Supporting America's Young Entrepreneurs Act of 2017

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide loan deferment and loan cancellation for founders and employees of small business start-ups, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Supporting America’s Young Entrepreneurs Act of 2017 2. Small business start-up employee loan deferment and cancellation (a) Deferment Section 455(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1087e(f) (1) in paragraph (1), by striking A borrower of a loan Except as provided in paragraph (5), a borrower of a loan (2) by adding at the end the following: (5) No interest deferment eligibility for founders of small business start-ups A borrower of a loan made under this part shall be eligible for a deferment, during which periodic installments of principal and interest need not be paid, during any period not in excess of 3 years during which the borrower is employed as a founder of a small business start-up (as defined in subsection (r)(3)). . (b) Loan cancellation Section 455 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1087e (r) Loan cancellation for certain small business start-Up employees (1) Founder of a small business start-up in a distressed area (A) In general The Secretary shall cancel $20,000 of the balance of interest and principal due, in accordance with subparagraph (B), on any eligible Federal Direct Loan not in default for a borrower who— (i) has made 24 monthly payments on the eligible Federal Direct Loan after the date of the enactment of this subsection pursuant to any one or a combination of payments under a repayment plan under subsection (d)(1) or (g); (ii) has been employed as a founder of a small business start-up in a distressed area during the period in which the borrower makes each of the 24 payments; (iii) is employed as a founder of a small business start-up in a distressed area at the time of such cancellation; and (iv) is approved for loan cancellation by the young entrepreneurs business center under section 47 of the Small Business Act ( 16 U.S.C. 631 et seq. (B) Loan cancellation amount (i) In general After the conclusion of the employment period described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall cancel the obligation to repay $20,000 of the balance of interest and principal due as of the time of such cancellation, on the eligible Federal Direct Loans made to the borrower under this part. (ii) Limitation A borrower may not receive an aggregate amount of more than $20,000 under this subparagraph. (C) Ineligibility for double benefits No borrower may, for the same service, receive a reduction of loan obligations under both this paragraph and— (i) paragraph (2); (ii) subsection (m); or (iii) section 428J, 428K, 428L, or 460. (2) Employee of a small business start-up (A) In general The Secretary shall cancel $3,000 of the balance of interest and principal due, in accordance with subparagraph (B), on any eligible Federal Direct Loan not in default for a borrower who— (i) has made 12 monthly payments on the eligible Federal Direct Loan after the date of the enactment of this subsection pursuant to any one or a combination of payments under a repayment plan under subsection (d)(1) or (g); (ii) has been employed in a small business start-up job during the period in which the borrower makes each of the 12 payments; and (iii) is employed in a small business start-up job at the time of such cancellation. (B) Loan cancellation amount (i) In general After the conclusion of the employment period described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall cancel the obligation to repay $3,000 of the balance of interest and principal due as of the time of such cancellation, on the eligible Federal Direct Loans made to the borrower under this part. (ii) Limitation A borrower may not receive an aggregate amount of more than $15,000 under this subparagraph. (C) Ineligibility for double benefits No borrower may, for the same service, receive a reduction of loan obligations under both this paragraph and— (i) paragraph (1); (ii) subsection (m); or (iii) section 428J, 428K, 428L, or 460. (3) Definitions In this subsection: (A) Distressed area The term distressed area 16 U.S.C. 631 et seq. (B) Eligible Federal Direct Loan The term eligible Federal Direct Loan (C) Founder The term founder (D) Small business start-up The term small business start-up 16 U.S.C. 631 et seq. (E) Small business start-up job The term small business start-up job . 3. Loan refinancing (a) In general Part D of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 is amended by adding at the end the following: 460. Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan program (a) Definitions In this section: (1) Eligible private education loan The term eligible private education loan 15 U.S.C. 1650(a) (2) Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan The term Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan (3) Private educational lender The term private educational lender 15 U.S.C. 1650(a) (4) Qualified borrower The term qualified borrower (A) has an eligible private education loan; (B) has been current on payments on the eligible private education loan for the 6 months prior to the date of the qualified borrower's application for refinancing under this section, and is in good standing on the loan at the time of such application; (C) is not in default on the eligible private education loan or on any loan made, insured, or guaranteed under this part or part B or E; and (D) meets the eligibility requirements described in subsection (b)(2). (b) Program authorized (1) In general The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall carry out a program under which the Secretary, upon application by a qualified borrower who has an eligible private education loan, shall issue such borrower a loan under this part in accordance with the following: (A) The loan issued under this program shall be in an amount equal to the sum of the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and late charges of the private education loan. (B) The Secretary shall pay the proceeds of the loan issued under this program to the private educational lender of the private education loan, in order to discharge the qualified borrower from any remaining obligation to the private educational lender with respect to the original private education loan. (C) The Secretary shall require that the qualified borrower undergo loan counseling that provides all of the information and counseling required under clauses (i) through (viii) of section 485(b)(1)(A) before the loan is refinanced in accordance with this section, and before the proceeds of such loan are paid to the private educational lender. (D) The Secretary shall issue the loan as a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan, which shall have the same terms, conditions, and benefits as a Federal Direct Subsidized Loan, except as otherwise provided in this section. (2) Borrower eligibility Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, shall establish eligibility requirements— (A) to ensure eligibility only for qualified borrowers in good standing; (B) to minimize inequities between Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans and other Federal student loans; (C) to preclude windfall profits for private educational lenders; and (D) to ensure full access to the program authorized in this subsection for borrowers with private loans who otherwise meet the criteria established in accordance with subparagraphs (A) and (B). (c) Interest rate (1) In general The interest rate for a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan is, in the case a private education loan originally issued for undergraduate, graduate, or professional degree posts econdary educational expenses, a rate equal to the rate for Federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loans issued to undergraduate students for the 12-month period beginning on July 1, 2016, and ending on June 30, 2017. (2) Fixed Rate The applicable rate of interest determined under this subsection for a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan shall be fixed for the period of the loan. (d) Treatment of loans Nothing in this section shall affect the ability of a borrower to qualify for loan repayment under a repayment plan under subsection (d)(1) or (g) of section 455. . (b) Notice of potential eligibility Section 128(e) of the Truth in Lending Act ( 15 U.S.C. 1638(e) (12) Notice required along with billing statements Along with each billing statement sent to the borrower, the private educational lender shall include a statement informing the borrower that the borrower may be eligible for the Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan program established under section 460 of the Higher Education Act of 1965. . 4. Young entrepreneurs business center The Small Business Act ( 15 U.S.C. 631 et seq. (1) by redesignating section 47 as section 48; and (2) by inserting after section 46 the following: 47. Young entrepreneurs business center (a) Establishment There is established within the Administration a young entrepreneurs business center that shall, for purposes of loan cancellation for start-up employees established under subsection (r) of section 455 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1087e (1) certify small business start-ups under subsection (b); (2) identify distressed areas under subsection (c); and (3) approve loan cancellation for founders of small business start-ups in distressed areas under subsection (d). (b) Certification (1) Application To be certified by the young entrepreneurs business center, a small business start-up shall submit an application to the Administrator that includes— (A) a 5-year business plan for such small business start-up; and (B) the number of employees the small business start-up intends to employ on a yearly basis. (2) Requirements The young entrepreneurs business center may not certify a small business start-up unless such small business start-up, on the date the application is submitted under paragraph (1)— (A) has a founder who is a recent graduate of a 4-year institution of higher education; (B) is a start-up for which at least 50 percent of the employees of the start-up are recent graduates of such an institution. (c) Distressed area (1) In general Not less than once every 3 years after the date of the enactment of this section, the young entrepreneurs business center shall identify and make publically available on the website of the Administration a list of distressed areas. (2) Requirements A distressed area identified under paragraph (1) shall be a county or equivalent division of local government of a State in which the small business concern is located that— (A) has, for the most recent 24-month period for which statistics are available— (i) a per capita income of 80 percent or less of the national average; or (ii) an unemployment rate that is 1 percent greater than the national average; and (B) the young entrepreneurs business center determines would economically benefit from having small business start-ups established in such area. (d) Loan cancellation for founders of a small business start-Up in a distressed area For purposes of loan cancellation under subsection (r)(1) of section 455 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1087e (1) established a small business start-up that— (A) on the date such small business start-up was established, was located in a distressed area identified by the young entrepreneurs business center under subsection (c) not more than 3 years before such date of establishment; (B) was certified under subsection (b); and (C) on the date of approval under this subsection, has been operating continuously for not less than 5 years; and (2) was employed as a founder of a small business start-up in a distressed area during the period in which such founder made the 24 payments described in subsection (r)(1)(A) of such section 455. (e) Definitions In this section: (1) Institution of higher education The term institution of higher education 20 U.S.C. 1002 (2) Small business start-up The term small business start-up (A) is not yet in existence; or (B) has been in existence for not more than 3 years. . 5. Treatment of loan cancellation (a) In general Section 108(f) (5) Cancellation of certain Federal student loans In the case of an individual, gross income shall not include the discharge (in whole or in part) of any student loan pursuant to the cancellation (in whole or in part) of such loan by the Secretary of Education under subsection (r) of section 455 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1087e . (b) Effective date The amendment made by this section shall apply to discharges of indebtedness occurring after the date of the enactment of this Act.

Summary: Supporting America's Young Entrepreneurs Act of 2017 This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make eligible for deferment and cancellation under the Federal Direct Loan program a borrower who is an employee or founder of a small business start-up in a distressed area. It also amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from an individual's gross income the amount of such canceled student loan debt. The bill establishes a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan program to refinance private education loans. Finally, it establishes a young entrepreneurs business center within the Small Business Administration to certify small business start-ups, identify distressed areas, and approve loan cancelation for founders of small business start-ups.