Bill Text: TX SB1720 | 2013-2014 | 83rd Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to the Math and Science Scholars Loan Repayment Program for teachers who agree to teach mathematics or science in certain school districts in this state.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)
Status: (Passed) 2013-06-14 - Effective immediately [SB1720 Detail]
Download: Texas-2013-SB1720-Enrolled.html
S.B. No. 1720 |
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relating to the Math and Science Scholars Loan Repayment Program | ||
for teachers who agree to teach mathematics or science in certain | ||
school districts in this state. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Chapter 61, Education Code, is amended by adding | ||
Subchapter II to read as follows: | ||
SUBCHAPTER II. MATH AND SCIENCE SCHOLARS LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM | ||
Sec. 61.9831. LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED. The | ||
board shall provide, in accordance with this subchapter and board | ||
rules, assistance in the repayment of eligible student loans for | ||
eligible persons who agree to teach mathematics or science for a | ||
specified period in school districts that receive federal funding | ||
under Title I, Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 | ||
U.S.C. Section 6301 et seq.). | ||
Sec. 61.9832. ELIGIBILITY; AGREEMENT REQUIREMENTS. | ||
(a) To be eligible to receive loan repayment assistance under this | ||
subchapter, a person must: | ||
(1) apply annually for the loan repayment assistance | ||
in the manner prescribed by the board; | ||
(2) be a United States citizen; | ||
(3) have completed an undergraduate or graduate | ||
program in mathematics or science; | ||
(4) have a cumulative grade point average of at least | ||
3.5 on a four-point scale or the equivalent; | ||
(5) be certified under Subchapter B, Chapter 21, to | ||
teach mathematics or science in a public school in this state or be | ||
enrolled in an educator preparation program to obtain that | ||
certification that is accredited by the State Board for Educator | ||
Certification and is provided by an institution of higher education | ||
or by a private or independent institution of higher education in | ||
this state; | ||
(6) have been employed for at least one year as a | ||
teacher teaching mathematics or science at a public school located | ||
in a school district that receives funding under Title I, | ||
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section | ||
6301 et seq.); | ||
(7) not be in default on any other education loan; | ||
(8) not receive any other state or federal loan | ||
repayment assistance, including a Teacher Education Assistance for | ||
College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant or teacher loan | ||
forgiveness; | ||
(9) enter into an agreement with the board under | ||
Subsection (c); and | ||
(10) comply with any other requirement adopted by the | ||
board under this subchapter. | ||
(b) An initial application for loan repayment assistance | ||
under this subchapter must include a transcript of the applicant's | ||
postsecondary coursework. | ||
(c) To receive loan repayment assistance under this | ||
subchapter, a person must enter into an agreement with the board | ||
that includes the following provisions: | ||
(1) the person will accept an offer of full-time | ||
employment to teach mathematics or science, as applicable based on | ||
the person's certification, in a public school located in a school | ||
district that receives funding under Title I, Elementary and | ||
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section 6301 et seq.); | ||
(2) the person will complete four consecutive years of | ||
employment as a full-time classroom teacher in a school described | ||
by Subdivision (1) whose primary duty is to teach mathematics or | ||
science, as applicable, based on the person's certification; | ||
(3) beginning with the school year immediately | ||
following the last of the four consecutive school years described | ||
by Subdivision (2), the person will complete four additional | ||
consecutive school years teaching in any public school in this | ||
state; and | ||
(4) the person acknowledges the conditional nature of | ||
the loan repayment assistance. | ||
(d) To satisfy the teaching obligation prescribed by an | ||
agreement under this section, a person must teach mathematics or | ||
science courses for not less than an average of four hours each | ||
school day. | ||
Sec. 61.9833. AWARD. (a) Except as provided by Section | ||
61.9834, the board shall determine the annual amount of loan | ||
assistance payments provided under this subchapter in any year to | ||
an eligible person, taking into consideration the amount of | ||
available funding and other relevant considerations. | ||
(b) The board shall reduce the amount of a single assistance | ||
payment or refrain from making a loan assistance payment to an | ||
eligible person as necessary to avoid making total payments under | ||
this subchapter to the person in an amount greater than the total | ||
amount of principal and interest due on the person's eligible | ||
loans. | ||
Sec. 61.9834. EXCEPTION TO CONSECUTIVE YEARS OF EMPLOYMENT | ||
REQUIREMENT. The board shall excuse an otherwise eligible person | ||
from a requirement imposed by Section 61.9832 that the employment | ||
qualifying the person for loan repayment assistance be performed in | ||
consecutive years if the break in employment is a result of the | ||
person's: | ||
(1) full-time enrollment in a course of study related | ||
to the field of teaching that is approved by the State Board for | ||
Educator Certification and provided by an institution of higher | ||
education or by a private or independent institution of higher | ||
education in this state; | ||
(2) service on active duty as a member of the armed | ||
forces of the United States, including as a member of a reserve or | ||
National Guard unit called for active duty; | ||
(3) temporary total disability for a period of not | ||
more than 36 months as established by the affidavit of a qualified | ||
physician; | ||
(4) inability to secure employment as required by | ||
Section 61.9832 for a period not to exceed 12 months, because of | ||
care required by a disabled spouse or child; | ||
(5) inability, despite reasonable efforts, to secure, | ||
for a single period not to exceed 12 months, employment as required | ||
by Section 61.9832; or | ||
(6) satisfaction of the provisions of any other | ||
exception adopted by the board for purposes of this section. | ||
Sec. 61.9835. ELIGIBLE LOANS. (a) The board may provide | ||
repayment assistance under this subchapter for the repayment of any | ||
student loan that: | ||
(1) is for education at a public or private | ||
institution of higher education; and | ||
(2) is received by an eligible person through an | ||
eligible lender. | ||
(b) If the loan is not a state or federal guaranteed student | ||
loan, the note or other writing governing the terms of the loan must | ||
require the loan proceeds to be used for expenses incurred by a | ||
person in attending a postsecondary educational institution. | ||
(c) The board may not provide loan repayment assistance | ||
under this subchapter for a student loan that is in default at the | ||
time of the person's application for repayment assistance. | ||
Sec. 61.9836. PAYMENT OF ASSISTANCE. (a) The board shall | ||
pay any loan repayment assistance under this subchapter in a lump | ||
sum delivered on the eligible person's behalf directly to the | ||
holder of the loan. | ||
(b) Loan repayment assistance provided under this | ||
subchapter may be applied to any amount due on the loan. | ||
(c) Each fiscal biennium, the board shall attempt to | ||
allocate all money available to the board for the purpose of | ||
providing loan repayment assistance under this subchapter. | ||
Sec. 61.9837. MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE TEACHER INVESTMENT | ||
FUND. (a) In this section, "fund" means the mathematics and | ||
science teacher investment fund. | ||
(b) The fund is a dedicated account in the general revenue | ||
fund and consists of: | ||
(1) gifts, grants, and other donations received for | ||
the fund; and | ||
(2) interest and other earnings from the investment of | ||
the fund. | ||
(c) The fund may be used only to provide repayment | ||
assistance for the repayment of loans eligible under Section | ||
61.9835, including related administrative costs. | ||
(d) The fund is exempt from the application of Sections | ||
403.095 and 404.071, Government Code. | ||
(e) The board may accept grants, gifts, or donations from | ||
any public or private entity for the purposes of this subchapter. | ||
All money received under this subchapter shall be deposited in the | ||
fund. | ||
(f) The legislature may not appropriate general revenue to | ||
the fund. | ||
Sec. 61.9838. AMOUNT OF LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE. | ||
(a) The total amount of loan repayment assistance paid by the | ||
board under this subchapter may not exceed the total amount of money | ||
available in the fund under Section 61.9837. | ||
(b) Not more than 4,000 eligible persons may be provided | ||
loan repayment assistance under this subchapter in any school year. | ||
(b-1) This subsection expires January 1, 2020. | ||
Notwithstanding Subsection (b), not more than the following number | ||
of eligible persons may be provided loan repayment assistance under | ||
this subchapter in the specified school year: | ||
(1) in the 2016-2017 school year, not more than 1,000 | ||
eligible persons may be provided loan repayment assistance; | ||
(2) in the 2017-2018 school year, not more than 2,000 | ||
eligible persons may be provided loan repayment assistance; and | ||
(3) in the 2018-2019 school year, not more than 3,000 | ||
eligible persons may be provided loan repayment assistance. | ||
(c) If in any year the amount of money available for loan | ||
repayment assistance under this subchapter is insufficient to | ||
provide loan repayment assistance to each eligible applicant or if | ||
there are more eligible applicants than the number authorized by | ||
this section, the board shall establish criteria to determine which | ||
eligible applicants will be provided repayment assistance as the | ||
board determines appropriate to further the purposes of this | ||
subchapter. | ||
(d) Only available money in the mathematics and science | ||
teacher investment fund may be used for loan repayment assistance | ||
under this subchapter. | ||
Sec. 61.9839. REPAYMENT BASED ON CONTINUING EMPLOYMENT. | ||
(a) An eligible person may continue to receive loan repayment | ||
assistance if the person continues to teach in a public school | ||
described by Section 61.9832(a)(7) after the first four years | ||
required for eligibility under Section 61.9832(c)(2). | ||
(b) If an eligible person transfers to a public school | ||
located in a school district that does not receive funding under | ||
Title I, Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. | ||
Section 6301 et seq.), after the first four years required for | ||
eligibility under Section 61.9832(c)(2), the person may not receive | ||
more than 75 percent of the maximum annual amount of the loan | ||
repayment assistance as determined by the board. | ||
(c) A person who does not satisfy the applicable conditions | ||
of this subchapter after establishing eligibility for an award of | ||
loan repayment assistance under this subchapter is no longer | ||
eligible to apply for such assistance. | ||
Sec. 61.9840. RULES. The board shall adopt rules necessary | ||
for the administration of this subchapter, including a rule | ||
providing for: | ||
(1) the manner in which a person may apply for loan | ||
repayment assistance; and | ||
(2) a method of awarding assistance under this | ||
subchapter that: | ||
(A) gives first priority to applicants who are | ||
renewing their applications for loan repayment assistance provided | ||
under this subchapter; and | ||
(B) awards any remaining available assistance | ||
according to a cumulative ranking system developed by the board | ||
based on the number of mathematics and science courses completed by | ||
the applicant and the grade received by the applicant for each of | ||
those courses. | ||
Sec. 61.9841. APPLICATION FORM. (a) The board shall by | ||
rule adopt a common application form for use by new applicants and | ||
renewal applicants. | ||
(b) The form must include a section in which the school | ||
district for which the applicant has taught for at least one year | ||
verifies the applicant's year of employment. | ||
SECTION 2. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board | ||
shall begin providing loan repayment assistance under Subchapter | ||
II, Chapter 61, Education Code, as added by this Act, for eligible | ||
persons teaching in the 2016-2017 school year. | ||
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives | ||
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as | ||
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this | ||
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this | ||
Act takes effect September 1, 2013. | ||
______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1720 passed the Senate on | ||
May 8, 2013, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0; and that the | ||
Senate concurred in House amendment on May 25, 2013, by the | ||
following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Secretary of the Senate | ||
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1720 passed the House, with | ||
amendment, on May 22, 2013, by the following vote: Yeas 142, | ||
Nays 6, two present not voting. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Chief Clerk of the House | ||
Approved: | ||
______________________________ | ||
Date | ||
______________________________ | ||
Governor |