I 
112TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5895 
To provide interest-free deferment on unsubsidized student loans during 
periods of unemployment, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 5, 2012 
Ms. BASS of California (for herself, Mr. HINOJOSA, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. 
TOWNS, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. CICILLINE, 
Mr. CONYERS, Mr. CLARKE of Michigan, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Ms. 
BORDALLO, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. JOHNSON of 
Georgia, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, 
Mr. SABLAN, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. HONDA, Ms. RICHARDSON, Ms. SEWELL, 
Mr. OLVER, Ms. NORTON, Ms. HAHN, Mr. NADLER, Ms. LEE of Cali-
fornia, Mr. REYES, and Mr. TONKO) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To provide interest-free deferment on unsubsidized student 
loans during periods of unemployment, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Graduate Success 
Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. INTEREST-FREE DEFERMENT OF UNSUBSIDIZED 
LOANS DURING PERIODS OF UNEMPLOY-
MENT. 
(a) FFEL UNSUBSIDIZED LOAN DEFERMENT.— 
(1) Section 428H(e)(2) of the Higher Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–8(e)(2)) is 
amended— 
(A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘Ex-
cept as provided in subparagraph (C),’’ before 
‘‘Interest on’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(C) Interest on loans made under this section 
for which payments are deferred under clause (ii) of 
section 428(b)(1)(M), for a period of deferment 
granted to a borrower on or after the date of enact-
ment of the Graduate Success Act, shall accrue and 
be paid by the Secretary during any period during 
which loans are so deferred, not in excess of 3 
years.’’. 
(2) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section 
428(b)(1)(Y)(iii) of the Higher Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078(b)(1)(Y)(iii)) is amended by 
inserting ‘‘(other than a deferment under clause (ii) 
of such subparagraph on or after the date of enact-
ment of the Graduate Success Act)’’ after ‘‘of this 
paragraph’’. 
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(b) DIRECT UNSUBSIDIZED LOAN DEFERMENT.— 
Section 455(f)(1) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1087e(f)(1)) is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (A)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of clause 
(i); and 
(B) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(iii) a Federal Direct Unsubsidized 
Stafford Loan, with respect to a period of 
deferment described in subparagraph (B) 
of paragraph (2) granted to a borrower on 
or after the date of enactment of the Grad-
uate Success Act; or’’; and 
(2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ‘‘not de-
scribed in subparagraph (A)(iii)’’ after ‘‘Unsub-
sidized Stafford Loan’’. 
(c) TREATMENT OF CONSOLIDATION LOANS.—Sec-
tion 428C(b)(4)(C)(ii) of the Higher Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–3(b)(4)(C)(ii)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subclause 
(II); 
(2) by redesignating subclause (III) as sub-
clause (IV); 
(3) by inserting after subclause (II) the fol-
lowing: 
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‘‘(III) by the Secretary, in the 
case of a consolidation loan for which 
the application is received on or after 
the date of enactment of the Graduate 
Success Act, except that the Secretary 
shall pay such interest only for a pe-
riod not in excess of 3 years for which 
the borrower would be eligible for a 
deferral under clause (ii) of section 
428(b)(1)(M); or’’; and 
(4) in subclause (IV) (as so redesignated by 
this subsection), by striking ‘‘(I) or (II)’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘(I), (II), or (III)’’. 
(d) 
INCOME-BASED
REPAYMENT.—Section 
493C(b)(3) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 10983(b)(3)) is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and’’ 
after the semicolon; 
(2) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as sub-
paragraph (C); 
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(B) shall, on subsidized and unsubsidized 
loans, be paid by the Secretary for a period of 
not more than 3 years during which the bor-
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rower is eligible for a deferment due to unem-
ployment described in section 455(f)(2)(B) (re-
gardless of whether the student is in such a 
deferment), except that— 
‘‘(i) this subparagraph shall only 
apply to periods during which the borrower 
is eligible for a such deferment on or after 
the date of enactment of the Graduate 
Success Act; and 
‘‘(ii) in the case of a subsidized loan, 
such period shall not include any period 
described in subparagraph (A) or any pe-
riod during which the borrower is in 
deferment due to an economic hardship de-
scribed in section 435(o); and’’; and 
(4) in subparagraph (C) (as so redesignated by 
paragraph (2))— 
(A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘subpara-
graph (A)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraphs (A) 
and (B)’’; and 
(B) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘, subject to 
subparagraph (B),’’ after ‘‘unsubsidized loan’’. 
Æ 
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