I
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3727
To provide loan forgiveness for individuals who earn a degree in early child-
hood education, and enter and remain employed in the early child care
profession, to provide loan cancellation for certain child care providers,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 23, 1998
Mr. LAZIO of New York (for himself, Mr. QUINN, Mr. HORN, and Mr. BOEH-
LERT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Education and the Workforce
A BILL
To provide loan forgiveness for individuals who earn a degree
in early childhood education, and enter and remain em-
ployed in the early child care profession, to provide loan
cancellation for certain child care providers, 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 ‘‘Quality Child Care
Loan Forgiveness Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(6) Low-income and high-income children are
more likely than middle-income children to attend
child care facilities providing high quality child care.
(7) The quality of child care is primarily related
to high staff-to-child ratios, staff education, and ad-
ministrators’ prior experience. In addition, certain
characteristics distinguish poor, mediocre, and good-
quality child care facilities, the most important of
which are teacher wages, education, and specialized
training.
SEC. 3. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to bring more highly trained individuals into
the early child care profession; and
(2) to keep more highly trained child care pro-
viders in the early child care field for longer periods
of time.
SEC. 4. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR CHILD CARE PROVIDERS.
Part B of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1071 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section
428J of such Act (20 U.S.C. 1078–10) the following:
‘‘SEC. 428I. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR CHILD CARE PROVID-
ERS.
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
‘‘(1) CHILD CARE FACILITY.—The term ‘child
care facility’ means a facility that—
‘‘(A) provides child care services; and
‘‘(B) meets applicable State or local gov-
ernment licensing, certification, approval, or
registration requirements, if any.
‘‘(2) CHILD CARE SERVICES.—The term ‘child
care services’ means activities and services provided
for the education and care of children from birth
through age 5 by an individual who has a degree in
early childhood education.
‘‘(3) DEGREE.—The term ‘degree’ means an as-
sociate’s or bachelor’s degree awarded by an institu-
tion of higher education.
‘‘(4) EARLY
CHILDHOOD
EDUCATION.—The
term ‘early childhood education’ means education in
the areas of early child education, child care, or any
other educational area related to child care that the
Secretary determines appropriate.
‘‘(5) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—
The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the
meaning given the term in section 1201.
‘‘(b) DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may carry
out a demonstration program of assuming the obli-
gation to repay, pursuant to subsection (c), a loan
made, insured or guaranteed under this part or part
D (excluding loans made under sections 428B and
428C) for any new borrower after October 1, 1994,
who completes a degree in early childhood education
and obtains full-time employment in a child care fa-
cility.
‘‘(2) AWARD BASIS; PRIORITY.—
‘‘(A) AWARD BASIS.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B), loan repayment under this section
shall be on a first-come, first-served basis and
subject to the availability of appropriations.
‘‘(B) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall give
priority in providing loan repayment under this
section for a fiscal year to student borrowers
who received loan repayment under this section
for the preceding fiscal year.
‘‘(3) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary is author-
ized to prescribe such regulations as may be nec-
essary to carry out the provisions of this section.
‘‘(c) LOAN REPAYMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall assume
the obligation to repay 15 percent of the total
amount of all loans made after October 1, 1994, to
a student under this part or part D for each com-
plete year of employment described in subsection
(b)(1).
‘‘(2) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section
shall be construed to authorize the refunding of any
repayment of a loan made under this part or part
D.
‘‘(3) INTEREST.—If a portion of a loan is re-
paid by the Secretary under this section for any
year, the proportionate amount of interest on such
loan which accrues for such year shall be repaid by
the Secretary.
‘‘(4) SPECIAL RULE.—In the case where a stu-
dent borrower who is not participating in loan repay-
ment pursuant to this section returns to an institu-
tion of higher education after graduation from an in-
stitution of higher education for the purpose of ob-
taining a degree in early childhood education, the
Secretary is authorized to assume the obligation to
repay the total amount of loans made under this
part or part D incurred for a maximum of two aca-
demic years in returning to an institution of higher
education for the purpose of obtaining a degree in
early childhood education. Such loans shall only be
repaid for borrowers who qualify for loan repayment
pursuant to the provisions of this section, and shall
be repaid in accordance with the provisions of para-
graph (1).
‘‘(5) INELIGIBILITY
OF
NATIONAL
SERVICE
AWARD RECIPIENTS.—No student borrower may, for
the same volunteer service, receive a benefit under
both this section and subtitle D of title I of the Na-
tional and Community Service Act of 1990 (42
U.S.C. 12601 et seq.).
‘‘(d) REPAYMENT TO ELIGIBLE LENDERS.—The Sec-
retary shall pay to each eligible lender or holder for each
fiscal year an amount equal to the aggregate amount of
loans which are subject to the repayment pursuant to this
section for such year.
‘‘(e) APPLICATION FOR REPAYMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible individual de-
siring loan repayment under this section shall sub-
mit a complete and accurate application to the Sec-
retary at such time, in such manner, and containing
such information as the Secretary may require.
‘‘(2) CONDITIONS.—An eligible individual may
apply for loan repayment under this section after
completing each year of qualifying employment. The
borrower shall receive forbearance while engaged in
qualifying employment unless the borrower is in
deferment while so engaged.
‘‘(f) EVALUATION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall con-
duct, by grant or contract, an independent national
evaluation of the impact of the demonstration pro-
gram assisted under this section on the field of early
childhood education.
‘‘(2) COMPETITIVE BASIS.—The grant or con-
tract described in subsection (a) shall be awarded on
a competitive basis.
‘‘(3) CONTENTS.—The evaluation described in
this subsection shall—
‘‘(A) determine the number of individuals
who were encouraged by the demonstration pro-
gram assisted under this section to pursue early
childhood education;
‘‘(B) determine the number of individuals
who remain employed in a child care facility as
a result of participation in the program;
‘‘(C) identify the barriers to the effective-
ness of the program;
‘‘(D) assess the cost-effectiveness of the
program in improving the quality of—
‘‘(i) early childhood education; and
‘‘(ii) child care services;
‘‘(E) identify the reasons why participants
in the program have chosen to take part in the
program;
‘‘(F) identify the number of individuals
participating in the program who received an
associate’s degree and the number of such indi-
viduals who received a bachelor’s degree; and
‘‘(G) identify the number of years each in-
dividual participates in the program.
‘‘(4) INTERIM
AND
FINAL
EVALUATION
RE-
PORTS.—The Secretary shall prepare and submit to
the President and the Congress such interim reports
regarding the evaluation described in this subsection
as the Secretary deems appropriate, and shall pre-
pare and so submit a final report regarding the eval-
uation by January 1, 2002.
‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$10,000,000 for fiscal year 1998, and such sums as may
be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.’’.
SEC. 5. LOAN CANCELLATION.
Section 465(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 1087ee(a)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (2)—
(A) by redesignating subparagraphs (G),
(H), and (I) as subparagraphs (H), (I), and
(J), respectively; and
(B) by inserting after subparagraph (F),
the following:
‘‘(G) as a full-time child care provider or
educator—
‘‘(i) in a child care facility operated by
an entity that meets the applicable State
or local government licensing, certification,
approval, or registration requirements, if
any; and
‘‘(ii) who has a degree in early child-
hood education;’’; and
(2) in paragraph (3)(A)—
(A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘(G), (H), or
(I)’’ and inserting ‘‘(H), (I), or (J)’’; and
(B) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘or (G)’’
after ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’.
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