Title: PSLF Administrative Improvements Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
PSLF Administrative Improvements Act
This bill revises provisions related to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to establish a publicly accessible database of public service employers, which must include information required for the completion of employment certification forms. Such forms must also be available in languages other than English.
ED must annually provide certain notices of PSLF program requirements to public service employers and institutions of higher education. In addition, ED must determine whether a borrower who was denied loan cancellation under the PSLF program qualifies for loan cancellation under the Temporary Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.
The bill requires ED to enter into data matching agreements with relevant federal agencies. In addition, the Department of Labor, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Social Security Administration must disclose any relevant records to ED. ED must notify borrowers of receipt of employer or employment information.
Additionally, it requires ED to ensure that (1) borrowers have access to an online portal that provides borrowers with certain instructions and information, including the number of monthly payments on qualifying loans; and (2) employers have the ability to electronically sign and submit forms associated with loan cancellation.
It also requires ED to develop and make publicly available procedures for determining whether a borrower meets the requirements for loan cancellation under the PSLF program.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6230 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6230

 To amend the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program under the Higher 
   Education Act of 1965 to require an on-line portal, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 12, 2020

  Mr. Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania (for himself and Mr. Joyce of 
    Ohio) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program under the Higher 
   Education Act of 1965 to require an on-line portal, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``PSLF Administrative Improvements 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL PUBLIC SERVICE LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS 
              FOR THE SECRETARY OF EDUCATION.

    Section 455(m) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1087e(m)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) Database of public service jobs and ecf.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not later than 18 months after 
                the date of enactment of the PSLF Administrative 
                Improvements Act, the Secretary shall--
                            ``(i) establish and maintain a publicly 
                        accessible database of public service 
                        employers, which shall include information 
                        required for the process for completion of the 
                        employment certifications forms required under 
                        this subsection; and
                            ``(ii) ensure that such employment 
                        certification forms are available in languages 
                        other than English.
                    ``(B) Employer defined.--For purposes of this 
                subsection, the term `public service employer' has the 
                meaning given the term `public service organization' in 
                section 685.219(b) of title 34, Code of Federal 
                Regulations (or successor regulations).
            ``(6) Notice of pslf requirements.--
                    ``(A) Employers.--With respect to each employer 
                whose contact information is maintained in the database 
                described in paragraph (5), the Secretary shall, on an 
                annual basis and in a manner that is consistent with 
                Federal laws on data privacy--
                            ``(i) provide each such employer with 
                        standardized information on the program under 
                        this subsection, including eligibility 
                        requirements; and
                            ``(ii) encourage the employer to provide 
                        such information to new employees.
                    ``(B) Institutions of higher education.--With 
                respect to each institution of higher education 
                participating in any program under this title, the 
                Secretary shall, on an annual basis, provide each such 
                institution with standardized information on the 
                program under this subsection, including eligibility 
                requirements.
                    ``(C) Borrowers.--With respect to each borrower who 
                was denied loan cancellation under this subsection, the 
                Secretary shall--
                            ``(i) without any further action by the 
                        borrower and subject to the limitation on total 
                        loan volume specified under section 315 of 
                        title III of division H of the Consolidation 
                        Appropriations Act, 2018 (Public Law 115-141; 
                        132 Stat. 752 et seq.) and the availability of 
                        appropriations for such section 315, determine 
                        whether the borrower qualifies for the loan 
                        cancellation program under such section 315, 
                        and if so, cancel the borrower's loans in 
                        accordance with such program; and
                            ``(ii) in a case in which a borrower's 
                        loans were not cancelled under clause (i), 
                        notify the borrower of other options (such as 
                        loan consolidation) to qualify for loan 
                        cancellation under this subsection, and how to 
                        successfully pursue such options.
            ``(7) Data matching agreements.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall enter into 
                data matching agreements with relevant Federal agencies 
                who possess records about the status of borrowers of 
                loans made under this part as employees of public 
                service employers for the purpose of eliminating, to 
                the extent practicable, the need for a borrower or an 
                employer to submit a certification of employment to the 
                Secretary.
                    ``(B) Specific federal agencies.--Notwithstanding 
                any Federal law, the Secretary of Labor, the 
                Commissioner of Internal Revenue, and the Commissioner 
                of Social Security shall disclose any relevant records 
                to the Secretary for the purposes of meeting the 
                Secretary's obligations to reduce barriers to 
                certification of employment as described in 
                subparagraph (A).
                    ``(C) Notice to borrowers.--If the Secretary 
                receives employer or employment information regarding a 
                borrower from a Federal agency pursuant to this 
                paragraph, the Secretary shall timely notify the 
                borrower that--
                            ``(i) the Secretary received the 
                        information; and
                            ``(ii) the borrower, for the duration of 
                        the borrower's employment by the employer--
                                    ``(I) is not required to submit a 
                                certification of employment for the 
                                employer under paragraph (8); or
                                    ``(II) if the information is not 
                                complete, only needs to submit a 
                                reduced set of information to the 
                                Secretary for the certification of 
                                employment.
            ``(8) On-line portal.--
                    ``(A) Borrowers.--Not later than 18 months after 
                the date of enactment of the PSLF Administrative 
                Improvements Act, the Secretary shall ensure that 
                borrowers have access to an on-line portal that 
                provides each borrower who signs on to such portal with 
                the following:
                            ``(i) Instructions on how to access the 
                        database under paragraph (5) so that the 
                        borrower can determine whether the borrower is 
                        employed in a public service job.
                            ``(ii) An identification of the loans of 
                        the borrower that are eligible Federal Direct 
                        Loans.
                            ``(iii) With respect to each such eligible 
                        Federal Direct Loan, the number of monthly 
                        payments on such loan that qualify as a monthly 
                        payment under paragraph (1)(A), and the 
                        estimated number of monthly payments under 
                        paragraph (1)(A) remaining on such loan before 
                        the borrower may be eligible for loan 
                        cancellation under this subsection.
                            ``(iv) With respect to each loan of the 
                        borrower that is not eligible for loan 
                        cancellation under this subsection, an 
                        explanation of why the loan is not so eligible 
                        and instructions on how what, if anything, the 
                        borrower may do to make the loan so eligible.
                            ``(v) Instructions for the submission of 
                        any forms associated with such loan 
                        cancellation, and an ability for the borrower 
                        to use the portal to electronically sign and 
                        submit such forms.
                    ``(B) Employers.--The Secretary shall ensure that 
                an employer of a borrower has the ability to 
                electronically sign and submit any forms associated 
                with loan cancellation under this subsection.
                    ``(C) Information.--The Secretary shall ensure that 
                any information provided through the on-line portal 
                described in this paragraph--
                            ``(i) is up-to-date information; and
                            ``(ii) that such information is also 
                        provided in a written-format through email or 
                        regular mail, if so requested by the borrower 
                        or employer.
            ``(9) Standard procedures.--Not later than 180 days after 
        the date of enactment of the PSLF Administrative Improvements 
        Act, the Secretary shall develop and make publicly available 
        the procedures the Secretary (including the contractors and 
        servicers involved) uses to determine whether a borrower meets 
        the requirements for loan cancellation under this subsection.
            ``(10) Annual report.--The Secretary shall submit to the 
        authorizing committees, an annual report with respect to the 
        preceding fiscal year, on--
                    ``(A) the number of borrowers who received loan 
                cancellation under this subsection, and the number of 
                such borrowers whose application for such loan 
                cancellation had been previously rejected;
                    ``(B) the number of borrowers whose application for 
                loan cancellation under this subsection was rejected, 
                and a description of why each such application was so 
                rejected, disaggregated by category of public service 
                job listed in question 13 of the employment 
                certification form required under this subsection (as 
                in effect on the date of enactment of the PSLF 
                Administrative Improvements Act);
                    ``(C) the number of borrowers whose application for 
                loan cancellation under this subsection had been 
                rejected and who contacted the Secretary to determine 
                how to qualify for such loan cancellation or for the 
                loan cancellation program under section 315 of title 
                III of division H of the Consolidation Appropriations 
                Act, 2018 (Public Law 115-141; 132 Stat. 752 et seq.); 
                and
                    ``(D) the reasons why a payment made on a loan did 
                not qualify as one of the 120 monthly payments under 
                paragraph (1)(A).''.

SEC. 3. CLARIFICATION OF TEPSLF.

    A borrower may qualify for loan cancellation under section 315 of 
title III of division H of the Consolidation Appropriations Act, 2018 
(Public Law 115-141; 132 Stat. 752 et seq.), regardless of whether the 
borrower has been rejected for loan cancellation under section 455(m) 
of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(m)).
                                 <all>