II 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1167 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 in order to provide funding 

for student loan repayment for civil legal assistance attorneys. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 19, 2007 

Mr. HARKIN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

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

A BILL 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 in order to 

provide funding for student loan repayment for civil legal 

assistance attorneys. 

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 ‘‘Civil Legal Assistance 

5 Attorney Loan Repayment Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. LOAN REPAYMENT FOR CIVIL LEGAL ASSISTANCE 

7 ATTORNEYS. 

8 Part B of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 

9 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

10 after section 428K the following: 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
2 

•S 1167 IS

1 ‘‘SEC. 428L. LOAN REPAYMENT FOR CIVIL LEGAL ASSIST2 ANCE ATTORNEYS. 

3 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to en4 courage qualified individuals to enter and continue em5 ployment as civil legal assistance attorneys. 

6 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 ‘‘(1) CIVIL LEGAL ASSISTANCE ATTORNEY.— 

8 The term ‘civil legal assistance attorney’ means an 

9 attorney who— 

10 ‘‘(A) is a full-time employee of a nonprofit 

11 organization that provides legal assistance with 

12 respect to civil matters to low-income individ13 uals without a fee; 

14 ‘‘(B) as such employee, provides civil legal 

15 assistance as described in subparagraph (A) on 

16 a full-time basis; and 

17 ‘‘(C) is continually licensed to practice law. 

18 ‘‘(2) STUDENT LOAN.—The term ‘student loan’ 

19 means— 

20 ‘‘(A) subject to subparagraph (B), a loan 

21 made, insured, or guaranteed under part B, D, 

22 or E of this title; and 

23 ‘‘(B) a loan made under section 428C or 

24 455(g), to the extent that such loan was used 

25 to repay— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
3 

•S 1167 IS

1 ‘‘(i) a Federal Direct Stafford Loan, a 

2 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford 

3 Loan, or a Federal Direct PLUS Loan; 

4 ‘‘(ii) a loan made under section 428, 

5 428B, or 428H; or 

6 ‘‘(iii) a loan made under part E. 

7 ‘‘(c) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary shall 

8 carry out a program of assuming the obligation to repay 

9 a student loan, by direct payments on behalf of a borrower 

10 to the holder of such loan, in accordance with subsection 

11 (d), for any borrower who— 

12 ‘‘(1) is employed as a civil legal assistance at13 torney; and 

14 ‘‘(2) is not in default on a loan for which the 

15 borrower seeks repayment. 

16 ‘‘(d) TERMS OF AGREEMENT.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive re18 payment benefits under subsection (c), a borrower 

19 shall enter into a written agreement with the Sec20 retary that specifies that— 

21 ‘‘(A) the borrower will remain employed as 

22 a civil legal assistance attorney for a required 

23 period of service of not less than 3 years, unless 

24 involuntarily separated from that employment; 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
4 

•S 1167 IS

1 ‘‘(B) if the borrower is involuntarily sepa2 rated from employment on account of mis3 conduct, or voluntarily separates from employ4 ment, before the end of the period specified in 

5 the agreement, the borrower will repay the Sec6 retary the amount of any benefits received by 

7 such employee under this agreement; 

8 ‘‘(C) if the borrower is required to repay 

9 an amount to the Secretary under subpara10 graph (B) and fails to repay such amount, a 

11 sum equal to that amount shall be recoverable 

12 by the Federal Government from the employee 

13 by such methods as are provided by law for the 

14 recovery of amounts owed to the Federal Gov15 ernment; 

16 ‘‘(D) the Secretary may waive, in whole or 

17 in part, a right of recovery under this sub18 section if it is shown that recovery would be 

19 against equity and good conscience or against 

20 the public interest; and 

21 ‘‘(E) the Secretary shall make student loan 

22 payments under this section for the period of 

23 the agreement, subject to the availability of ap24 propriations. 

25 ‘‘(2) REPAYMENTS.— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
5 

•S 1167 IS

1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any amount repaid 

2 by, or recovered from, an individual under this 

3 subsection shall be credited to the appropriation 

4 account from which the amount involved was 

5 originally paid. 

6 ‘‘(B) MERGER.—Any amount credited 

7 under subparagraph (A) shall be merged with 

8 other sums in such account and shall be avail9 able for the same purposes and period, and sub10 ject to the same limitations, if any, as the sums 

11 with which the amount was merged. 

12 ‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS.— 

13 ‘‘(A) STUDENT LOAN PAYMENT

14 AMOUNT.—Student loan repayments made by 

15 the Secretary under this section shall be made 

16 subject to such terms, limitations, or conditions 

17 as may be mutually agreed upon by the bor18 rower and the Secretary in an agreement under 

19 paragraph (1), except that the amount paid by 

20 the Secretary under this section shall not ex21 ceed— 

22 ‘‘(i) $6,000 for any borrower in any 

23 calendar year; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) an aggregate total of $40,000 in 

25 the case of any borrower. 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
6 

•S 1167 IS

1 ‘‘(B) BEGINNING OF PAYMENTS.—Nothing 

2 in this section shall authorize the Secretary to 

3 pay any amount to reimburse a borrower for 

4 any repayments made by such borrower prior to 

5 the date on which the Secretary entered into an 

6 agreement with the borrower under this sub7 section. 

8 ‘‘(e) ADDITIONAL AGREEMENTS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On completion of the re10 quired period of service under an agreement under 

11 subsection (d), the borrower and the Secretary may, 

12 subject to paragraph (2), enter into an additional 

13 agreement in accordance with subsection (d). 

14 ‘‘(2) TERM.—An agreement entered into under 

15 paragraph (1) may require the borrower to remain 

16 employed as a civil legal assistance attorney for less 

17 than 3 years. 

18 ‘‘(f) AWARD BASIS; PRIORITY.— 

19 ‘‘(1) AWARD BASIS.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

20 the Secretary shall provide repayment benefits under 

21 this section on a first-come, first-served basis, and 

22 subject to the availability of appropriations. 

23 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall give pri24 ority in providing repayment benefits under this sec25 tion in any fiscal year to a borrower who— 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS
7 

•S 1167 IS

1 ‘‘(A) has practiced law for 5 years or less 

2 and, for at least 90 percent of the time in such 

3 practice, has served as a civil legal assistance 

4 attorney; 

5 ‘‘(B) received repayment benefits under 

6 this section during the preceding fiscal year; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(C) has completed less than 3 years of 

9 the first required period of service specified for 

10 the borrower in an agreement entered into 

11 under subsection (d). 

12 ‘‘(g) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary is authorized to 

13 issue such regulations as may be necessary to carry out 

14 the provisions of this section. 

15 ‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

16 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

17 $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may 

18 be necessary for each succeeding fiscal year.’’. 

Æ 


bajohnson on PROD1PC77 with BILLS