II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2448 

To protect servicemembers in higher education, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 5, 2014 

Mrs. HAGAN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To protect servicemembers in higher education, 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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Servicemember Higher 

5 Education Protection Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 

7 Except as otherwise expressly provided, wherever in 

8 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

9 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi10 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 


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1 section or other provision of the Higher Education Act of 

2 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.). 

3 SEC. 3. BENEFITS FOR BORROWERS WHO ARE MEMBERS 

4 OF THE ARMED FORCES. 

5 Section 131(f) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(f) BENEFITS FOR MEMBERS OF THE ARMED

7 FORCES.— 

8 ‘‘(1) WEBSITE.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in co10 ordination with the Secretary of Defense and 

11 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall create 

12 a revised and updated searchable Internet 

13 website that— 

14 ‘‘(i) contains information, in simple 

15 and understandable terms, about all Fed16 eral and State student financial assistance, 

17 readmission requirements under section 

18 484C, and other student services, for 

19 which members of the Armed Forces (in20 cluding members of the National Guard 

21 and Reserves), veterans, and the depend22 ents of such members or veterans may be 

23 eligible; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) is easily accessible through the 

2 Internet website described in subsection 

3 (e)(3). 

4 ‘‘(B) IMPLEMENTATION.—Not later than 

5 365 days after the date of the enactment of the 

6 Servicemember Higher Education Protection 

7 Act, the Secretary shall make publicly available 

8 the revised and updated Internet website de9 scribed in subparagraph (A). 

10 ‘‘(C) DISSEMINATION.—The Secretary, in 

11 coordination with the Secretary of Defense and 

12 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall make 

13 the availability of the Internet website described 

14 in subparagraph (A) widely known to members 

15 of the Armed Forces (including members of the 

16 National Guard and Reserves), veterans, the 

17 dependents of such members or veterans, 

18 States, institutions of higher education, and the 

19 general public. 

20 ‘‘(D) DEFINITION.—In this paragraph, the 

21 term ‘Federal and State student financial as22 sistance’ means any grant, loan, work assist23 ance, tuition assistance, scholarship, fellowship, 

24 or other form of financial aid for pursuing a 

25 postsecondary education that is— 


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1 ‘‘(i) administered, sponsored, or sup2 ported by the Department of Education, 

3 the Department of Defense, the Depart4 ment of Veterans Affairs, or a State; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) available to members of the 

6 Armed Forces (including members of the 

7 National Guard and Reserves), veterans, 

8 or the dependents of such members or vet9 erans. 

10 ‘‘(2) ENROLLMENT FORM.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in con12 sultation with the Director of the Bureau of 

13 Consumer Financial Protection and the heads 

14 of any other relevant Federal agencies, shall 

15 create a simplified disclosure and enrollment 

16 form for borrowers who are performing eligible 

17 military service (as defined in section 481(d)). 

18 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—The disclosure and en19 rollment form described in subparagraph (A) 

20 shall include— 

21 ‘‘(i) information about the benefits 

22 and protections under title IV and under 

23 the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 

24 U.S.C. App. 501 et seq.) that are available 

25 to such borrowers because of their status 


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1 as borrowers who are performing eligible 

2 military service (as defined in section 

3 481(d)); and 

4 ‘‘(ii) an opportunity for the borrower, 

5 by completing the enrollment form, to in6 voke certain protections, activate certain 

7 benefits, and enroll in certain programs 

8 that may be available to that borrower, 

9 which shall include the opportunity— 

10 ‘‘(I) to invoke applicable protec11 tions that are available under the 

12 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 

13 U.S.C. App. 501 et seq.), as such pro14 tections relate to Federal student 

15 loans under title IV; and 

16 ‘‘(II) to activate or enroll in any 

17 other applicable benefits that are 

18 available to such borrower under this 

19 Act due to the borrower’s status as a 

20 borrower who is performing eligible 

21 military service (as defined in section 

22 481(d)), such as eligibility for a 

23 deferment or eligibility for a period 

24 during which interest shall not accrue. 


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1 ‘‘(C) IMPLEMENTATION.—Not later than 

2 365 days after the date of the enactment of the 

3 Servicemember Higher Education Protection 

4 Act, the Secretary shall make available to eligi5 ble institutions, eligible lenders, and personnel 

6 at the Department of Defense and other Fed7 eral agencies that provide services to borrowers 

8 who are members of the Armed Forces or the 

9 dependents of such members or individuals per10 forming eligible military service, the disclosure 

11 and enrollment form described in subparagraph 

12 (A). 

13 ‘‘(D) NOTICE REQUIREMENTS.— 

14 ‘‘(i) SCRA INTEREST RATE LIMITA15 TION.—The completion of the disclosure 

16 and enrollment form created pursuant to 

17 subparagraph (A) by the borrower of a 

18 loan made, insured, or guaranteed under 

19 part B or part D of title IV who is other20 wise subject to the interest rate limitation 

21 in subsection (a) of section 207 of the 

22 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. 

23 App. 527(a)) and submittal of such form 

24 to the Secretary shall be considered, for 

25 purposes of such section, provision to the 


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1 creditor of written notice as described in 

2 subsection (b)(1) of such section. 

3 ‘‘(ii) FFEL LENDERS.—The Sec4 retary shall provide each such disclosure 

5 and enrollment form completed and sub6 mitted by a borrower of a loan made, in7 sured, or guaranteed under part B of title 

8 IV who is otherwise subject to the interest 

9 rate limitation in subsection (a) of section 

10 207 of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act 

11 (50 U.S.C. App. 527(a)) to any applicable 

12 eligible lender under part B of title IV so 

13 as to satisfy the provision to the lender of 

14 written notice as described in subsection 

15 (b)(1) of such section.’’. 

16 SEC. 4. POC IN THE FSA OMBUDSMAN FOR MEMBERS OF 

17 THE ARMED FORCES AND VETERANS. 

18 Section 141(f) (20 U.S.C. 1018(f)) is amended— 

19 (1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para20 graph (5); and 

21 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(4) MILITARY AND VETERAN POINT OF CON24 TACT.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Chief Operating 

2 Officer, in consultation with the Secretary, shall 

3 appoint a designated military and veteran point 

4 of contact within the office of the Student Loan 

5 Ombudsman. 

6 ‘‘(B) FUNCTIONS.—The designated mili7 tary and veteran point of contact described in 

8 subparagraph (A) shall— 

9 ‘‘(i) monitor the complaints received 

10 from the Ombudsman under paragraph 

11 (3)(A) from, and provide timely assistance 

12 to, members of the Armed Forces (includ13 ing members of the National Guard and 

14 Reserves), veterans, and their dependents; 

15 ‘‘(ii) coordinate with other agencies, 

16 including the Department of Defense, the 

17 Department of Veterans Affairs, and the 

18 Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, 

19 to ensure that members of the Armed 

20 Forces, veterans, and the dependents of 

21 members of the Armed Forces and vet22 erans, who are students, borrowers, or po23 tential borrowers, are aware of the avail24 ability and functions of the Ombudsman; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) issue to the Committee on 

2 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 

3 the Senate, the Committee on Education 

4 and the Workforce of the House of Rep5 resentatives, the Committee on Veterans’ 

6 Affairs of the Senate, the Committee on 

7 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep8 resentatives, the Committee on Armed 

9 Services of the Senate, and the Committee 

10 on Armed Services of the House of Rep11 resentatives an annual report on the chal12 lenges that such members of the Armed 

13 Forces, veterans, and dependents are fac14 ing as students, borrowers, and potential 

15 borrowers.’’. 

16 SEC. 5. DISABILITY DETERMINATIONS. 

17 (a) AMENDMENT TO THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT

18 OF 1965.—Section 437(a)(2) (20 U.S.C. 1087(a)(2)) is 

19 amended to read as follows: 

20 ‘‘(2) DISABILITY DETERMINATIONS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A borrower who has 

22 been assigned a disability rating of 100 percent 

23 (or a combination of ratings equaling 100 per24 cent or more) by the Secretary of Veterans Af25 fairs or the Secretary of Defense for a serviceVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:55 Jun 07, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2448.IS S2448

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1 connected disability (as defined in section 101 

2 of title 38, United States Code) and who pro3 vides documentation of such rating to the Sec4 retary of Education, shall be considered perma5 nently and totally disabled for the purpose of 

6 discharging such borrower’s loans under this 

7 subsection, and such borrower shall not be re8 quired to present any additional documentation 

9 for purposes of this subsection. 

10 ‘‘(B) RATING OF DISABILITY.—A disability 

11 rating described in subparagraph (A), or similar 

12 determination of unemployability by the Sec13 retary of Veterans Affairs or the Department of 

14 Defense, transmitted in accordance with sub15 paragraph (C) shall be considered sufficient 

16 documentation for purposes of this subsection. 

17 ‘‘(C) TRANSFER OF INFORMATION.—Not 

18 later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

19 of the Servicemember Higher Education Protec20 tion Act, the Secretary, in coordination with the 

21 Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Vet22 erans Affairs, shall create a system through 

23 which the applicable disability ratings (or alter24 native means of transmitting a determination of 

25 unemployability) shall be automatically transVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:55 Jun 07, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2448.IS S2448

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1 mitted from the Department of Defense or the 

2 Department of Veterans Affairs, as the case 

3 may be, to the Department of Education and 

4 shall satisfy the documentation requirement de5 scribed in this paragraph. The Secretary shall 

6 have the authority to enter into any agreements 

7 necessary to implement the requirements of this 

8 paragraph.’’. 

9 (b) REPORTS.— 

10 (1) PLAN.—Not later than 90 days after the 

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

12 Education shall submit to the appropriate commit13 tees of Congress a report that includes a plan to 

14 carry out the activities described under section 

15 437(a)(2)(C) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

16 (20 U.S.C. 1087(a)(2)), as amended by this section. 

17 (2) FOLLOW-UP REPORT.—If the Secretary of 

18 Education has not carried out the activities de19 scribed under section 437(a)(2)(C) of the Higher 

20 Education Act of 1965, as amended by this section, 

21 by the date that is 1 year after the date of enact22 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Education shall 

23 submit, by such date, a report that includes an ex24 planation of why those activities have not been im25 plemented and a description of any legislative 


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1 changes that are necessary to allow for the imple2 mentation of such activities. 

3 SEC. 6. LOAN DEFERMENT FOR BORROWERS PERFORMING 

4 MILITARY SERVICE AND CERTAIN SPOUSES 

5 OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES. 

6 (a) FFEL LOANS.—Section 428(b)(1)(M) (20 

7 U.S.C. 1078(b)(1)(M)) is amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating clause (iv) as clause (v); 

9 (2) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘the borrower— 

10 ’’ and all that follows through ‘‘described in sub11 clause (I) or (II); or’’ and inserting ‘‘the borrower 

12 is performing eligible military service, and for the 

13 180-day period following the demobilization date for 

14 such eligible military service;’’; and 

15 (3) by inserting after clause (iii) the following: 

16 ‘‘(iv) not in excess of 180 days after 

17 the effective movement date listed on the 

18 military orders of a borrower’s spouse if 

19 that spouse is a member of the Armed 

20 Forces who has received military orders for 

21 a permanent change of station; or’’. 

22 (b) DIRECT LOANS.—Section 455(f)(2) (20 U.S.C. 

23 1087e(f)(2)) is amended— 

24 (1) by redesignating subparagraph (D) as sub25 paragraph (E); 


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1 (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘the bor2 rower—’’ and all that follows through ‘‘described in 

3 clause (i) or (ii); or’’ and inserting ‘‘the borrower is 

4 performing eligible military service, and for the 180- 

5 day period following the demobilization date for such 

6 eligible military service;’’ and 

7 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(D) any period not in excess of 180 days 

10 after the effective movement date listed on the 

11 military orders of a borrower’s spouse if that 

12 spouse is a member of the Armed Forces who 

13 has received military orders for a permanent 

14 change of station; or’’. 

15 (c) FEDERAL PERKINS LOANS.— 

16 (1) Section 464(c)(2)(A) (20 U.S.C. 

17 1087dd(c)(2)(A)) is amended— 

18 (A) by redesignating clauses (iv) and (v) as 

19 clauses (v) and (vi), respectively; 

20 (B) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘the bor21 rower—’’ and all that follows through ‘‘de22 scribed in subclause (I) or (II);’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘during which the borrower is performing eligi24 ble military service, and for the 180-day period 


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1 following the demobilization date for such eligi2 ble military service;’’; and 

3 (C) by inserting after clause (iii) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(iv) not in excess of 180 days after the ef6 fective movement date listed on the military or7 ders of a borrower’s spouse if that spouse is a 

8 member of the Armed Forces who has received 

9 military orders for a permanent change of sta10 tion; or’’. 

11 (2) Section 465(a)(2)(D) (20 U.S.C. 

12 1087ee(a)(2)(D)) is amended by striking ‘‘qualifies 

13 for special pay under section 310 of title 37, United 

14 States Code, as an area of hostilities’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘is eligible military service’’. 

16 (d) DEFINITION.—Section 481(d) (20 U.S.C. 

17 1088(d)) is amended— 

18 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through 

19 (5) as paragraphs (3) through (6), respectively; and 

20 (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE MILITARY SERVICE.—The term 

23 ‘eligible military service’— 

24 ‘‘(A) in the case of a member of a regular 

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1 time duty in the Armed Forces, other than ac2 tive duty for training (as defined in section 101 

3 of title 38, United States Code); 

4 ‘‘(B) in the case of a member of the re5 serve components of the Armed Forces, means 

6 service on active duty under a call or order to 

7 active duty under section 688, 12301(a), 

8 12301(d), 12301(g), 12302, or 12304 of title 

9 10, United States Code, or section 712 of title 

10 14, United States Code; 

11 ‘‘(C) in the case of a member of the Army 

12 National Guard of the United States or Air Na13 tional Guard of the United States, means, in 

14 addition to service described in subparagraph 

15 (B), full-time service— 

16 ‘‘(i) in the National Guard of a State 

17 for the purpose of organizing, admin18 istering, recruiting, instructing, or training 

19 the National Guard; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) in the National Guard under sec21 tion 502(f) of title 32, United States Code, 

22 when authorized by the President or the 

23 Secretary of Defense for the purpose of re24 sponding to a national emergency declared 


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1 by the President and supported by Federal 

2 funds; 

3 ‘‘(D) in the case of a servicemember who 

4 is a commissioned officer of the Public Health 

5 Service or the National Oceanic and Atmos6 pheric Administration, active service; and 

7 ‘‘(E) does not include any period during 

8 which an individual— 

9 ‘‘(i) was assigned full-time by the 

10 Armed Forces to a civilian institution for 

11 a course of education that was substan12 tially the same as established courses of13 fered to civilians; 

14 ‘‘(ii) serves as a cadet or midshipman 

15 at one of the military service academies of 

16 the United States; or 

17 ‘‘(iii) serves under the provisions of 

18 section 12103(d) of title 10, United States 

19 Code, pursuant to an enlistment in the 

20 Army National Guard or the Air National 

21 Guard, or as a Reserve for service in the 

22 Army Reserve, Navy Reserve, Air Force 

23 Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, or Coast 

24 Guard Reserve.’’. 


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1 SEC. 7. PUBLIC SERVICE LOAN FORGIVENESS. 

2 Section 455(m) (20 U.S.C. 1087e(m)) is amended— 

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

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

5 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(3) LUMP SUM PAYMENT.—For purposes of 

8 this subsection, if a borrower has enrolled in a re9 payment plan described in paragraph (1)(A) and 

10 makes a lump sum payment through a student loan 

11 repayment program under section 2171 of title 10, 

12 United States Code, or a similarly structured eligible 

13 repayment program (as determined by the Sec14 retary), the Secretary will treat the borrower as hav15 ing made a number of qualifying payments equal to 

16 the lesser of— 

17 ‘‘(A) the number, rounded to the nearest 

18 whole number, equal to the quotient of— 

19 ‘‘(i) such lump sum payment; divided 

20 by 

21 ‘‘(ii) the monthly payment amount 

22 that the borrower would have otherwise 

23 made under the repayment plan described 

24 in paragraph (1)(A) selected by the bor25 rower; or 

26 ‘‘(B) 12 payments.’’. 


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1 SEC. 8. ACCRUAL OF INTEREST FOR MEMBERS OF THE 

2 ARMED FORCES SUBJECT TO HOSTILE FIRE 

3 OR IMMINENT DANGER. 

4 Section 455(o) is amended— 

5 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

8 provision of this part and in accordance with para9 graphs (2) and (4), the Secretary shall not charge 

10 interest on a loan made to a borrower under this 

11 part for which the first disbursement is made on or 

12 after October 1, 2008, during the period in which a 

13 borrower who is performing eligible military service 

14 (as defined in section 481(d)) is serving in an area 

15 of hostilities in which service qualifies for special pay 

16 under section 310 of title 37, United States Code.’’; 

17 (2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(3) IMPLEMENTATION OF ACCRUAL OF INTER20 EST PROVISION FOR MEMBERS OF THE ARMED

21 FORCES.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

23 enter into any necessary agreements, including 

24 agreements with the Commissioner of Revenue 

25 and the Secretary of Defense— 


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1 ‘‘(i) to ensure that interest does not 

2 accrue for borrowers described in para3 graph (1), in accordance with this sub4 section; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) to obtain or provide any informa6 tion necessary to implement clause (i) 

7 without requiring a request from the bor8 rower. 

9 ‘‘(B) REPORTS.— 

10 ‘‘(i) PLAN.—Not later than 90 days 

11 after the date of the enactment of the 

12 Servicemember Higher Education Protec13 tion Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 

14 appropriate committees of Congress a re15 port that includes a plan to implement the 

16 accrual of interest provision described in 

17 subparagraph (A). 

18 ‘‘(ii) FOLLOW-UP REPORT.—If the 

19 Secretary has not implemented the accrual 

20 of interest provision described in subpara21 graph (A) by the date that is 1 year after 

22 the date of enactment of the Servicemem23 ber Higher Education Protection Act, the 

24 Secretary shall submit, by such date, a re25 port that includes an explanation of why 


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1 such provision has not been implemented 

2 and a description of any legislative changes 

3 that are necessary to allow for the imple4 mentation of such provision.’’; and 

5 (3) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘who qualifies 

6 as an eligible military borrower under this sub7 section’’ and inserting ‘‘described in paragraph (1)’’. 

8 SEC. 9. NATIONAL STUDENT LOAN DATA SYSTEM. 

9 (a) AMENDMENT TO THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT

10 OF 1965.—Subsection (h) of section 485B (20 U.S.C. 

11 1092b(h)) is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(h) INTEGRATION OF DATABASES.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall inte14 grate the National Student Loan Data System with 

15 the Federal Pell Grant applicant and recipient data16 bases as of January 1, 1994, and any other data17 bases containing information on participation in pro18 grams under this title. 

19 ‘‘(2) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE INFORMA20 TION.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In order to incor22 porate the military and veteran status of bor23 rowers into the National Student Loan Data 

24 System, the Secretary shall integrate the NaVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:55 Jun 07, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2448.IS S2448

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1 tional Student Loan Data System with informa2 tion from— 

3 ‘‘(i) the Department of Defense, in4 cluding the Defense Manpower Data Cen5 ter; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) the Department of Veterans Af7 fairs, including data about veterans who 

8 are eligible for educational assistance 

9 under laws administered by the Secretary 

10 of Veterans Affairs. 

11 ‘‘(B) MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING.— 

12 The Secretary shall enter into any memoranda 

13 of understanding or other agreements that are 

14 necessary to carry out this paragraph.’’. 

15 (b) REPORTS.— 

16 (1) PLAN.—Not later than 90 days after the 

17 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

18 Education shall submit to the appropriate commit19 tees of Congress a report that includes a plan to im20 plement the Department of Defense data integration 

21 provision described under section 485B(h)(2) of the 

22 Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended by this 

23 section. 

24 (2) FOLLOW-UP REPORT.—If the Secretary of 

25 Education has not implemented the Department of 


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1 Defense data integration provision described under 

2 section 485B(h)(2) of the Higher Education Act of 

3 1965, as amended by this section, by the date that 

4 is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

5 Secretary of Education shall submit, by such date, 

6 a report that includes an explanation of why such 

7 provision has not been implemented and a descrip8 tion of any legislative changes that are necessary to 

9 allow for the implementation of such provision. 

10 SEC. 10. PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AGREEMENTS. 

11 Section 487(a) is amended by adding at the end the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘(30) In the case of an institution that enrolls 

14 during an academic year more than 100 students 

15 who are veterans, the institution shall certify that 

16 the institution has developed and implemented a 

17 plan to ensure the success of veterans at that insti18 tution. To the extent practicable, the institution 

19 shall make the plan, and associated policies, public 

20 and accessible to students who are veterans. Such 

21 plan shall include the following: 

22 ‘‘(A) The designation of certain faculty or 

23 staff at the institution who will serve as a point 

24 of contact for veterans— 


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1 ‘‘(i) within campus offices, including 

2 the admissions office; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) during any orientation process 

4 for newly enrolled students. 

5 ‘‘(B) The establishment of a working 

6 group that will be responsible for veterans’ 

7 issues. 

8 ‘‘(C) A description of disability services 

9 that are available to meet the needs of disabled 

10 students who are veterans. 

11 ‘‘(D) A plan for how the institution will 

12 identify students who are veterans through the 

13 application process, or through other processes, 

14 to provide better assistance in the receipt of 

15 educational assistance under laws administered 

16 by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs or the Sec17 retary of Defense. 

18 ‘‘(E) A description of how the institution 

19 will evaluate and maximize the number of cred20 its students can receive from military training 

21 and service.’’. 

22 SEC. 11. EXTENDING THE PROTECTIONS FOR STUDENT 

23 LOANS FOR ACTIVE DUTY BORROWERS. 

24 Section 493D (20 U.S.C. 1098f) is amended— 


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1 (1) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘AND

2 PROTECTIONS FOR ACTIVE DUTY BORROWERS’’ 

3 before the period at the end; 

4 (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub5 section (c); and 

6 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(b) USE OF INFORMATION.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall utilize 

10 information the Secretary receives regarding the ac11 tive duty status of borrowers from the Secretary of 

12 Defense for any purpose under this title to ensure 

13 that the interest rate charged on any loan made 

14 under part D of title IV for borrowers who are sub15 ject to section 207(a)(1) of the Servicemembers Civil 

16 Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 527(a)(1)) does not ex17 ceed the maximum interest rate set forth in such 

18 section. 

19 ‘‘(2) SCRA INTEREST RATE LIMITATION NO20 TICE REQUIREMENTS.—The submittal by the Sec21 retary of Defense to the Secretary of Education of 

22 information that informs the Secretary of Education 

23 that an individual with a student loan under part D 

24 of title IV has been or is being called to military 

25 service (as defined in section 101 of the 


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1 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. 511)) 

2 shall be considered, for purposes of subjecting such 

3 student loan to the provisions of section 207 of the 

4 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 

5 527), provision by the borrower to the creditor of 

6 written notice and a copy of military orders as de7 scribed in subsection (b)(1) of such section. 

8 ‘‘(3) PROCEDURES.—Not later than 180 days 

9 after the date of enactment of the Servicemember 

10 Higher Education Protection Act, the Secretary, in 

11 consultation with the Department of Defense, shall 

12 establish a procedure to implement this subsection.’’. 

13 SEC. 12. MODIFICATION OF LIMITATION ON RATE OF IN14 TEREST ON STUDENT LOANS DURING AND 

15 IMMEDIATELY AFTER PERIOD OF MILITARY 

16 SERVICE. 

17 (a) EXTENSION OF PERIOD OF APPLICABILITY OF

18 LIMITATION ON RATE OF INTEREST ON STUDENT LOANS

19 INCURRED BEFORE SERVICE.—Section 207(a)(1) of the 

20 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 

21 527(a)(1)) is amended— 

22 (1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or a stu23 dent loan’’ after ‘‘nature of a mortgage’’; and 


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1 (2) in the paragraph heading, by inserting ‘‘ON

2 DEBT INCURRED BEFORE SERVICE’’ after ‘‘LIMITA3 TION TO 6 PERCENT’’. 

4 (b) DEBT ENTERED INTO DURING MILITARY SERV5 ICE TO CONSOLIDATE OR REFINANCE STUDENT LOANS

6 INCURRED BEFORE MILITARY SERVICE.—Subsection (a) 

7 of section 207 of such Act (50 U.S.C. App. 527) is amend8 ed— 

9 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as 

10 paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively; 

11 (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol12 lowing new paragraph (2): 

13 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION TO 6 PERCENT ON DEBT IN14 CURRED DURING SERVICE TO CONSOLIDATE OR RE15 FINANCE STUDENT LOANS INCURRED BEFORE SERV16 ICE.—An obligation or liability bearing interest at a 

17 rate in excess of 6 percent per year that is incurred 

18 by a servicemember, or the servicemember and the 

19 servicemember’s spouse jointly, during military serv20 ice to consolidate or refinance one or more student 

21 loans incurred by the servicemember before such 

22 military service shall not bear an interest at a rate 

23 in excess of 6 percent during the period of military 

24 service and one year thereafter.’’; 


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1 (3) in paragraph (3), as redesignated by para2 graph (1) of this subsection, by inserting ‘‘or (2)’’ 

3 after ‘‘paragraph (1)’’; and 

4 (4) in paragraph (4), as so redesignated, by 

5 striking ‘‘paragraph (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph 

6 (3)’’. 

7 (c) IMPLEMENTATION OF LIMITATION.—Subsection 

8 (b) of such section is amended— 

9 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘the interest 

10 rate limitation in subsection (a)’’ and inserting ‘‘an 

11 interest rate limitation in paragraph (1) or (2) of 

12 subsection (a)’’; and 

13 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

14 (A) in the paragraph heading, by striking 

15 ‘‘AS OF DATE OF ORDER TO ACTIVE DUTY’’; and 

16 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

17 end the following: ‘‘in the case of an obligation 

18 or liability covered by subsection (a)(1), or as of 

19 the date the servicemember (or servicemember 

20 and spouse jointly) incurs the obligation or li21 ability concerned under subsection (a)(2)’’. 

22 (d) STUDENT LOAN DEFINED.—Subsection (d) of 

23 such section is amended by adding at the end the following 

24 new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(3) STUDENT LOAN.—The term ‘student loan’ 

2 means the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) A Federal student loan made, in4 sured, or guaranteed under title IV of the 

5 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 

6 et seq.). 

7 ‘‘(B) A private student loan as that term 

8 is defined in section 140(a) of the Truth in 

9 Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a)).’’. 

10 SEC. 13. WORKING GROUP ON IMPROVEMENT OF RE11 SOURCES AVAILABLE TO MEMBERS OF THE 

12 ARMED FORCES AND THEIR SPOUSES IN 

13 USING TUITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS OF 

14 THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE. 

15 (a) WORKING GROUP REQUIRED.—The Secretary of 

16 Defense, the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Vet17 erans Affairs, and the Director of the Bureau of Consumer 

18 Financial Protection shall jointly, and in consultation with 

19 the heads of such other departments and agencies of the 

20 Federal Government as such officials consider appro21 priate, establish and maintain a working group to assess 

22 and improve the resources available to education service 

23 officers and other personnel of the Federal Government 

24 who provide assistance to members of the Armed Forces 


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1 and their spouses in using or seeking to use the tuition 

2 assistance programs of the Department of Defense. 

3 (b) RESOURCES.—In improving resources as de4 scribed in subsection (a), the working group shall provide 

5 for the inclusion of the following in such resources: 

6 (1) Information on the benefits and protections 

7 for members of the Armed Forces and their depend8 ents provided in this Act and the amendments made 

9 by this Act. 

10 (2) Consumer information, resources, and tools 

11 created and maintained by the working group pursu12 ant to this section. 

13 (3) Information on the availability of consumer 

14 protection measures, including the complaint system 

15 established pursuant to Executive Order 13607 (77 

16 Fed. Reg. 25861; relating to establishing principles 

17 of excellence for educational institutions serving 

18 servicemembers, veterans, spouses, and other family 

19 members). 

20 (4) Such other information or resources as the 

21 working group considers appropriate. 

22 SEC. 14. EXCEPTION FOR SERVICEMEMBERS CIVIL RELIEF 

23 ACT. 

24 Section 428(d) (20 U.S.C. 1078(d)) is amended by 

25 striking ‘‘section 207 of the Servicemembers Civil Relief 


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1 Act (50 U.S.C. App. 527)’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

2 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 501 et 

3 seq.)’’. 

Æ 


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