I 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5549 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to improve loans, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 18, 2018 

Mr. DEFAZIO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to improve 

loans, and for other purposes. 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Helping Individuals Get a Higher Education while Re6 ducing Education Debt Act’’ or the ‘‘HIGHER ED Act’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

8 this Act is as follows: 


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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—REINSTATEMENT OF AUTHORITY TO MAKE FEDERAL 

DIRECT STAFFORD LOANS TO GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL 

STUDENTS; DISCHARGING STUDENT LOANS IN BANKRUPTCY 

Sec. 101. Reinstatement of authority to make Federal Direct Stafford Loans 

to graduate and professional students. 

Sec. 102. Discharge Student Loans in Bankruptcy. 

TITLE II—REFINANCING PROGRAMS 

Sec. 201. Program authority. 

Sec. 202. Refinancing Program. 

Sec. 203. Amendments to public service repayment plan provisions. 

Sec. 204. Income-based repayment. 

TITLE III—LOAN FORGIVENESS 

Sec. 301. Loan forgiveness for adjunct faculty. 

TITLE IV—INCOME-DRIVEN REPAYMENT PLANS 

Sec. 401. Income-based repayment plan. 

Sec. 402. Termination of certain repayment plan options. 

Sec. 403. Notification and automatic enrollment procedures. 

Sec. 404. Automatic recertification of income. 

Sec. 405. Study and procedures on determining family size. 

Sec. 406. Disclosure of tax return information to carry out certain higher education loan programs. 


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1 TITLE I—REINSTATEMENT OF 

2 AUTHORITY TO MAKE FED3 ERAL DIRECT STAFFORD 

4 LOANS TO GRADUATE AND 

5 PROFESSIONAL STUDENTS; 

6 DISCHARGING STUDENT 

7 LOANS IN BANKRUPTCY 

8 SEC. 101. REINSTATEMENT OF AUTHORITY TO MAKE FED9 ERAL DIRECT STAFFORD LOANS TO GRAD10 UATE AND PROFESSIONAL STUDENTS. 

11 (a) AMENDMENTS.—Section 455(a)(3) of the Higher 

12 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)(3)) is amend13 ed— 

14 (1) in the paragraph heading, by inserting 

15 ‘‘TEMPORARY’’ before ‘‘TERMINATION’’; and 

16 (2) in subparagraph (A), in the matter pre17 ceding clause (i), by inserting ‘‘, and ending on or 

18 before June 30, 2018’’ after ‘‘2012’’. 

19 (b) INAPPLICABILITY OF RULEMAKING REQUIRE20 MENTS.—Sections 482(c) and 492 of the Higher Edu21 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1089(c); 1098a) shall not 

22 apply to the regulations under this section. 

23 SEC. 102. DISCHARGE STUDENT LOANS IN BANKRUPTCY. 

24 (a) EXCEPTION TO DISCHARGE.—Section 523(a) of 

25 title 11, United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking paragraph (8); and 

2 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (9) through 

3 (14B) as paragraphs (8) through (14A), respec4 tively. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Title 11, United 

6 States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) in section 704(c)(1)(C)(iv)(I) by striking 

8 ‘‘(14A)’’ and inserting ‘‘(14)’’; 

9 (2) in section 1106(c)(1)(C)(iv)(I) by striking 

10 ‘‘(14A)’’ and inserting ‘‘(14)’’; 

11 (3) in section 1202(c)(1)(C)(iv)(I) by striking 

12 ‘‘(14A)’’ and inserting ‘‘(14)’’; and 

13 (4) in section 1328(a)(2) by striking ‘‘(8), or 

14 (9)’’ and inserting ‘‘or (8)’’. 

15 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION OF AMEND16 MENTS.— 

17 (1) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Except as provided in 

18 subsection (b), this section and the amendments 

19 made by this section shall take effect on the date of 

20 the enactment of this Act. 

21 (2) APPLICATION OF AMENDMENTS.—The 

22 amendments made by this section shall apply only 

23 with respect to cases commenced under title 11 of 

24 the United States Code on or after the date of the 

25 enactment of this Act. 


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1 TITLE II—REFINANCING 

2 PROGRAMS 

3 SEC. 201. PROGRAM AUTHORITY. 

4 Section 451(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

5 (20 U.S.C. 1087a(a)) is amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘and (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘(2)’’; 

7 and 

8 (2) by inserting ‘‘; and (3) to make loans under 

9 section 460A and section 460B’’ after ‘‘section 

10 459A’’. 

11 SEC. 202. REFINANCING PROGRAM. 

12 Part D of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 

13 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087a et seq.) is amended by adding at 

14 the end the following: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 460A. REFINANCING FFEL AND FEDERAL DIRECT 

16 LOANS. 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 180 

18 days after the date of enactment of the Helping Individ19 uals Get a Higher Education while Reducing Education 

20 Debt Act, the Secretary shall establish a program under 

21 which the Secretary, upon the receipt of an application 

22 from a qualified borrower, makes a loan under this part, 

23 in accordance with the provisions of this section, in order 

24 to permit the borrower to obtain the interest rate provided 

25 under subsection (c). 


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1 ‘‘(b) REFINANCING DIRECT LOANS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL DIRECT LOANS.—Upon applica3 tion of a qualified borrower, the Secretary shall 

4 repay a Federal Direct Stafford Loan, a Federal Di5 rect Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, a Federal Direct 

6 PLUS Loan, or a Federal Direct Consolidation 

7 Loan of the qualified borrower, for which the first 

8 disbursement was made, or the application for the 

9 consolidation loan was received, before July 1, 2016, 

10 with the proceeds of a refinanced Federal Direct 

11 Stafford Loan, a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Staf12 ford Loan, a Federal Direct PLUS Loan, or a Fed13 eral Direct Consolidation Loan, respectively, issued 

14 to the borrower in an amount equal to the sum of 

15 the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and 

16 late charges of the original loan. 

17 ‘‘(2) REFINANCING FFEL PROGRAM LOANS AS

18 REFINANCED FEDERAL DIRECT LOANS.—Upon ap19 plication of a qualified borrower for any loan that 

20 was made, insured, or guaranteed under part B and 

21 for which the first disbursement was made, or the 

22 application for the consolidation loan was received, 

23 before July 1, 2010, the Secretary shall make a loan 

24 under this part, in an amount equal to the sum of 

25 the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and 


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1 late charges of the original loan to the borrower in 

2 accordance with the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) The Secretary shall pay the proceeds 

4 of such loan to the eligible lender of the loan 

5 made, insured, or guaranteed under part B, in 

6 order to discharge the borrower from any re7 maining obligation to the lender with respect to 

8 the original loan. 

9 ‘‘(B) A loan made under this section that 

10 was originally— 

11 ‘‘(i) a loan originally made, insured, 

12 or guaranteed under section 428 shall be a 

13 Federal Direct Stafford Loan; 

14 ‘‘(ii) a loan originally made, insured, 

15 or guaranteed under section 428B shall be 

16 a Federal Direct PLUS Loan; 

17 ‘‘(iii) a loan originally made, insured, 

18 or guaranteed under section 428H shall be 

19 a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford 

20 Loan; and 

21 ‘‘(iv) a loan originally made, insured, 

22 or guaranteed under section 428C shall be 

23 a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan. 


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1 ‘‘(C) The interest rate for each loan made 

2 by the Secretary under this paragraph shall be 

3 the rate provided under subsection (c). 

4 ‘‘(c) INTEREST RATES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The interest rate for the 

6 refinanced Federal Direct Stafford Loans, Federal 

7 Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans, Federal Direct 

8 PLUS Loans, and Federal Direct Consolidation 

9 Loans, shall be a rate equal to— 

10 ‘‘(A) in any case where the original loan 

11 was a loan under section 428 or 428H, a Fed12 eral Direct Stafford loan, or a Federal Direct 

13 Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, that was issued to 

14 an undergraduate student, a rate equal to the 

15 rate for Federal Direct Stafford Loans and 

16 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans 

17 issued to undergraduate students for the 12- 

18 month period beginning on July 1, 2016, and 

19 ending on June 30, 2017; 

20 ‘‘(B) in any case where the original loan 

21 was a loan under section 428 or 428H, a Fed22 eral Direct Stafford Loan, or a Federal Direct 

23 Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, that was issued to 

24 a graduate or professional student, a rate equal 

25 to the rate for Federal Direct Unsubsidized 


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1 Stafford Loans issued to graduate or profes2 sional students for the 12-month period begin3 ning on July 1, 2016, and ending on June 30, 

4 2017; 

5 ‘‘(C) in any case where the original loan 

6 was a loan under section 428B or a Federal Di7 rect PLUS Loan, a rate equal to the rate for 

8 Federal Direct PLUS Loans for the 12-month 

9 period beginning on July 1, 2016, and ending 

10 on June 30, 2017; and 

11 ‘‘(D) in any case where the original loan 

12 was a loan under section 428C or a Federal Di13 rect Consolidation Loan, a rate calculated in ac14 cordance with paragraph (2). 

15 ‘‘(2) INTEREST RATES FOR CONSOLIDATION

16 LOANS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) METHOD OF CALCULATION.—In 

18 order to determine the interest rate for any re19 financed Federal Direct Consolidation Loan 

20 under paragraph (1)(D), the Secretary shall— 

21 ‘‘(i) determine each of the component 

22 loans that were originally consolidated in 

23 the loan under section 428C or the Federal 

24 Direct Consolidation Loan, and calculate 

25 the proportion of the unpaid principal balVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 ance of the loan under section 428C or the 

2 Federal Direct Consolidation Loan that 

3 each component loan represents; 

4 ‘‘(ii) use the proportions determined 

5 in accordance with clause (i) and the inter6 est rate applicable for each component 

7 loan, as determined under subparagraph 

8 (B), to calculate the weighted average of 

9 the interest rates on the loans consolidated 

10 into the loan under section 428C or the 

11 Federal Direct Consolidation Loan; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) apply the weighted average cal13 culated under clause (ii) as the interest 

14 rate for the refinanced Federal Direct Con15 solidation Loan. 

16 ‘‘(B) INTEREST RATES FOR COMPONENT

17 LOANS.—The interest rates for the component 

18 loans of a loan made under section 428C or a 

19 Federal Direct Consolidation Loan shall be the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘(i) The interest rate for any loan 

22 under section 428 or 428H, Federal Direct 

23 Stafford Loan, or Federal Direct Unsub24 sidized Stafford Loan issued to an underVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 graduate student shall be a rate equal to 

2 the lesser of— 

3 ‘‘(I) the rate for Federal Direct 

4 Stafford Loans and Federal Direct 

5 Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued 

6 to undergraduate students for the 12- 

7 month period beginning on July 1, 

8 2016, and ending on June 30, 2017; 

9 or 

10 ‘‘(II) the original interest rate of 

11 the component loan. 

12 ‘‘(ii) The interest rate for any loan 

13 under section 428 or 428H, Federal Direct 

14 Stafford Loan, or Federal Direct Unsub15 sidized Stafford Loan issued to a graduate 

16 or professional student shall be a rate 

17 equal to the lesser of— 

18 ‘‘(I) the rate for Federal Direct 

19 Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued 

20 to graduate or professional students 

21 for the 12-month period beginning on 

22 July 1, 2016, and ending on June 30, 

23 2017; or 

24 ‘‘(II) the original interest rate of 

25 the component loan. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) The interest rate for any loan 

2 under section 428B or Federal Direct 

3 PLUS Loan shall be a rate equal to the 

4 lesser of— 

5 ‘‘(I) the rate for Federal Direct 

6 PLUS Loans for the 12-month period 

7 beginning on July 1, 2016, and end8 ing on June 30, 2017; or 

9 ‘‘(II) the original interest rate of 

10 the component loan. 

11 ‘‘(iv) The interest rate for any compo12 nent loan that is a loan under section 

13 428C or a Federal Direct Consolidation 

14 Loan shall be the weighted average of the 

15 interest rates that would apply under this 

16 subparagraph for each loan comprising the 

17 component consolidation loan. 

18 ‘‘(v) The interest rate for any eligible 

19 loan that is a component of a loan made 

20 under section 428C or a Federal Direct 

21 Consolidation Loan and is not described in 

22 clauses (i) through (iv) shall be the inter23 est rate on the original component loan. 

24 ‘‘(3) FIXED RATE.—The applicable rate of in25 terest determined under paragraph (1) for a refiVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 nanced loan under this section shall be fixed for the 

2 period of the loan. 

3 ‘‘(d) TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF LOANS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A loan that is refinanced 

5 under this section shall have the same terms and 

6 conditions as the original loan, except as otherwise 

7 provided in this section. 

8 ‘‘(2) NO AUTOMATIC EXTENSION OF REPAY9 MENT PERIOD.—Refinancing a loan under this sec10 tion shall not result in the extension of the duration 

11 of the repayment period of the loan, and the bor12 rower shall retain the same repayment term that 

13 was in effect on the original loan. Nothing in this 

14 paragraph shall be construed to prevent a borrower 

15 from electing a different repayment plan at any time 

16 in accordance with section 455(d)(3). 

17 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION OF QUALIFIED BORROWER.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec19 tion, the term ‘qualified borrower’ means a bor20 rower— 

21 ‘‘(A) of a loan under this part or part B 

22 for which the first disbursement was made, or 

23 the application for a consolidation loan was re24 ceived, before July 1, 2016; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) who meets the eligibility requirements 

2 based on income or debt-to-income ratio estab3 lished by the Secretary. 

4 ‘‘(2) INCOME REQUIREMENTS.—Not later than 

5 180 days after the date of enactment of the Helping 

6 Individuals Get a Higher Education while Reducing 

7 Education Debt Act, the Secretary shall establish 

8 eligibility requirements based on income or debt-to9 income ratio that take into consideration providing 

10 access to refinancing under this section for bor11 rowers with the greatest financial need. 

12 ‘‘(f) NOTIFICATION TO BORROWERS.—The Secretary, 

13 in coordination with the Director of the Bureau of Con14 sumer Financial Protection, shall undertake a campaign 

15 to alert borrowers of loans that are eligible for refinancing 

16 under this section that the borrowers are eligible to apply 

17 for such refinancing. The campaign shall include the fol18 lowing activities: 

19 ‘‘(1) Developing consumer information mate20 rials about the availability of Federal student loan 

21 refinancing. 

22 ‘‘(2) Requiring servicers of loans under this 

23 part or part B to provide such consumer information 

24 to borrowers in a manner determined appropriate by 


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1 the Secretary, in consultation with the Director of 

2 the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 460B. FEDERAL DIRECT REFINANCED PRIVATE LOAN 

4 PROGRAM. 

5 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE PRIVATE EDUCATION LOAN.— 

7 The term ‘eligible private education loan’ means a 

8 private education loan, as defined in section 140(a) 

9 of the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a)), 

10 that— 

11 ‘‘(A) was disbursed to the borrower before 

12 July 1, 2018; and 

13 ‘‘(B) was for the borrower’s own postsec14 ondary educational expenses for an eligible pro15 gram at an institution of higher education par16 ticipating in the loan program under this part, 

17 as of the date that the loan was disbursed. 

18 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL DIRECT REFINANCED PRIVATE

19 LOAN.—The term ‘Federal Direct Refinanced Pri20 vate Loan’ means a loan issued under subsection 

21 (b)(1). 

22 ‘‘(3) PRIVATE EDUCATIONAL LENDER.—The 

23 term ‘private educational lender’ has the meaning 

24 given the term in section 140(a) of the Truth in 

25 Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a)). 


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1 ‘‘(4) QUALIFIED BORROWER.—The term ‘quali2 fied borrower’ means an individual who— 

3 ‘‘(A) has an eligible private education loan; 

4 ‘‘(B) has been current on payments on the 

5 eligible private education loan for the 6 months 

6 prior to the date of the qualified borrower’s ap7 plication for refinancing under this section, and 

8 is in good standing on the loan at the time of 

9 such application; 

10 ‘‘(C) is not in default on the eligible pri11 vate education loan or on any loan made, in12 sured, or guaranteed under this part or part B 

13 or E; and 

14 ‘‘(D) meets the eligibility requirements de15 scribed in subsection (b)(2). 

16 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta18 tion with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall carry 

19 out a program under which the Secretary, upon ap20 plication by a qualified borrower who has an eligible 

21 private education loan, shall issue such borrower a 

22 loan under this part in accordance with the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(A) The loan issued under this program 

25 shall be in an amount equal to the sum of the 


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1 unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and 

2 late charges of the private education loan. 

3 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall pay the proceeds 

4 of the loan issued under this program to the 

5 private educational lender of the private edu6 cation loan, in order to discharge the qualified 

7 borrower from any remaining obligation to the 

8 lender with respect to the original loan. 

9 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall require that the 

10 qualified borrower undergo loan counseling that 

11 provides all of the information and counseling 

12 required under clauses (i) through (viii) of sec13 tion 485(b)(1)(A) before the loan is refinanced 

14 in accordance with this section, and before the 

15 proceeds of such loan are paid to the private 

16 educational lender. 

17 ‘‘(D) The Secretary shall issue the loan as 

18 a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan, 

19 which shall have the same terms, conditions, 

20 and benefits as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized 

21 Stafford Loan, except as otherwise provided in 

22 this section. 

23 ‘‘(2) BORROWER ELIGIBILITY.—Not later than 

24 180 days after the date of enactment of the Helping 

25 Individuals Get a Higher Education while Reducing 


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1 Education Debt Act, the Secretary, in consultation 

2 with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director 

3 of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, 

4 shall establish eligibility requirements— 

5 ‘‘(A) based on income or debt-to-income 

6 ratio that take into consideration providing ac7 cess to refinancing under this section for bor8 rowers with the greatest financial need; 

9 ‘‘(B) to ensure eligibility only for bor10 rowers in good standing; 

11 ‘‘(C) to minimize inequities between Fed12 eral Direct Refinanced Private Loans and other 

13 Federal student loans; 

14 ‘‘(D) to preclude windfall profits for pri15 vate educational lenders; and 

16 ‘‘(E) to ensure full access to the program 

17 authorized in this subsection for borrowers with 

18 private loans who otherwise meet the criteria 

19 established in accordance with subparagraphs 

20 (A) and (B). 

21 ‘‘(c) INTEREST RATE.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The interest rate for a 

23 Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan is— 

24 ‘‘(A) in the case of a Federal Direct Refi25 nanced Private Loan for a private education 


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1 loan originally issued for undergraduate post2 secondary educational expenses, a rate equal to 

3 the rate for Federal Direct Stafford Loans and 

4 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans 

5 issued to undergraduate students for the 12- 

6 month period beginning on July 1, 2016, and 

7 ending on June 30, 2017; and 

8 ‘‘(B) in the case of a Federal Direct Refi9 nanced Private Loan for a private education 

10 loan originally issued for graduate or profes11 sional degree postsecondary educational ex12 penses, a rate equal to the rate for Federal Di13 rect Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued to 

14 graduate or professional students for the 12- 

15 month period beginning on July 1, 2016, and 

16 ending on June 30, 2017. 

17 ‘‘(2) COMBINED UNDERGRADUATE AND GRAD18 UATE STUDY LOANS.—If a Federal Direct Refi19 nanced Private Loan is for a private education loan 

20 originally issued for both undergraduate and grad21 uate or professional postsecondary educational ex22 penses, the interest rate shall be a rate equal to the 

23 rate for Federal Direct PLUS Loans for the 12- 

24 month period beginning on July 1, 2016, and ending 

25 on June 30, 2017. 


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1 ‘‘(3) FIXED RATE.—The applicable rate of in2 terest determined under this subsection for a Fed3 eral Direct Refinanced Private Loan shall be fixed 

4 for the period of the loan. 

5 ‘‘(d) NO INCLUSION IN AGGREGATE LIMITS.—The 

6 amount of a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan, or 

7 a Federal Direct Consolidated Loan to the extent such 

8 loan was used to repay a Federal Direct Refinanced Pri9 vate Loan, shall not be included in calculating a bor10 rower’s annual or aggregate loan limits under section 428 

11 or 428H. 

12 ‘‘(e) NO ELIGIBILITY FOR SERVICE-RELATED RE13 PAYMENT.—Notwithstanding sections 428K(a)(2)(A), 

14 428L(b)(2), 455(m)(3)(A), and 460(b), a Federal Direct 

15 Refinanced Private Loan, or any Federal Direct Consoli16 dation Loan to the extent such loan was used to repay 

17 a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan, shall not be 

18 eligible for any loan repayment or loan forgiveness pro19 gram under section 428K, 428L, or 460 or for the repay20 ment plan for public service employees under section 

21 455(m). 

22 ‘‘(f) PRIVATE EDUCATIONAL LENDER REPORTING

23 REQUIREMENT.— 

24 ‘‘(1) REPORTING REQUIRED.—Not later than 

25 180 days after the date of enactment of the Helping 


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1 Individuals Get a Higher Education while Reducing 

2 Education Debt Act, the Secretary, in consultation 

3 with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director 

4 of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, 

5 shall establish a requirement that private edu6 cational lenders report the data described in para7 graph (2) to the Secretary, to Congress, to the Sec8 retary of the Treasury, and to the Director of the 

9 Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, in order 

10 to allow for an assessment of the private education 

11 loan market. 

12 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF REPORTING.—The data 

13 that private educational lenders shall report in ac14 cordance with paragraph (1) shall include each of 

15 the following about private education loans (as de16 fined in section 140(a) of the Truth in Lending Act 

17 (15 U.S.C. 1650(a))): 

18 ‘‘(A) The total amount of private education 

19 loan debt the lender holds. 

20 ‘‘(B) The total number of private edu21 cation loan borrowers the lender serves. 

22 ‘‘(C) The average interest rate on the out23 standing private education loan debt held by the 

24 lender. 


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1 ‘‘(D) The proportion of private education 

2 loan borrowers who are in default on a loan 

3 held by the lender. 

4 ‘‘(E) The proportion of the outstanding 

5 private education loan volume held by the lend6 er that is in default. 

7 ‘‘(F) The proportions of outstanding pri8 vate education loan borrowers who are 30, 60, 

9 and 90 days delinquent. 

10 ‘‘(G) The proportions of outstanding pri11 vate education loan volume that is 30, 60, and 

12 90 days delinquent. 

13 ‘‘(g) NOTIFICATION TO BORROWERS.—The Sec14 retary, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury 

15 and the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial 

16 Protection, shall undertake a campaign to alert borrowers 

17 about the availability of private student loan refinancing 

18 under this section.’’. 

19 SEC. 203. AMENDMENTS TO PUBLIC SERVICE REPAYMENT 

20 PLAN PROVISIONS. 

21 Section 455(m) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

22 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(m)) is amended— 

23 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

24 paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; 


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1 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULES FOR SECTION 460A

4 LOANS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) REFINANCED FEDERAL DIRECT

6 LOANS.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), in de7 termining the number of monthly payments 

8 that meet the requirements of such paragraph 

9 for an eligible Federal Direct Loan refinanced 

10 under section 460A that was originally a loan 

11 under this part, the Secretary shall include all 

12 monthly payments made on the original loan 

13 that meet the requirements of such paragraph. 

14 ‘‘(B) REFINANCED FFEL LOANS.—In the 

15 case of an eligible Federal Direct Loan refi16 nanced under section 460A that was originally 

17 a loan under part B, only monthly payments 

18 made after the date on which the loan was refi19 nanced may be included for purposes of para20 graph (1).’’; and 

21 (3) in paragraph (4)(A) (as redesignated by 

22 paragraph (1))— 

23 (A) by inserting ‘‘(including any Federal 

24 Direct Stafford Loan, Federal Direct PLUS 

25 Loan, Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford 


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1 Loan, or Federal Direct Consolidation Loan re2 financed under section 460A)’’ before the pe3 riod at the end; 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘The term’’ and inserting 

5 the following: 

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term’’; and 

7 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(ii) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN CON9 SOLIDATION LOAN PAYMENTS.—In a case 

10 in which a borrower makes a monthly pay11 ment under paragraph (1)(A) on a Federal 

12 Direct Consolidation Loan that was used 

13 to repay an eligible Federal Direct Loan 

14 described in clause (i) for which at least 

15 one monthly payment has been made under 

16 paragraph (1)(A) prior to the consolida17 tion, the monthly payment on such Federal 

18 Direct Consolidation Loan shall be treated 

19 as a monthly payment on such eligible 

20 Federal Direct Loan.’’. 

21 SEC. 204. INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT. 

22 Section 493C of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

23 (20 U.S.C. 1098e) is amended by adding at the end the 

24 following: 

25 ‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULE FOR REFINANCED LOANS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) REFINANCED FEDERAL DIRECT AND FFEL

2 LOANS.—In calculating the period of time during 

3 which a borrower of a loan that is refinanced under 

4 section 460A has made monthly payments for pur5 poses of subsection (b)(7), the Secretary shall deem 

6 the period to include all monthly payments made for 

7 the original loan, and all monthly payments made 

8 for the refinanced loan, that otherwise meet the re9 quirements of this section. 

10 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL DIRECT REFINANCED PRIVATE

11 LOANS.—In calculating the period of time during 

12 which a borrower of a Federal Direct Refinanced 

13 Private Loan under section 460B has made monthly 

14 payments for purposes of subsection (b)(7), the Sec15 retary shall include only payments— 

16 ‘‘(A) that are made after the date of the 

17 issuance of the Federal Direct Refinanced Pri18 vate Loan; and 

19 ‘‘(B) that otherwise meet the requirements 

20 of this section.’’. 

21 TITLE III—LOAN FORGIVENESS 

22 SEC. 301. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR ADJUNCT FACULTY. 

23 Section 455(m)(3)(B)(ii) of the Higher Education 

24 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(m)(3)(B)(ii)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘teaching as’’ and inserting the 

2 following: ‘‘teaching— 

3 ‘‘(I) as’’; 

4 (2) by striking ‘‘, foreign language faculty, and 

5 part-time faculty at community colleges), as deter6 mined by the Secretary.’’ and inserting ‘‘and foreign 

7 language faculty), as determined by the Secretary; 

8 or’’; and 

9 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(II) as a part-time faculty mem11 ber or instructor who— 

12 ‘‘(aa) teaches not less than 

13 1 course at an institution of 

14 higher education (as defined in 

15 section 101(a)), a postsecondary 

16 vocational institution (as defined 

17 in section 102(c)), or a Tribal 

18 College or University (as defined 

19 in section 316(b)); and 

20 ‘‘(bb) is not employed on a 

21 full-time basis by any other em22 ployer.’’. 


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1 TITLE IV—INCOME-DRIVEN 

2 REPAYMENT PLANS 

3 SEC. 401. INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT PLAN. 

4 Section 493C of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

5 (20 U.S.C. 1098e) is amended— 

6 (1) in subsection (b)— 

7 (A) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

8 after the semicolon; 

9 (B) in paragraph (9), by striking the pe10 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

11 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(10) a borrower who is repaying a loan made 

13 under part B or D pursuant to this section may 

14 repay such loan in full at any time without pen15 alty.’’; and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(f) INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT FOR NEW LOANS

18 ON AND AFTER JULY 1, 2018, AND FOR BORROWERS

19 WHO ENTER IBR AFTER JULY 1, 2018.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The income-based repay21 ment plan shall be carried out in accordance with 

22 this section, except as otherwise specified in this 

23 subsection (including through the special terms de24 scribed in paragraph (2))— 


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1 ‘‘(A) with respect to any loan issued on or 

2 after July 1, 2018, if such borrower elects the 

3 income-based repayment plan for that loan; and 

4 ‘‘(B) with respect to any borrower who is 

5 repaying a loan made, insured, or guaranteed 

6 under part B or D, if such borrower elects to 

7 repay the loan under the income-based repay8 ment plan on or after July 1, 2018. 

9 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL TERMS.—Notwithstanding any 

10 other provision of this section, with respect to a loan 

11 described under paragraph (1), the following terms 

12 shall apply to the income-based repayment plan: 

13 ‘‘(A)(i) Notwithstanding subsection 

14 (a)(3)(B), the repayment amount under this 

15 subsection shall be an amount equal to 10 per16 cent of the result obtained by calculating, on at 

17 least an annual basis, the amount by which— 

18 ‘‘(I) the borrower’s, and the bor19 rower’s spouse’s (if applicable), adjusted 

20 gross income; exceeds 

21 ‘‘(II) the applicable percentage of the 

22 poverty line in accordance with clause (ii) 

23 that is applicable to the borrower’s family 

24 size as determined under section 673(2) of 


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1 the Community Services Block Grant Act 

2 (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)). 

3 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of clause (i), the term 

4 ‘applicable percentage’ means 150 percent re5 duced by 1 percentage point for each $1,000 by 

6 which the borrower’s adjusted gross income ex7 ceeds $100,000. 

8 ‘‘(B) A borrower may elect— 

9 ‘‘(i) during any period during which 

10 the borrower’s (and the borrower’s spouse, 

11 if applicable) adjusted gross income is 

12 equal to or less than 225 percent of the 

13 poverty line applicable to the borrower’s 

14 family size as determined under section 

15 673(2) of the Community Services Block 

16 Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)), to have 

17 the borrower’s aggregate monthly payment 

18 for all such loans equal to $0; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) during any period during which 

20 the borrower’s (and the borrower’s spouse, 

21 applicable) adjusted gross income exceeds 

22 225 percent of such poverty line, to have 

23 the borrower’s aggregate monthly payment 

24 for all such loans not exceed, the lesser 

25 of— 


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1 ‘‘(I) the result described in sub2 paragraph (A) divided by 12; or 

3 ‘‘(II) the monthly amount cal4 culated under section 455(d)(1)(A), 

5 based on a 10-year repayment period, 

6 when the borrower first made the elec7 tion described in this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(C) With respect to any loan for which 

9 payments may be made under subparagraph 

10 (B), be paid, or be treated as if no interest has 

11 accrued, by the Secretary— 

12 ‘‘(i) for any period described in sub13 paragraph (B)(i); and 

14 ‘‘(ii) for the 6-month period after the 

15 date the borrower ceases to carry at least 

16 one-half the normal full-time academic 

17 workload at an institution of higher edu18 cation, as determined by the institution, 

19 and during which the borrower is not earn20 ing any income. 

21 ‘‘(D) Subsection (b)(7)(B) shall be applied 

22 by substituting ‘20 years’ for ‘25 years’. 

23 ‘‘(E) A borrower of such a loan shall not 

24 be required to have a partial financial hardship 

25 and may elect, and remain enrolled in, the inVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 come-based repayment plan under this sub2 section regardless of income level. 

3 ‘‘(F) Subparagraph (A) of subsection 

4 (b)(6) shall not apply and a borrower’s monthly 

5 payment shall be determined in accordance with 

6 subparagraph (A) divided by 12, which may ex7 ceed the monthly repayment amount under a 

8 standard 10-year repayment plan. 

9 ‘‘(G) Subparagraph (B) of subsection 

10 (b)(3) shall not apply. 

11 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL SPECIAL TERMS FOR CER12 TAIN BORROWERS.—A borrower described in para13 graph (1)(B)— 

14 ‘‘(A) may choose to retain the repayment 

15 plan in which the borrower is enrolled on June 

16 30, 2018; 

17 ‘‘(B) may elect to— 

18 ‘‘(i) leave the repayment plan de19 scribed in subparagraph (A) and enter the 

20 income-based repayment plan under this 

21 subsection; 

22 ‘‘(ii) leave the repayment plan de23 scribed in subparagraph (A) and enter a 

24 standard 10-year repayment plan under 

25 section 455(d)(A)(A); or 


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1 ‘‘(iii) not more than once per calendar 

2 year, switch between the repayment plans 

3 described in clauses (i) and (ii); 

4 ‘‘(C) after electing to leave a repayment 

5 plan other than an income-based repayment 

6 plan described under this subsection or a stand7 ard 10-year repayment plan under section 

8 455(d)(A)(A), shall not be permitted to re-elect 

9 a repayment plan that is not an income-based 

10 repayment plan under this subsection or such 

11 standard 10-year repayment plan; and 

12 ‘‘(D) shall retain, for purposes of repay13 ment or cancellation of any outstanding balance 

14 of principal and interest due on a loan (as de15 scribed in subsection (b)(7)) any years of repay16 ment under another income-based or income17 contingent repayment plan under this title. 

18 ‘‘(4) CAP ON INTEREST ACCRUAL.—Notwith19 standing any other provision of this Act, the total 

20 amount of interest that accrues during a borrower’s 

21 grace period and the time that a borrower is in re22 payment under this subsection shall not exceed 50 

23 percent of the original principal amount of the 

24 loan.’’. 


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1 SEC. 402. TERMINATION OF CERTAIN REPAYMENT PLAN 

2 OPTIONS. 

3 (a) EFFECTIVE DATE; RULEMAKING REGARDING

4 TERMINATION OF CERTAIN REPAYMENT PLANS.— 

5 (1) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

6 by this section shall take effect on July 1, 2018. 

7 (2) REGULATIONS.—Before the effective date 

8 described in paragraph (1), the Secretary of Edu9 cation shall carry out a plan to end all eligibility for 

10 repayment plans other than a standard repayment 

11 plan under section 428(b)(9)(A)(i) or 455(d)(1)(A) 

12 with a repayment period of 10 years and an income13 based repayment plan described under section 

14 493C(f) for loans made under part B or D of title 

15 IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, unless the 

16 borrower is enrolled in another repayment plan be17 fore such effective date, in accordance with the 

18 amendments made by this Act. 

19 (b) CHANGES TO CURRENT LAW.— 

20 (1) Section 428(b) of the Higher Education Act 

21 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078(b)) is amended— 

22 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

23 (i) in subparagraph (D)— 

24 (I) in clause (ii), by striking 

25 ‘‘may annually change the selection of 

26 a repayment plan under this part,’’ 


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1 and inserting ‘‘may at any time after 

2 July 1, 2018, and not more frequently 

3 than once per calendar year there4 after, change the selection of a repay5 ment plan under this part to one of 

6 the 2 repayment plans described in 

7 paragraph (9)(C),’’; and 

8 (II) in clause (iii), by striking 

9 ‘‘be subject to income-contingent re10 payment in accordance with sub11 section (m);’’ and inserting ‘‘be sub12 ject to income-based repayment in ac13 cordance with section 493C(f);’’; and 

14 (ii) in subparagraph (E)(i), by strik15 ing ‘‘the option of repaying the loan in ac16 cordance with a standard, graduated, in17 come-sensitive, or extended repayment 

18 schedule (as described in paragraph (9)) 

19 established by the lender in accordance 

20 with regulations of the Secretary; and’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘the option of repaying the 

22 loan in accordance with a repayment plan 

23 described in paragraph (9)(C) established 

24 by the lender in accordance with regula25 tions of the Secretary; and’’; and 


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1 (B) in paragraph (9), by adding at the end 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘(C) SELECTION OF REPAYMENT PLANS

4 ON AND AFTER JULY 1, 2018.— 

5 ‘‘(i) OPPORTUNITY TO CHANGE RE6 PAYMENT PLANS.—Notwithstanding any 

7 other provision of this paragraph, or any 

8 other provision of law, and in accordance 

9 with regulations, beginning on July 1, 

10 2018, the lender shall offer a borrower of 

11 a loan made, insured, or guaranteed under 

12 this part the opportunity to change repay13 ment plans not more than once per cal14 endar year, and to enroll in one of the fol15 lowing repayment plans: 

16 ‘‘(I) A standard repayment plan 

17 under section 428(b)(9)(A)(i) with a 

18 repayment period of 10 years. 

19 ‘‘(II) The income-based repay20 ment plan under section 493C(f).’’; 

21 and 

22 (2) in section 455(d)— 

23 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) 

24 through (5) as paragraphs (3) through (6), re25 spectively; and 


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1 (B) by inserting after paragraph (1), the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(2) DESIGN AND SELECTION ON AND AFTER

4 JULY 1, 2018.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para6 graph (1), for the borrower of a loan made on 

7 or after July 1, 2018, and for other borrowers 

8 subject to paragraph (7), the Secretary shall 

9 offer a borrower of a loan made under this part 

10 2 plans for repayment of such loan, including 

11 principal and interest on the loan. The borrower 

12 shall be entitled to accelerate, without penalty, 

13 repayment on the borrower’s loans under this 

14 part. The borrower may choose— 

15 ‘‘(i) a standard repayment plan under 

16 section 455(d)(1)(A) with a repayment pe17 riod of 10 years; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) the income-based repayment plan 

19 under section 493C(f). 

20 ‘‘(B) SELECTION BY THE SECRETARY.—If 

21 a borrower of a loan made under this part on 

22 or after July 1, 2018, does not select a repay23 ment plan described in subparagraph (A), the 

24 Secretary may provide the borrower with a 

25 standard repayment plan under section 


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1 455(d)(1)(A) with a repayment period of 10 

2 years. 

3 ‘‘(C) CHANGES IN SELECTIONS.—Begin4 ning on July 1, 2018, a borrower of a loan 

5 made under this part may change the bor6 rower’s selection of a repayment plan in accord7 ance with paragraph (7) and under such terms 

8 and conditions as may be established by the 

9 Secretary. 

10 ‘‘(D) BORROWER IN DEFAULT.—Beginning 

11 on July 1, 2018, the Secretary may require any 

12 borrower who has defaulted on a loan made 

13 under this part to— 

14 ‘‘(i) pay all reasonable collection costs 

15 associated with such loan; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) repay the loan pursuant to an in17 come-based repayment plan under section 

18 493C(f).’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(7) BORROWERS OF LOANS MADE BEFORE

21 JULY 1, 2018.—A borrower who is in repayment on 

22 a loan made under part B or part D before July 1, 

23 2018— 


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1 ‘‘(A) may choose to retain the repayment 

2 plan that the borrower was enrolled in on the 

3 day before such date; 

4 ‘‘(B) may elect to— 

5 ‘‘(i) enter the income-based repayment 

6 plan under section 493C(f); 

7 ‘‘(ii) enter a standard repayment plan 

8 under section 455(d)(1)(A) with a repay9 ment period of 10 years; or 

10 ‘‘(iii) switch between the repayment 

11 plans described in clauses (i) and (ii) not 

12 more than once during a calendar year; 

13 ‘‘(C) after electing to leave a repayment 

14 plan other than an income-based repayment 

15 plan described under this subsection or a stand16 ard repayment plan under section 455(d)(1)(A), 

17 shall not be permitted to re-elect a repayment 

18 plan that is not an income-based repayment 

19 plan under this subsection or a standard repay20 ment plan under section 455(d)(1)(A); and 

21 ‘‘(D) shall retain, for purposes of repay22 ment or cancellation of any outstanding balance 

23 of principal and interest due on a loan (as de24 scribed in section 493C(b)(7)) any years of re25 payment under another income-based or inVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 come-contingent repayment plan under this 

2 title.’’. 

3 SEC. 403. NOTIFICATION AND AUTOMATIC ENROLLMENT 

4 PROCEDURES. 

5 (a) INCOME-CONTINGENT REPAYMENT.—Section 

6 455(d) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

7 1087e(d)) is further amended by adding at the end the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(8) NOTIFICATION AND AUTOMATIC ENROLL10 MENT PROCEDURES FOR BORROWERS WHO ARE DE11 LINQUENT ON LOANS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) AUTHORITY TO OBTAIN INCOME IN13 FORMATION.— 

14 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any 

15 borrower who is at least 60 days delin16 quent on a covered loan, the Secretary may 

17 obtain such information as is reasonably 

18 necessary regarding the income and family 

19 size of the borrower (and the borrower’s 

20 spouse, if applicable). 

21 ‘‘(ii) AVAILABILITY OF RETURNS AND

22 RETURN INFORMATION.—Returns and re23 turn information (as defined in section 

24 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

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1 graph only to the extent authorized by sec2 tion 6103(l)(13) of such Code. 

3 ‘‘(B) BORROWER NOTIFICATION.—With re4 spect to each borrower of a covered loan who is 

5 at least 60 days delinquent on such loan and 

6 who has not been subject to the procedures 

7 under this paragraph for such loan in the pre8 ceding 120 days, the Secretary shall, as soon as 

9 practicable after such 60-day delinquency, pro10 vide to the borrower the following: 

11 ‘‘(i) Notification that the borrower is 

12 at least 60 days delinquent on at least 1 

13 covered loan, and a description of all delin14 quent covered loans, nondelinquent covered 

15 loans, and noncovered loans of the bor16 rower. 

17 ‘‘(ii) A brief description of the repay18 ment plans for which the borrower is eligi19 ble and the covered loans and noncovered 

20 loans of the borrower that may be eligible 

21 for such plans, based on information avail22 able to the Secretary. 

23 ‘‘(iii) Clear and simple instructions on 

24 how to select the repayment plans. 


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1 ‘‘(iv) The amount of monthly pay2 ments for the covered and noncovered 

3 loans under the repayment plans for which 

4 the borrower is eligible, based on informa5 tion available to the Secretary, including, if 

6 the income information of the borrower is 

7 available to the Secretary under subpara8 graph (A)— 

9 ‘‘(I) the amount of the monthly 

10 payment under each income-driven re11 payment plan for which the borrower 

12 is eligible for the borrower’s covered 

13 and noncovered loans, based on such 

14 income information; and 

15 ‘‘(II) the income, family size, tax 

16 filing status, and tax year information 

17 on which each monthly payment is 

18 based. 

19 ‘‘(v) An explanation that in the case 

20 of a borrower for whom adjusted gross in21 come is unavailable— 

22 ‘‘(I) if the borrower selects to 

23 repay the covered loans of such bor24 rower pursuant to an income-driven 

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1 tionary income in such a manner that 

2 an individual not required under sec3 tion 6012(a)(1) of the Internal Rev4 enue Code of 1986 to file a return 

5 with respect to income taxes imposed 

6 by subtitle A of such Code may have 

7 a calculated monthly payment greater 

8 than $0, the borrower will be required 

9 to provide the Secretary with other 

10 documentation of income satisfactory 

11 to the Secretary, which documentation 

12 the Secretary may use to determine 

13 an appropriate repayment schedule; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(II) if the borrower selects to 

16 repay such loans pursuant to an in17 come-driven repayment plan that is 

18 not described in subclause (I), the 

19 borrower will not be required to pro20 vide the Secretary with such other 

21 documentation of income, and the bor22 rower will have a calculated monthly 

23 payment of $0. 

24 ‘‘(vi) An explanation that the Sec25 retary shall take the actions under subVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 paragraph (C) with respect to such bor2 rower, if— 

3 ‘‘(I) the borrower is 120 days de4 linquent on one or more covered loans 

5 and has not selected a new repayment 

6 plan for the covered loans of the bor7 rower; and 

8 ‘‘(II) in the case of such a bor9 rower whose repayment plan for the 

10 covered loans of the borrower is not 

11 an income-driven repayment plan, the 

12 monthly payments under such repay13 ment plan are higher than such 

14 monthly payments would be under an 

15 income-driven repayment plan for 

16 such loans. 

17 ‘‘(vii) Instructions on updating the in18 formation of the borrower obtained under 

19 subparagraph (A). 

20 ‘‘(C) SECRETARY’S INITIAL SELECTION OF

21 PLAN.—With respect to each borrower de22 scribed in subparagraph (B) who has a repay23 ment plan for the covered loans of the borrower 

24 that meets the requirements of clause (vi)(II) of 

25 subparagraph (B) and has not selected a new 


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1 repayment plan for such loans in accordance 

2 with the notice received under such subpara3 graph, and who is at least 120 days delinquent 

4 on such a loan, the Secretary shall, as soon as 

5 practicable— 

6 ‘‘(i) in a case in which any of the bor7 rower’s covered loans are eligible for an in8 come-driven repayment plan— 

9 ‘‘(I)(aa) provide the borrower 

10 with the income-driven repayment 

11 plan that requires the lowest monthly 

12 payment amount for each covered loan 

13 of the borrower, compared to any 

14 other such plan for which the bor15 rower is eligible; or 

16 ‘‘(bb) if more than one income17 driven repayment plan would offer the 

18 borrower the same lowest monthly 

19 payment amount, provide the bor20 rower with the income-driven repay21 ment plan that has the most favorable 

22 terms for the borrower; 

23 ‘‘(II) if the plan selected under 

24 subclause (I) is not the income-driven 

25 repayment plan that would have the 


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1 lowest monthly payment amount if the 

2 borrower were eligible for such plan 

3 for the borrower’s covered loans and 

4 noncovered loans, notify the borrower 

5 of the actions, if any, the borrower 

6 may take to become eligible for such 

7 income-driven repayment plan; and 

8 ‘‘(III) authorize the borrower to 

9 change the Secretary’s selection of a 

10 plan under this clause to any plan de11 scribed in paragraph (1) for which the 

12 borrower is eligible; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) in a case in which none of the 

14 borrower’s covered loans are eligible for an 

15 income-driven repayment plan, notify the 

16 borrower of the actions, if any, the bor17 rower may take for such loans to become 

18 eligible for such a plan. 

19 ‘‘(D) SECRETARY’S ADDITIONAL SELEC20 TION OF PLAN.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—With respect to 

22 each borrower of a covered loan who se23 lects a new repayment plan in accordance 

24 with the notice received under subpara25 graph (B) and who continues to be delinVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00045 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 quent on such loan for a period described 

2 in clause (ii), the Secretary shall, as soon 

3 as practicable after such period, carry out 

4 the procedures described in clauses (i) and 

5 (ii) of subparagraph (C) for the covered 

6 loans of the borrower, if such procedures 

7 would result in lower monthly repayment 

8 amounts on such loan. 

9 ‘‘(ii) DESCRIPTION OF PERIOD.—The 

10 duration of the period described in clause 

11 (i) shall be the amount of time that the 

12 Secretary determines is sufficient to indi13 cate that the borrower may benefit from 

14 repaying such loan under a new repayment 

15 plan, but in no case shall such period be 

16 less than 60 days. 

17 ‘‘(E) OPT-OUT.—A borrower of a covered 

18 loan shall have the right to opt-out of the pro19 cedures under this paragraph. 

20 ‘‘(9) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

21 ‘‘(A) COVERED LOAN.—The term ‘covered 

22 loan’ means— 

23 ‘‘(i) a loan made under this part; 

24 ‘‘(ii) a loan purchased under section 

25 459A; or 


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1 ‘‘(iii) a loan that has been assigned to 

2 the Secretary under section 428(c)(8) or 

3 part E. 

4 ‘‘(B) INCOME-DRIVEN REPAYMENT

5 PLAN.—The term ‘income-driven repayment 

6 plan’ means— 

7 ‘‘(i) in the case of a covered loan 

8 made under this part, purchased under 

9 section 459A, or assigned to the Secretary 

10 before July 1, 2018, a plan described in 

11 subparagraph (D) or (E) of paragraph (1); 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a covered loan 

14 made under this part, purchased under 

15 section 459A, or assigned to the Secretary 

16 before July 1, 2018, the income-based re17 payment plan under section 493C(f). 

18 ‘‘(C) NONCOVERED LOAN.—The term 

19 ‘noncovered loan’ means a loan made, insured, 

20 or guaranteed under this title that is not a cov21 ered loan.’’. 

22 (b) CHANGING PLANS.—Section 493C(b)(8) of the 

23 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1098e(b)(8)) 

24 is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(8) a borrower who is repaying a loan made, 

2 insured, or guaranteed under part B or D pursuant 

3 to income-based repayment may elect, at any time, 

4 to terminate repayment pursuant to income-based 

5 repayment and repay such loan under any repay6 ment plan for which the loan is eligible in accord7 ance with the requirements of part B or part D, re8 spectively; and’’. 

9 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION.— 

10 (1) AUTOMATIC ENROLLMENT.—The amend11 ments made by subsection (a) shall— 

12 (A) take effect as soon as the Secretary of 

13 Education determines practicable after the Sec14 retary finalizes the procedures under section 

15 405, but not later than 2 years after the date 

16 of enactment of this Act; and 

17 (B) apply to all borrowers of covered loans 

18 (as defined in section 455(d)(9) of the Higher 

19 Education Act of 1965, as added by subsection 

20 (a)). 

21 (2) CHANGING PLANS.—The amendment made 

22 by subsection (b) shall take effect on the date of en23 actment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 404. AUTOMATIC RECERTIFICATION OF INCOME. 

2 (a) INCOME-CONTINGENT REPAYMENT.—Section 

3 455(e) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

4 1087e(e)) is amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (3)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘does not reasonably re7 flect the borrower’s current income’’ and insert8 ing ‘‘whose income has decreased relative to the 

9 adjusted gross income available to the Sec10 retary’’; and 

11 (B) by inserting ‘‘, consistent with the pro12 cedures established under paragraph 

13 (8)(B)(iv)’’ before the period at the end; and 

14 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(8) AUTOMATIC RECERTIFICATION.— 

16 ‘‘(A) DEFINITION.—In this paragraph, the 

17 term ‘covered loan’ has the meaning given the 

18 term in subsection (d)(9). 

19 ‘‘(B) IN GENERAL.—Beginning as soon as 

20 the Secretary determines practicable after the 

21 Secretary finalizes the procedures under section 

22 405 of the Helping Individuals Get a Higher 

23 Education while Reducing Education Debt Act, 

24 but not later than 2 years after the date of en25 actment of such Act, the Secretary shall estab26 lish and implement, with respect to any borVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 rower described in subparagraph (C), proce2 dures to— 

3 ‘‘(i) obtain (for each year of repay4 ment and without further action by the 

5 borrower) such information as is reason6 ably necessary regarding the income of 

7 such borrower (and the borrower’s spouse, 

8 if applicable), for the purpose of deter9 mining the repayment obligation of the 

10 borrower for such year, including informa11 tion with respect to the borrower’s family 

12 size in accordance with the procedures 

13 under section 405 of the Helping Individ14 uals Get a Higher Education while Reduc15 ing Education Debt Act, subject to clause 

16 (ii); 

17 ‘‘(ii) allow the borrower, at any time, 

18 to opt-out of clause (i) and prevent the 

19 Secretary from obtaining information 

20 under such clause without further action 

21 by the borrower; 

22 ‘‘(iii) provide the borrower with an op23 portunity to update the information ob24 tained under clause (i) before the deterVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00050 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 mination of the annual repayment obliga2 tion of the borrower; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) in the case of a borrower for 

4 whom adjusted gross income is unavail5 able— 

6 ‘‘(I) if the borrower has selected 

7 to repay the covered loans of such 

8 borrower pursuant to an income-con9 tingent repayment plan that defines 

10 discretionary income in such a man11 ner that an individual not required 

12 under section 6012(a)(1) of the Inter13 nal Revenue Code of 1986 to file a re14 turn with respect to income taxes im15 posed by subtitle A of such Code may 

16 have a calculated monthly payment 

17 greater than $0, the borrower will be 

18 required to provide the Secretary with 

19 other documentation of income satis20 factory to the Secretary, which docu21 mentation the Secretary may use to 

22 determine an appropriate repayment 

23 schedule; or 

24 ‘‘(II) if the borrower has selected 

25 to repay such loans pursuant to an inVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 come-contingent repayment that is not 

2 described in subclause (I), the bor3 rower will not be required to provide 

4 the Secretary with such other docu5 mentation of income, and the bor6 rower will have a calculated monthly 

7 payment of $0. 

8 ‘‘(C) APPLICABILITY.—Subparagraph (B) 

9 shall apply to each borrower of a covered loan 

10 who, on or after the date on which the Sec11 retary establishes procedures under such sub12 paragraph— 

13 ‘‘(i) selects, or for whom the Secretary 

14 selects under subparagraph (C) or (D) of 

15 paragraph (8) of subsection (d), or section 

16 428(m)(1), an income-contingent repay17 ment plan; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) recertifies income and family size 

19 under such plan. 

20 ‘‘(D) AVAILABILITY OF RETURNS AND RE21 TURN INFORMATION.—Returns and return in22 formation (as defined in section 6103 of the In23 ternal Revenue Code of 1986) may be obtained 

24 under subparagraph (B)(i) only to the extent 

25 authorized by section 6103(l)(13) of such Code. 


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1 ‘‘(E) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—The proce2 dures established by the Secretary under this 

3 paragraph shall be consistent with the require4 ments of paragraphs (1) through (7), except as 

5 otherwise provided in this paragraph.’’. 

6 (b) INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT.—Section 493C(c) 

7 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1098e(c)) 

8 is amended— 

9 (1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary shall establish’’ 

10 and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab12 lish’’; 

13 (2) by striking ‘‘The Secretary shall consider’’ 

14 and inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURES FOR ELIGIBILITY.—The Sec16 retary shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) consider’’; and 

18 (3) by striking ‘‘428C(b)(1)(E).’’ and inserting 

19 the following: ‘‘428C(b)(1)(E); and 

20 ‘‘(B) beginning as soon as the Secretary 

21 determines practicable after the Secretary final22 izes the procedures under section 405 of the 

23 Helping Individuals Get a Higher Education 

24 while Reducing Education Debt Act, but not 

25 later than 2 years after the date of enactment 


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1 of such Act, carry out, with respect to bor2 rowers of any covered loan (as defined in sec3 tion 455(d)(9)), procedures for income-based 

4 repayment plans that are equivalent to the pro5 cedures carried out under section 455(e)(8) 

6 with respect to income-contingent repayment 

7 plans.’’. 

8 SEC. 405. STUDY AND PROCEDURES ON DETERMINING FAM9 ILY SIZE. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

11 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Education 

12 shall— 

13 (1) jointly with the Secretary of the Treasury, 

14 conduct a study, which meets the specifications de15 scribed in subsection (b), on the effect of using data 

16 from the Internal Revenue Service on the deduction 

17 for personal exemptions provided by section 151 of 

18 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for a proxy for 

19 family size in an income-driven repayment plan, and 

20 publish such study in the Federal Register; 

21 (2) use the results of the study conducted under 

22 paragraph (1) to develop procedures for determining 

23 family size for the automatic recertification of in24 come for an income-driven repayment plan in a manVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:01 Apr 26, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00054 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5549.IH H5549

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1 ner that minimizes burdens and unintended harm to 

2 borrowers; 

3 (3) publish the procedures developed under 

4 paragraph (2) in the Federal Register; and 

5 (4) after a notice and comment period on such 

6 procedures, use such comments to finalize the proce7 dures. 

8 (b) SPECIFICATIONS.—The study conducted under 

9 subsection (a)(1) shall— 

10 (1) determine how closely such personal exemp11 tions match the family size that borrowers report on 

12 their income-driven repayment plan request form; 

13 (2) compare the borrower’s actual monthly pay14 ment amount with the monthly payment amount 

15 borrowers would have using family size information 

16 derived from tax returns; and 

17 (3) use data from more than one year, where 

18 possible, to analyze how much family size changes 

19 over time. 

20 (c) DEFINITION.—The term ‘‘income-driven repay21 ment plan’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

22 455(d)(9) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as 

23 amended by this Act. 


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1 SEC. 406. DISCLOSURE OF TAX RETURN INFORMATION TO 

2 CARRY OUT CERTAIN HIGHER EDUCATION 

3 LOAN PROGRAMS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (13) of section 6103(l) 

5 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read 

6 as follows: 

7 ‘‘(13) DISCLOSURE OF RETURNS AND RETURN

8 INFORMATION FOR PURPOSES OF STUDENT LOAN

9 ADMINISTRATION.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, subject 

11 to such requirements and conditions as the Sec12 retary may prescribe, shall upon written request 

13 from the Secretary of Education disclose to offi14 cers and employees of the Department of Edu15 cation returns and return information with re16 spect to a taxpayer who has received an appli17 cable student loan. 

18 ‘‘(B) RESTRICTION ON USE OF DISCLOSED

19 INFORMATION.—Return information disclosed 

20 under subparagraph (A) may be used by offi21 cers and employees of the Department of Edu22 cation only for the purposes of, and to the ex23 tent necessary for purposes of— 

24 ‘‘(i) establishing the appropriate in25 come-contingent repayment amount in con26 nection with an applicable student loan, 


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1 ‘‘(ii) establishing the appropriate re2 payment amount under an applicable in3 come-driven repayment plan (as defined in 

4 section 455(d)(9) of such Act (20 U.S.C. 

5 1087e(d))) in connection with an applica6 ble student loan for— 

7 ‘‘(I) borrowers who have selected 

8 such a plan, and 

9 ‘‘(II) in the case of any recertifi10 cation under section 455(e)(8) or 

11 493C(c)(2)(B) of the Higher Edu12 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

13 1087e(e); 1098e(c)), borrowers who 

14 are enrolled in such a plan, and 

15 ‘‘(iii) in the case of borrowers who are 

16 at least 60 days delinquent on an applica17 ble student loan— 

18 ‘‘(I) providing notice of eligibility 

19 for an income-driven repayment plan 

20 (as so defined) pursuant to section 

21 455(d)(8)(B) of the Higher Education 

22 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(d)), 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(II) automatic enrollment in 

25 such an income-driven repayment plan 


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1 after such borrowers are at least 120 

2 days delinquent on such a loan pursu3 ant to section 455(d)(8)(C) of such 

4 Act (20 U.S.C. 1087e(d)). 

5 ‘‘(C) DISCLOSURE TO CERTAIN CONTRAC6 TORS.—Officers and employees of the Depart7 ment of Education may disclose the information 

8 described in subparagraph (A) to persons 

9 awarded contracts by the Secretary of Edu10 cation under section 456 of the Higher Edu11 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087f) to the ex12 tent necessary for the purposes described in 

13 subparagraph (B). 

14 ‘‘(D) SPOUSAL INFORMATION FOR MAR15 RIED INDIVIDUALS FILING SEPARATE RE16 TURNS.—For purposes of this paragraph, in the 

17 case of a married individual filing a separate re18 turn, the term ‘taxpayer’ includes the spouse of 

19 that individual if the Secretary of Education re20 quests information from the spouse of that indi21 vidual and the individual and the spouse have 

22 consented in writing. 

23 ‘‘(E) APPLICABLE STUDENT LOAN.—For 

24 purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘applicable 

25 student loan’ means— 


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1 ‘‘(i) any loan which is made, insured, 

2 or guaranteed under a program authorized 

3 under part B or D of title IV of the High4 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 

5 et seq.; 1087a et seq.), and 

6 ‘‘(ii) any loan which is made under 

7 part E of such title IV (20 U.S.C. 1087aa 

8 et seq.) which is in default and has been 

9 assigned to the Department of Edu10 cation.’’. 

11 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

12 (1) Section 6103(a)(3) of such Code is amended 

13 by inserting ‘‘(13),’’ after ‘‘(12),’’. 

14 (2) Section 6103(p)(4) of such Code is amend15 ed by inserting ‘‘(13),’’ after ‘‘(l)(10),’’ each place it 

16 occurs. 

17 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 this section shall apply to disclosures made after the date 

19 of enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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