL RULE.—An educator that provides in4 struction or curricular development in an Alaska Native, 

5 American Indian, or Native Hawaiian language or a Na6 tive American language as defined in the Native American 

7 Languages Act (25 U.S.C. 2902) shall be considered to 

8 be a qualifying educator regardless of whether the educa9 tor has achieved full State or Tribal certification and licen10 sure requirements for such employment.’’. 

11 (b) ENHANCED TEACHER LOAN CANCELLATION

12 UNDER THE DIRECT LOAN PROGRAM.—Section 460 of 

13 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087j) is 

14 amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 460. LOAN CANCELLATION FOR EDUCATORS. 

16 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this section to 

17 enhance student access to a well-prepared, diverse, and 

18 stable educator workforce by eliminating debt burdens for 

19 educators in return for service teaching and leading in 

20 high need schools or early childhood education programs. 

21 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—Not later than 270 

22 days after the date of enactment of the Loan Forgiveness 

23 for Educators Act, the Secretary shall carry out a pro24 gram of canceling, as required under subsection (c), the 

25 obligation to repay a covered loan for qualifying educators 


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1 engaged in qualifying service. A qualifying educator may 

2 apply for the program under this section after the Sec3 retary has begun carrying out the program. 

4 ‘‘(c) CANCELLATION OF COVERED LOANS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) CANCELLATION OF LOANS UPON COMPLE6 TION OF QUALIFYING SERVICE.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For each qualifying 

8 educator who has completed 5 years of quali9 fying service (including any qualifying service, 

10 as defined under this section as in effect after 

11 the date of implementation of the Loan For12 giveness for Educators Act, that may have been 

13 completed or performed before or after such 

14 date of implementation, or a combination of 

15 qualifying service), the Secretary shall cancel an 

16 amount equal to 100 percent of the aggregate 

17 of the loan obligations (including interest and 

18 fees) on all covered loans that are outstanding 

19 as of the date of completion of such fifth year 

20 of qualifying service. 

21 ‘‘(B) TIMING.—The years of qualifying 

22 service required under subparagraph (A) may 

23 be consecutive or nonconsecutive, and the quali24 fying educator may elect which years of quali25 fying service to use for purposes of this section. 


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1 ‘‘(2) MONTHLY LOAN CANCELLATION.—Upon 

2 application by any qualifying educator of a covered 

3 loan who is engaged in qualifying service, and in ad4 dition to any loan cancellation under paragraph (1), 

5 the Secretary shall enter into an agreement with 

6 such qualifying educator, under which— 

7 ‘‘(A) during the period of qualifying service 

8 (for qualifying service that occurs after the date 

9 of implementation of this Act), the Secretary 

10 agrees to cancel the minimum monthly obliga11 tion on all covered loans of the qualifying edu12 cator based on the repayment plan selected by 

13 the qualifying educator (which, if the educator 

14 chooses, shall include any income driven repay15 ment plan), for— 

16 ‘‘(i) each month of qualifying service; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(ii) any summer or other school or 

19 program year calendar breaks scheduled by 

20 a qualifying school or early childhood edu21 cation program during a school or program 

22 year in which the qualifying educator is en23 gaged in qualifying service; 


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1 ‘‘(B) during the period of qualifying serv2 ice, interest shall not accrue on the qualifying 

3 educator’s covered loans; and 

4 ‘‘(C) during the period of qualifying serv5 ice, each monthly obligation that is cancelled by 

6 the Secretary under this paragraph on a cov7 ered loan shall be deemed to be a qualifying 

8 monthly payment made by the qualifying educa9 tor for purposes of the loan forgiveness pro10 gram under section 455(m), if applicable. 

11 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION.—The Secretary shall de12 velop and make publicly available an application for 

13 qualifying educators who wish to receive loan can14 cellation under this subsection. The application 

15 shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) be available for qualifying educators 

17 to file for loan cancellation under paragraph (1) 

18 and for monthly loan cancellation under para19 graph (2); 

20 ‘‘(B) include any certification requirements 

21 that the Secretary determines are necessary to 

22 verify qualifying service; and 

23 ‘‘(C) allow for the verification of the quali24 fying service— 


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1 ‘‘(i) in the case of an early childhood 

2 educator or an elementary or secondary 

3 school teacher serving in a high need 

4 school, by a school leader or the adminis5 trator of a local educational agency, edu6 cational service agency, Bureau of Indian 

7 Education, Native Hawaiian education sys8 tem, or State educational agency that 

9 serves the school (or the administrator’s 

10 designee); 

11 ‘‘(ii) in the case of an early childhood 

12 educator serving in a early childhood edu13 cation program, by the director of that 

14 program (or the director’s designee); 

15 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a school leader 

16 serving in a high need school, by the ad17 ministrator of a local educational agency, 

18 educational service agency, Bureau of In19 dian Education, Native Hawaiian edu20 cation system, or State educational agency 

21 that serves the school (or the administra22 tor’s designee); 

23 ‘‘(iv) in the case of a director of an 

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1 er of the entity overseeing the early child2 hood education program; and 

3 ‘‘(v) in the case of a family child care 

4 provider or the director of an early child5 hood education program that operates as a 

6 standalone center-based program (for ex7 ample, a case in which the center is not 

8 part of a larger company) that is an early 

9 childhood education program, by self-cer10 tification with supporting documents, such 

11 as a business license, a listing with a pub12 lic Child Care Resources and Referral 

13 website, or proof of participation in a Fed14 eral child care or preschool subsidy pro15 gram. 

16 ‘‘(4) PARENT PLUS LOANS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) PARENT PLUS LOAN ON BEHALF OF

18 A STUDENT WHO IS A QUALIFYING EDUCA19 TOR.—A borrower of a parent Federal Direct 

20 PLUS Loan issued on behalf of a student who 

21 is a qualifying educator shall qualify for loan 

22 forgiveness and any other benefits under this 

23 section for the qualifying service of the student 

24 in the same manner and to the same extent as 


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1 the student borrower qualifies for such loan for2 giveness and other benefits. 

3 ‘‘(B) PARENT PLUS LOAN BORROWED BY A

4 PARENT WHO IS A QUALIFYING EDUCATOR.— 

5 The borrower of a parent Federal Direct PLUS 

6 Loan issued on behalf of a student who is not 

7 a qualifying educator shall also qualify for loan 

8 forgiveness and any other benefits under this 

9 section for qualifying service if that parent bor10 rower is engaged in qualifying service and 

11 meets the requirements of this section. 

12 ‘‘(5) RECIPIENTS OF PRIOR LOAN CANCELLA13 TION.—A qualifying educator who received loan can14 cellation under this section as in effect before the 

15 date of enactment of the Loan Forgiveness for Edu16 cators Act— 

17 ‘‘(A) shall be eligible for loan cancellation 

18 of covered loans in accordance with subsection 

19 (c)(1), including any remaining covered loans; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(B) may count the service completed that 

22 qualified the qualifying educator for previous 

23 loan cancellation as qualifying service for pur24 poses of subsection (c)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(6) PROHIBITION ON REQUIRING REPAY2 MENT.—A qualifying educator shall not be required 

3 to repay any amounts paid under this subsection if 

4 that qualifying educator who engages in qualifying 

5 service ends the qualifying service before the end of 

6 a school or program year, or before the end of the 

7 5-year period described in paragraph (1). 

8 ‘‘(d) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to 

9 issue such regulations as may be necessary to carry out 

10 the provisions of this section. 

11 ‘‘(e) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall 

12 be construed to authorize any refunding of any canceled 

13 loan. 

14 ‘‘(f) LIST.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) as soon as practicable, produce and 

17 make publicly available a list of high need 

18 schools for purposes of this section; and 

19 ‘‘(B) annually update such list. 

20 ‘‘(2) LIST FROM PREVIOUS YEAR.—If the list of 

21 high need schools in which a qualifying educator 

22 may perform qualifying service is not available be23 fore May 1 of any year, the Secretary may use the 

24 list for the year preceding the year for which the de25 termination is made to make a determination about 


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•S 963 IS

1 whether an individual meets the requirements for 

2 qualifying service. 

3 ‘‘(g) ADDITIONAL ELIGIBILITY PROVISIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY.—Any qualifying 

5 educator who performs qualifying service in a school 

6 that— 

7 ‘‘(A) is a high need school in any school 

8 year during such service; and 

9 ‘‘(B) in a subsequent school year fails to 

10 meet the definition of a high need school 

11 may continue to serve in such school and shall be el12 igible for loan cancellation pursuant to subsection 

13 (b). 

14 ‘‘(2) PREVENTION OF DOUBLE BENEFITS.—No 

15 qualifying educator may, for the same service, re16 ceive a benefit under both this section and— 

17 ‘‘(A) section 428K; or 

18 ‘‘(B) subtitle D of title I of the National 

19 and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

20 12601 et seq.). 

21 ‘‘(3) NO PENALTY FOR PROMOTIONS.—Any 

22 qualifying educator who performs qualifying service 

23 in an early childhood education program or high 

24 need school and who is promoted to another position 

25 within that early childhood program or high need 


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•S 963 IS

1 school after 1 or more years of qualifying service 

2 may continue to be employed in such position in 

3 such program or school and shall be eligible to count 

4 the period of employment in such position as quali5 fying service for loan cancellation pursuant to sub6 section (b). 

7 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

8 ‘‘(1) BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION FUNDED

9 ELEMENTARY OR SECONDARY SCHOOL.—The term 

10 ‘Bureau of Indian Education funded elementary or 

11 secondary school’ means— 

12 ‘‘(A) an elementary or secondary school or 

13 dormitory operated by the Bureau of Indian 

14 Education; 

15 ‘‘(B) an elementary or secondary school or 

16 dormitory operated pursuant to a grant under 

17 the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988 (25 

18 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.); and 

19 ‘‘(C) an elementary or secondary school or 

20 dormitory operated pursuant to a contract 

21 under the Indian Self-Determination and Edu22 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.). 

23 ‘‘(2) BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION EARLY

24 CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.—The term 


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1 ‘Bureau of Indian Education early childhood devel2 opment program’ means— 

3 ‘‘(A) a program operating under a grant 

4 authorized by section 1139 of the Education 

5 Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2019); or 

6 ‘‘(B) an early childhood education program 

7 operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian 

8 Education (including Family and Child Edu9 cation programs at schools funded by the Bu10 reau of Indian Education authorized under sec11 tion 1121 of the Education Amendments of 

12 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2001)). 

13 ‘‘(3) COVERED LOAN.—The term ‘covered loan’ 

14 means a loan made, insured, or guaranteed under 

15 this part. 

16 ‘‘(4) EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION PRO17 GRAM.—The term ‘early childhood education pro18 gram’ means— 

19 ‘‘(A) a high-need early childhood education 

20 program as defined in section 200; 

21 ‘‘(B) a Head Start program (including an 

22 Early Head Start program) carried out under 

23 the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.); 

24 ‘‘(C) an early childhood education pro25 gram, as defined in section 103; 


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•S 963 IS

1 ‘‘(D) a Bureau of Indian Education early 

2 childhood development program; 

3 ‘‘(E) a Native Hawaiian education system 

4 early childhood education program; 

5 ‘‘(F) a Tribal early childhood education 

6 program; or 

7 ‘‘(G) a consortium of entities described in 

8 any of subparagraphs (A) through (F). 

9 ‘‘(5) HIGH NEED SCHOOL.—The term ‘high 

10 need school’ means— 

11 ‘‘(A) a public elementary or secondary 

12 school— 

13 ‘‘(i) with respect to which the number 

14 of children meeting a measure of poverty 

15 under section 1113(a)(5) of the Elemen16 tary and Secondary Education Act of 

17 1965, exceeds 30 percent of the total num18 ber of children enrolled in such school; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) that is served by a local edu20 cational agency that is eligible for assist21 ance pursuant to part A of title I of the 

22 Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

23 of 1965; 

24 ‘‘(B) a public elementary or secondary 

25 school or location operated by an educational 


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•S 963 IS

1 service agency in which the number of children 

2 meeting a measure of poverty under section 

3 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary 

4 Education Act of 1965 exceeds 30 percent of 

5 the total number of children enrolled in such 

6 school or location; 

7 ‘‘(C) a public elementary or secondary 

8 school identified by the State for comprehensive 

9 support and improvement, targeted support and 

10 improvement, or additional targeted support 

11 and improvement, under section 1111 of the El12 ementary and Secondary Education Act of 

13 1965; 

14 ‘‘(D) a Bureau of Indian Education funded 

15 elementary or secondary school; 

16 ‘‘(E) an elementary or secondary school 

17 operated by a Tribal educational agency; or 

18 ‘‘(F) a Native Hawaiian education system. 

19 ‘‘(6) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 

20 means the recognized governing body of any Indian 

21 or Alaska Native Tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, 

22 community, component band, or component reserva23 tion, individually identified (including parentheti24 cally) in the list published most recently as of the 

25 date of enactment of this subtitle pursuant to secVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:18 Apr 05, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S963.IS S963

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1 tion 104 of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe 

2 List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131). 

3 ‘‘(7) NATIVE HAWAIIAN EDUCATION SYSTEM.— 

4 The term ‘Native Hawaiian education system’ means 

5 an entity eligible to receive direct grants or enter 

6 into contracts with the Secretary under section 6205 

7 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

8 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7515) to carry out the authorized 

9 activities under that section. 

10 ‘‘(8) QUALIFYING EDUCATOR.—Subject to sub11 section (i), the term ‘qualifying educator’ means— 

12 ‘‘(A) an elementary or secondary school 

13 teacher who— 

14 ‘‘(i) has obtained full State or Tribal 

15 certification and licensure requirements for 

16 such employment; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) has not had such certification or 

18 licensure requirements waived on an emer19 gency, temporary, or provisional basis; 

20 ‘‘(B) an early childhood educator who pro21 vides care or instruction to children; 

22 ‘‘(C) a school leader of an elementary or 

23 secondary school who— 


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•S 963 IS

1 ‘‘(i) has obtained full State or Tribal 

2 certification and licensure requirements for 

3 such employment; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) has not had such certification or 

5 licensure requirements waived on an emer6 gency, temporary, or provisional basis; or 

7 ‘‘(D) an early childhood education program 

8 director (including a family child care provider). 

9 ‘‘(9) QUALIFYING SERVICE.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara11 graph (B), the term ‘qualifying service’ 

12 means— 

13 ‘‘(i) in the case of a qualifying educa14 tor described in subparagraph (A) or (C) 

15 of paragraph (8), employment as a full16 time qualifying educator in a high need 

17 school; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a qualifying educa19 tor described in subparagraph (B) or (D) 

20 of paragraph (8), employment as a full21 time qualifying educator in an early child22 hood education program (including school23 based programs). 

24 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—In the case of a quali25 fying educator who is unable to complete a full 


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•S 963 IS

1 school or program year of service, that year 

2 may still be counted toward the required quali3 fying service period under paragraphs (1) and 

4 (2) of subsection (c) if— 

5 ‘‘(i) the qualifying educator completed 

6 at least one-half of the school or program 

7 year; 

8 ‘‘(ii) the employer considers the quali9 fying educator to have fulfilled the contract 

10 requirements for the school or program 

11 year for the purposes of salary increases, 

12 tenure, and retirement; and 

13 ‘‘(iii) the qualifying educator was un14 able to complete the school or program 

15 year because— 

16 ‘‘(I) the qualifying educator re17 turned to postsecondary education, on 

18 at least a half-time basis, in an area 

19 of study directly related to the per20 formance of the qualifying service; 

21 ‘‘(II) the qualifying educator ex22 perienced a condition described in sec23 tion 102 of the Family and Medical 

24 Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2612); 


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•S 963 IS

1 ‘‘(III) the qualifying educator 

2 was called or ordered to Federal or 

3 State active duty status, or Active 

4 Service as a member of a Reserve 

5 Component of the Armed Forces 

6 named in section 10101 of title 10, 

7 United States Code, or service as a 

8 member of the National Guard on 

9 full-time National Guard duty, as de10 fined in section 101(d)(5) of title 10, 

11 United States Code; or 

12 ‘‘(IV) the qualifying educator re13 sides in or is employed in a disaster 

14 area, as declared by any Federal, 

15 State, or local official in connection 

16 with a national emergency. 

17 ‘‘(10) SCHOOL LEADER.—The term ‘school 

18 leader’ has the meaning given that term in section 

19 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

20 Act of 1965. 

21 ‘‘(11) TRIBAL EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

22 PROGRAM.—The term ‘Tribal early childhood edu23 cation program’ means any of the following pro24 grams: 


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•S 963 IS

1 ‘‘(A) An American Indian or Alaska Native 

2 Head Start or Early Head Start program car3 ried out under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

4 9831 et seq.). 

5 ‘‘(B) A Tribal child care and development 

6 program carried out under the Child Care and 

7 Development Block Grant of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

8 9858 et seq.). 

9 ‘‘(C) A program serving children from 

10 birth through age 6 that— 

11 ‘‘(i) receives funding support from the 

12 Native American language preservation 

13 and maintenance program carried out 

14 under section 803C of the Native Amer15 ican Programs Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 

16 2991b–3); 

17 ‘‘(ii) is a Tribal prekindergarten pro18 gram; 

19 ‘‘(iii) is a program authorized under 

20 section 619 or part C of the Individuals 

21 with Disabilities Education Act; or 

22 ‘‘(iv) is a center-based or group-based 

23 early childhood learning or development 

24 program that the Secretary determines 

25 shall be included under this definition, 


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•S 963 IS

1 after receiving a request from an Indian 

2 Tribe. 

3 ‘‘(12) TRIBAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The 

4 term ‘Tribal educational agency’ has the meaning 

5 given the term (without respect to capitalization) in 

6 section 6132(b) of the Elementary and Secondary 

7 Education Act of 1965. 

8 ‘‘(13) YEAR.—The term ‘year’, when applied to 

9 service as a qualifying educator, means a school or 

10 program year as defined by the Secretary or the 

11 Secretary of Health and Human Services, as appli12 cable. 

13 ‘‘(i) SPECIAL RULE.—An educator that provides in14 struction or curricular development in an Alaska Native, 

15 American Indian, or Native Hawaiian language or a Na16 tive American language as defined in the Native American 

17 Languages Act (25 U.S.C. 2902) shall be considered to 

18 be a qualifying educator regardless of whether the educa19 tor has achieved full State or Tribal certification and licen20 sure requirements for such employment.’’. 

21 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE; PROGRAM NAME.— 

22 (1) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

23 by subsections (a) and (b) shall take effect on the 

24 day that is 180 days after the date of enactment of 

25 this Act. 


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1 (2) PROGRAM NAME.—The programs under sec2 tion 428J and 460 of the Higher Education Act of 

3 1965, as amended by subsections (a) and (b), shall 

4 be known as Educator Loan Forgiveness Programs. 

5 (d) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—Section 455(m)(4) of 

6 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

7 1087e(m)(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘section 428J, 

8 428K, 428L, or 460’’ and inserting ‘‘section 428K or 

9 428L’’. 

10 SEC. 3. NOTICE TO BORROWERS. 

11 Not later than 180 days after the Secretary of Edu12 cation implements the programs under this Act, the Sec13 retary, in coordination with the Secretary of Health and 

14 Human Services, shall take such steps as may be nec15 essary to inform high need schools and early childhood 

16 education programs (as defined in section 460 of the 

17 Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended by this Act), 

18 Head Start programs (including Early Head Start pro19 grams) carried out under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

20 9831 et seq.), early childhood educators and program di21 rectors (including family child care providers and program 

22 directors), public school teachers, public school leaders, 

23 Bureau of Indian Education school teachers, Bureau of 

24 Indian Education school leaders, Native Hawaiian edu25 cation system school teachers, Native Hawaiian education 


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1 system school leaders, local educational agency leaders 

2 (such as superintendents), local educational agencies, edu3 cational service agencies, educational service agency lead4 ers, chief State school officers, State educational agencies, 

5 students attending institutions of higher education, and 

6 other student loan borrowers, of the amendments made 

7 by this Act to the loan forgiveness and loan cancellation 

8 programs under sections 428J and 460 of the Higher 

9 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–10; 1087j), in10 cluding an explanation of how loans accrued before the 

11 date of enactment of this Act may qualify for loan forgive12 ness or loan cancellation under such sections, as amended 

13 by this Act, and an explanation of how service performed 

14 before the date of enactment of this Act may count toward 

15 qualifying service requirements for purposes of such sec16 tions, as amended by this Act. 

17 SEC. 4. WAIVER OF NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING. 

18 In carrying out this Act and any amendments made 

19 by this Act, or any regulations promulgated under this Act 

20 or under such amendments, the Secretary of Education 

21 may waive the application of negotiated rulemaking under 

22 section 492 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

23 U.S.C. 1098a). 

Æ 


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