that together hold a total principal amount 
of such loans equal to 15 percent of the 
total amount calculated under clause (ii), 
but excluding the holder, if any, whose 
holdings when added cause the total hold-
ings of the subset to equal but not exceed 
such 15 percent of such total amount cal-
culated; and 
‘‘(iv) designate as small lenders any 
holder identified as a member of the subset 
under clause (iii).’’. 
SEC. 119. STUDENT LOAN INFORMATION. 
Section 428(k) (20 U.S.C. 1078(k)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(4) STUDENT LOAN INFORMATION.— 
‘‘(A) Notwithstanding any other provision 
of law or regulation, a lender, secondary mar-
ket, holder, or guaranty agency shall provide, 
free of charge and in a timely and effective 
manner, any student loan information main-
tained by that entity that is requested by an in-
stitution of higher education and any third- 
party servicer (as defined in section 481(c)) 
working on behalf of that institution to prevent 
student loan defaults.
‘‘(B) An institution and any third-party 
servicer obtaining access to information under 
subparagraph (A) shall safeguard that informa-
tion in order to prevent potential abuses of that 
information, including identity theft. 
‘‘(C) Any third party servicer that obtains 
information under this subparagraph shall only 
use the information in a manner directly related 
to the default prevention work the servicer is 
performing on behalf of the institution of higher 
education. 
‘‘(D) Any third party servicer that obtains 
information under this subparagraph shall be 
subject to any regulations established by the 
Secretary pursuant to section 432 concerning 
the misuse of such information, including any 
penalties for such misuse.’’. 
PART C—REWARDING SERVICE IN REPAYMENT 
SEC. 141. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR SERVICE IN AREAS OF 
NATIONAL NEED. 
Section 428K (20 U.S.C. 1078–11) is amended to 
read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 428K. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR SERVICE IN AREAS OF 
NATIONAL NEED. 
‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—
‘‘(1) LOAN
FORGIVENESS
AUTHORIZED.—The 
Secretary shall forgive, in accordance with this sec-
tion, the student loan obligation of a borrower in the 
amount specified in subsection (c), for any new bor-
rower after the date of enactment of the College 
Cost Reduction Act of 2007, who— 
‘‘(A) has been employed full-time for at 
least 5 consecutive complete school, academic, 
or calendar years, as appropriate, in an area of 
national need described in subsection (b); and 
‘‘(B) is not in default on a loan for which 
the borrower seeks forgiveness. 
‘‘(2) METHOD
OF
LOAN
FORGIVENESS.—To 
provide loan forgiveness under paragraph (1), the 
Secretary is authorized to carry out a program— 
‘‘(A) through the holder of the loan, to as-
sume the obligation to repay a qualified loan 
amount for a loan made, insured, or guaranteed 
under this part; and 
‘‘(B) to cancel a qualified loan amount for 
a loan made under part D of this title. 
‘‘(3) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary is author-
ized to issue such regulations as may be necessary 
to carry out the provisions of this section.
‘‘(b) AREAS OF NATIONAL NEED.—For purposes of 
this section, an individual shall be treated as employed in 
an area of national need if the individual is employed full 
time as any of the following: 
‘‘(1) EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS.—An in-
dividual who is employed as an early childhood edu-
cator in an eligible preschool program or eligible 
early childhood education program in a low-income 
community, and who is involved directly in the care, 
development, and education of infants, toddlers, or 
young children through age 5. 
‘‘(2) NURSES.—An individual who is em-
ployed— 
‘‘(A) as a nurse in a clinical setting; or 
‘‘(B) as a member of the nursing faculty at 
an accredited school of nursing (as those terms 
are defined in section 801 of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296)). 
‘‘(3) FOREIGN
LANGUAGE
SPECIALISTS.—An 
individual who has obtained a baccalaureate degree 
in a critical foreign language and is employed— 
‘‘(A) in an elementary or secondary school 
as a teacher of a critical foreign language; or
‘‘(B) in an agency of the United States 
Government in a position that regularly re-
quires the use of such critical foreign language. 
‘‘(4) LIBRARIANS.—An individual who is em-
ployed as a librarian in— 
‘‘(A) a public library that serves a geo-
graphic area within which the public schools 
have a combined average of 30 percent or more 
of their total student enrollments composed of 
children counted under section 1113(a)(5) of 
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965; or 
‘‘(B) an elementary or secondary school 
which is in the school district of a local edu-
cational agency which is eligible in such year 
for assistance pursuant to title I of the Elemen-
tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, and 
which for the purpose of this paragraph and for 
that year has been determined by the Secretary 
(pursuant to regulations and after consultation 
with the State educational agency of the State 
in which the school is located) to be a school in 
which the enrollment of children counted under 
section 1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 exceeds 30 per-
cent of the total enrollment of that school. 
‘‘(5) HIGHLY
QUALIFIED
TEACHERS: BILIN-
GUAL
EDUCATION
AND
LOW-INCOME
COMMU-
NITIES.—An individual who— 
‘‘(A) is highly qualified as such term is de-
fined in section 9101 of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965; and 
‘‘(B)(i) is employed as a full-time teacher 
of bilingual education; or 
‘‘(ii) is employed as a teacher for service in 
a public or nonprofit private elementary or sec-
ondary school which is in the school district of 
a local educational agency which is eligible in 
such year for assistance pursuant to title I of 
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965, and which for the purpose of this 
paragraph and for that year has been deter-
mined by the Secretary (pursuant to regulations 
and after consultation with the State edu-
cational agency of the State in which the school 
is located) to be a school in which the enroll-
ment 
of 
children 
counted 
under 
section 
1113(a)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 exceeds 40 percent of 
the total enrollment of that school. 
‘‘(6) CHILD
WELFARE
WORKERS.—An indi-
vidual who— 
‘‘(A) has obtained a degree in social work 
or a related field with a focus on serving chil-
dren and families; and 
‘‘(B) is employed in public or private child 
welfare services. 
‘‘(7) SPEECH-LANGUAGE
PATHOLOGISTS.—An 
individual who is a speech-language pathologist, who 
is employed in an eligible preschool program or an 
elementary or secondary school, and who has, at a 
minimum, a graduate degree in speech-language pa-
thology, or communication sciences and disorders. 
‘‘(8) NATIONAL SERVICE.—An individual who is 
engaged as a participant in project under the Na-
tional and Community Service Act of 1990 (as such 
terms are defined in section 101 of such Act (42 
U.S.C. 12511)). 
‘‘(9) PUBLIC
SECTOR
EMPLOYEES.—An indi-
vidual who is employed in government, public safety 
(including as a first responder, firefighter, police of-
ficer, or other law enforcement or public safety offi-
cer), emergency management (including as an emer-
gency medical technician), public health, or public 
interest legal services (including prosecution or pub-
lic defense). 
‘‘(c) QUALIFIED LOAN AMOUNT.—The Secretary 
shall forgive not more than $5,000 in the aggregate of 
the student loan obligation of a borrower that is out-
standing after the completion of the fifth consecutive 
school, academic, or calendar year of employment, as ap-
propriate, described in subsection (a)(1). 
‘‘(d) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall 
be construed to authorize the refunding of any repayment 
of a loan. 
‘‘(e) SEGAL AMERICORPS EDUCATION AWARD RE-
CIPIENTS.—A student borrower who qualifies for the max-
imum education award under subtitle D of title I of the 
National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
12601 et seq.) shall not receive under this section more 
than the difference between the maximum benefit available 
under this section and the maximum award available 
under such subtitle. 
‘‘(f) NATIONAL SERVICE AWARD RECIPIENTS.—A 
student borrower who receives the maximum education 
award under subtitle D of title I of the National and Com-
munity Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12601 et seq.) 
shall not receive under this section more than the dif-
ference between the maximum benefit available under this 
section and the award received under such subtitle. 
‘‘(g) INELIGIBILITY FOR DOUBLE BENEFITS.—No 
borrower may receive a reduction of loan obligations under 
both this section and section 428J or 460. 
‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) CRITICAL FOREIGN LANGUAGE.—The term 
‘critical foreign language’ includes the languages of 
Arabic, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Pashto, Persian- 
Farsi, Serbian-Croatian, Russian, Portuguese, and 
any other language identified by the Secretary of 
Education, in consultation with the Defense Lan-
guage Institute, the Foreign Service Institute, and 
the National Security Education Program, as a crit-
ical foreign language need. 
‘‘(2) 
EARLY
CHILDHOOD
EDUCATOR.—The 
term ‘early childhood educator’ means an early 
childhood educator who works directly with children 
in an eligible preschool program or eligible early 
childhood education program who has completed a 
baccalaureate or advanced degree in early childhood 
development, early childhood education, or in a field 
related to early childhood education. 
‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE
PRESCHOOL
PROGRAM.—The 
term ‘eligible preschool program’ means a program
that provides for the care, development, and edu-
cation of infants, toddlers, or young children 
through age 5, meets any applicable State or local 
government licensing, certification, approval, and 
registration requirements, and is operated by— 
‘‘(A) a public or private school that may be 
supported, sponsored, supervised, or adminis-
tered by a local educational agency; 
‘‘(B) a Head Start agency serving as a 
grantee designated under the Head Start Act 
(42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.); 
‘‘(C) a nonprofit or community based orga-
nization; or 
‘‘(D) a child care program, including a 
home. 
‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION 
PROGRAM.—The term ‘eligible early childhood edu-
cation program’ means— 
‘‘(A) a family child care program, center- 
based child care program, State prekinder-
garten program, school program, or other out- 
of-home early childhood development care pro-
gram, that— 
‘‘(i) is licensed or regulated by the 
State; and
‘‘(ii) serves 2 or more unrelated chil-
dren who are not old enough to attend kin-
dergarten; 
‘‘(B) a Head Start Program carried out 
under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et 
seq.); or 
‘‘(C) an Early Head Start Program carried 
out under section 645A of the Head Start Act 
(42 U.S.C. 9840a). 
‘‘(5) LOW-INCOME COMMUNITY.—In this sub-
section, the term ‘low-income community’ means a 
community in which 70 percent of households earn 
less than 85 percent of the State median household 
income. 
‘‘(6) NURSE.—The term ‘nurse’ means a nurse 
who meets all of the following: 
‘‘(A) The nurse graduated from— 
‘‘(i) an accredited school of nursing 
(as those terms are defined in section 801 
of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 296)); 
‘‘(ii) a nursing center; or 
‘‘(iii) an academic health center that 
provides nurse training.
‘‘(B) The nurse holds a valid and unre-
stricted license to practice nursing in the State 
in which the nurse practices in a clinical set-
ting. 
‘‘(C) The nurse holds one or more of the 
following: 
‘‘(i) A graduate degree in nursing, or 
an equivalent degree. 
‘‘(ii) A nursing degree from a colle-
giate school of nursing (as defined in sec-
tion 801 of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 296)). 
‘‘(iii) A nursing degree from an asso-
ciate degree school of nursing (as defined 
in section 801 of the Public Health Service 
Act (42 U.S.C. 296)). 
‘‘(iv) A nursing degree from a diploma 
school of nursing (as defined in section 
801 of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 296)). 
‘‘(7) SPEECH-LANGUAGE
PATHOLOGIST.—The 
term ‘speech-language pathologist’ means a speech- 
language pathologist who meets all of the following: 
‘‘(A) the speech-language pathologist has 
received, at a minimum, a graduate degree in
speech-language pathology or communication 
sciences and disorders from an institution of 
higher education accredited by an agency or as-
sociation recognized by the Secretary pursuant 
to section 496(a) of this Act; and 
‘‘(B) 
the 
speech-language 
pathologist 
meets or exceeds the qualifications as defined in 
section 1861(ll) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395x). 
‘‘(i) PROGRAM FUNDING.—There shall be available to 
the Secretary to carry out this section, from funds not 
otherwise appropriated, such sums as may be necessary 
to provide loan forgiveness in accordance with this section 
to each eligible individual.’’. 
SEC. 142. INCOME CONTINGENT REPAYMENT FOR PUBLIC 
SECTOR EMPLOYEES. 
Section 455(e) (20 U.S.C. 1087e(e)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(7) REPAYMENT PLAN FOR PUBLIC SECTOR 
EMPLOYEES.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
forgive the balance due on any loan made under 
this part or section 428C(b)(5) for a bor-
rower—
‘‘(i) who has made 120 payments on 
such loan pursuant to income contingent 
repayment; and 
‘‘(ii) who is employed, and was em-
ployed for the 10-year period in which the 
borrower made the 120 payments de-
scribed in clause (i), in a public sector job. 
‘‘(B) PUBLIC SECTOR JOB.—In this para-
graph, the term ‘public sector job’ means a full- 
time job in emergency management, govern-
ment, public safety, law enforcement, public 
health, education (including early childhood 
education), social work in a public child or fam-
ily service agency, or public interest legal serv-
ices (including prosecution or public defense). 
‘‘(8) RETURN TO STANDARD REPAYMENT.—A 
borrower who is repaying a loan made under this 
part pursuant to income contingent repayment may 
choose, at any time, to terminate repayment pursu-
ant to income contingent repayment and repay such 
loan under the standard repayment plan.’’. 
SEC. 143. INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—Part G of title IV (20 U.S.C. 
1088 et seq.) is further amended by adding at the end 
the following:
‘‘SEC. 493C. INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) EXCEPTED
PLUS
LOAN.—The term ‘ex-
cepted PLUS loan’ means a loan under section 
428B, or a Federal Direct PLUS Loan, that is 
made, insured, or guaranteed on behalf of a depend-
ent student. 
‘‘(2) PARTIAL
FINANCIAL
HARDSHIP.—The 
term ‘partial financial hardship’ means the amount 
by which— 
‘‘(A) the annual amount due on the total 
amount of loans made, insured, or guaranteed 
under part B or D (other than an excepted 
PLUS loan) to a borrower as calculated under 
the standard repayment plan under section 
428(b)(9)(A)(i) or 455(d)(1)(A); exceeds 
‘‘(B) 15 percent of the result obtained by 
calculating the amount by which— 
‘‘(i) the borrower’s, and the bor-
rower’s spouse’s (if applicable), adjusted 
gross income; exceeds 
‘‘(ii) 150 percent of the poverty line 
applicable to the borrower’s family size as 
determined under section 673(2) of the 
Community Services Block Grant Act (42 
U.S.C. 9902(2)).
‘‘(b) INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT PROGRAM AU-
THORIZED.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
Act, the Secretary shall carry out a program under 
which— 
‘‘(1) a borrower of any loan made, insured, or 
guaranteed under part B or D (other than an ex-
cepted PLUS loan) who has a partial financial hard-
ship may elect, during any period the borrower has 
the partial financial hardship, to have the borrower’s 
aggregate monthly payment for all such loans not 
exceed the result described in subsection (a)(2)(B) 
divided by 12; 
‘‘(2) the holder of such a loan shall apply the 
borrower’s monthly payment under this subsection 
first toward interest due on the loan and then to-
ward the principal of the loan; 
‘‘(3) any interest due and not paid under para-
graph (2) shall be capitalized; 
‘‘(4) any principal due and not paid under 
paragraph (2) shall be deferred; 
‘‘(5) the amount of time the borrower makes 
monthly payments under paragraph (1) may exceed 
10 years;
‘‘(6) if the borrower no longer has a partial fi-
nancial hardship or no longer wishes to continue the 
election under this subsection, then— 
‘‘(A) the maximum monthly payment re-
quired to be paid for all loans made to the bor-
rower under part B or D (other than an ex-
cepted PLUS loan) shall not exceed the month-
ly 
amount 
calculated 
under 
section 
428(b)(9)(A)(i) or 455(d)(1)(A) when the bor-
rower first made the election described in this 
subsection; and 
‘‘(B) the amount of time the borrower is 
permitted to repay such loans may exceed 10 
years; 
‘‘(7) the Secretary shall repay or cancel any 
outstanding balance of principal and interest due on 
all loans made under part B or D (other than a loan 
under section 428B or a Federal Direct PLUS 
Loan) to a borrower who— 
‘‘(A) is in deferment due to an economic 
hardship described in section 435(o) for a pe-
riod of time prescribed by the Secretary, not to 
exceed 20 years; or 
‘‘(B)(i) makes the election under this sub-
section; and
‘‘(ii) for a period of time prescribed by the 
Secretary, not to exceed 20 years (including any 
period during which the borrower is in 
deferment due to an economic hardship de-
scribed in section 435(o)), meets 1 or more of 
the following requirements: 
‘‘(I) Has made reduced monthly pay-
ments under paragraph (1). 
‘‘(II) Has made monthly payments of 
not less than the monthly amount cal-
culated under section 428(b)(9)(A)(i) or 
455(d)(1)(A) when the borrower first made 
the election described in this subsection. 
‘‘(III) Has made payments under a 
standard repayment plan under section 
428(b)(9)(A)(i) or 455(d)(1)(A). 
‘‘(IV) Has made payments under an 
income contingent repayment plan under 
section 455(d)(1)(D); and 
‘‘(8) a borrower who is repaying a loan made 
under this part pursuant to income-based repayment 
may elect, at any time, to terminate repayment pur-
suant to income-based repayment and repay such 
loan under the standard repayment plan.’’.