Bill Text: IA HF2448 | 2019-2020 | 88th General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: A bill for an act establishing a rural veterinarian loan repayment program for veterinary students and certain licensed veterinarians and a rural veterinary care trust fund, and making appropriations. (Formerly HF 2350; See HF 2615.)

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-06-11 - Withdrawn. H.J. 711. [HF2448 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2019-HF2448-Introduced.html
House File 2448 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 2448 BY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION (SUCCESSOR TO HF 2350) A BILL FOR An Act establishing a rural veterinarian loan repayment 1 program for veterinary students and certain licensed 2 veterinarians and a rural veterinary care trust fund, and 3 making appropriations. 4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 5 TLSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm
H.F. 2448 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 261.120 Rural veterinarian loan 1 repayment program —— fund —— appropriations. 2 1. Definitions. For purposes of this section, unless the 3 context otherwise requires: 4 a. “Eligible loan” means the veterinarian’s total federally 5 guaranteed Stafford loan amount under the federal family 6 education loan program or the federal direct loan program, or 7 the recipient’s federal grad plus loans, including principal 8 and interest. 9 b. “Practice of food supply veterinary medicine” includes 10 corporate and private practices devoted to food animal 11 medicine, mixed animal medicine located in a rural area, food 12 safety, epidemiology, public health, animal health, and other 13 public and private practices that contribute to the production 14 of a safe and wholesome food supply. 15 c. “Rural service commitment area” means a city in Iowa 16 with a population of less than twenty-six thousand that is 17 located more than twenty miles from a city with a population of 18 fifty thousand or more and which provides a dollar contribution 19 equivalent to twelve and one-half percent of the veterinarian’s 20 total eligible loan amount upon graduation for deposit in the 21 rural veterinary care trust fund. 22 d. Veterinary shortage area” means a designated veterinary 23 service shortage situation in Iowa identified or nominated by 24 the state veterinarian, and recommended for designation in 25 accordance with the federal National Veterinary Medical Service 26 Act, 7 U.S.C. §3101 et seq., and published by the United States 27 department of agriculture. 28 2. Program established. A rural veterinarian loan 29 repayment program is established to be administered by the 30 college student aid commission for purposes of providing 31 loan repayments for individuals who agree to practice 32 as veterinarians in rural service commitment areas or in 33 veterinary shortage areas in Iowa for four years and meet the 34 requirements of this section. The commission shall adopt 35 -1- LSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm 1/ 8
H.F. 2448 rules pursuant to chapter 17A to administer this section. 1 The commission may accept gifts, grants, bequests, and other 2 private contributions, as well as state or federal moneys, for 3 deposit in the fund created under subsection 10. 4 3. Eligibility. An individual is eligible to apply to enter 5 into a program agreement with the commission if the individual 6 meets any of the following requirements: 7 a. Is enrolled in the final year of a veterinary degree 8 program at a college of veterinary medicine accredited by the 9 American veterinary medical association council on education. 10 b. Is a veterinarian licensed pursuant to chapter 169 11 who, within five years of applying for this program, received 12 a veterinary medicine degree from a college of veterinary 13 medicine accredited by the American veterinary medical 14 association council on education. 15 4. Program agreements. A program agreement shall be entered 16 into by an individual and the commission if the individual 17 meets the requirements of subsection 3. Under the agreement, 18 to receive loan repayments pursuant to subsection 6, the 19 individual shall fulfill all of the following requirements: 20 a. Receive or possess a doctor of veterinary medicine, 21 or the equivalent, from a college of veterinary medicine 22 accredited by the American veterinary medical association 23 council on education. 24 b. Possess, or apply for and obtain, a license to practice 25 veterinary medicine under chapter 169. 26 c. Secure an offer of employment or establish and maintain 27 a practice in a veterinary shortage situation or rural service 28 commitment area and engage in the full-time practice of 29 veterinary medicine for a period of four consecutive years 30 after entering into the agreement in the veterinary shortage 31 area or rural service commitment area, unless the loan 32 repayment recipient receives a waiver from the commission to 33 complete the years of practice required under the agreement in 34 another veterinary shortage area or rural service commitment 35 -2- LSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm 2/ 8
H.F. 2448 area pursuant to subsection 7. 1 5. Priority to certain applicants. The commission shall 2 give priority to applicants who graduated from a high school in 3 Iowa or completed private instruction under chapter 299A. 4 6. Loan repayment amounts. 5 a. Unless the agreement entered into under subsection 6 4 stipulates otherwise, the amount of loan repayment an 7 individual who enters into an agreement shall receive if in 8 compliance with obligations under the agreement shall not 9 exceed fifteen thousand dollars annually for an eligible 10 loan. Payments under this section may be made for each year 11 of eligible practice during a period of four consecutive years 12 and shall not exceed a total of sixty thousand dollars or the 13 amount of outstanding eligible loans, whichever amount is less. 14 b. Subject to the availability of funding for this 15 purpose, the commission shall enter into at least five program 16 agreements annually. 17 7. Selection of rural service commitment area or veterinary 18 shortage area. A loan repayment recipient shall notify the 19 commission of the recipient’s rural service commitment area 20 or veterinary shortage area prior to beginning practice in 21 the area in accordance with subsection 4, paragraph “c” . The 22 commission may waive the requirement that the loan repayment 23 recipient practice in the same rural service commitment area or 24 veterinary shortage area for all four years. 25 8. Rural service commitment area or veterinarian shortage 26 area priority. 27 a. When possible, the commission shall enter into agreements 28 under subsection 4 with individuals who agree to practice in 29 areas in the following priority order: 30 (1) Private practice food supply veterinary medicine in any 31 veterinary shortage area. 32 (2) Private practice food supply veterinary medicine in a 33 city in Iowa with a population of less than twenty-six thousand 34 that is located more than twenty miles from a city with a 35 -3- LSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm 3/ 8
H.F. 2448 population of fifty thousand or more, especially in remote or 1 economically depressed rural areas. 2 (3) Animal veterinary medicine in a rural service 3 commitment area. 4 b. Notwithstanding paragraph “a” , the commission may consult 5 with the state veterinarian to determine prioritization in 6 accordance with this subsection. 7 9. Postponement and satisfaction of service obligation. 8 a. The obligation to engage in practice in accordance with 9 subsection 4 shall be postponed for the following purposes: 10 (1) Active duty status in the armed forces, the armed forces 11 military reserve, or the national guard. 12 (2) Service in volunteers in service to America. 13 (3) Service in the federal peace corps. 14 (4) A period of rural service commitment to the United 15 States public health service commissioned corps. 16 (5) A period of religious missionary work conducted by an 17 organization exempt from federal income taxation pursuant to 18 section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. 19 (6) Any period of temporary medical incapacity during which 20 the person obligated is unable, due to a medical condition, to 21 engage in full-time practice as required under subsection 4, 22 paragraph “c” . 23 b. Except for a postponement under paragraph “a” , 24 subparagraph (6), an obligation to engage in practice under an 25 agreement entered into pursuant to subsection 4 shall not be 26 postponed for more than two years from the time the full-time 27 practice was to have commenced under the agreement. 28 c. An obligation to engage in full-time practice under 29 an agreement entered into pursuant to subsection 4 shall be 30 considered satisfied when any of the following conditions are 31 met: 32 (1) The terms of the agreement are completed. 33 (2) The person who entered into the agreement dies. 34 (3) The person who entered into the agreement, due to 35 -4- LSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm 4/ 8
H.F. 2448 a permanent disability, is unable to practice veterinary 1 medicine. 2 (4) The commission waives the requirement that the person 3 who entered into the agreement fulfill the obligation to engage 4 in practice. 5 d. If a loan repayment recipient fails to fulfill 6 the obligation to engage in practice in accordance with 7 subsection 4, the recipient shall be subject to repayment to 8 the commission of the loan amount plus interest as specified 9 by rule. A loan repayment recipient who fails to meet the 10 requirements of the obligation to engage in practice in 11 accordance with subsection 4 may also be subject to repayment 12 of moneys advanced by the rural service commitment area as 13 provided in any agreement with the rural service commitment 14 area. 15 10. Trust fund established. A rural veterinary care trust 16 fund is created in the state treasury as a separate fund under 17 the control of the commission. The commission may accept 18 gifts, grants, bequests, and other private contributions, as 19 well as state or federal moneys, for deposit in the fund. The 20 commission shall remit all repayments made pursuant to this 21 section to the rural veterinary care trust fund. All moneys 22 deposited or paid into the trust fund are appropriated and 23 made available to the commission to be used for meeting the 24 requirements of this section and increasing the number of 25 veterinarians participating in the program. Moneys in the 26 fund up to the total amount that an eligible individual may 27 receive for an eligible loan in accordance with this section 28 and upon fulfilling the requirements of subsection 4, shall be 29 considered encumbered for the duration of the agreement entered 30 into pursuant to subsection 4. Notwithstanding section 8.33, 31 any balance in the fund on June 30 of each fiscal year shall not 32 revert to the general fund of the state, but shall be available 33 for purposes of this section and to increase the number of 34 veterinarians participating in the program in subsequent fiscal 35 -5- LSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm 5/ 8
H.F. 2448 years. 1 EXPLANATION 2 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 3 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 4 This bill establishes a rural veterinarian loan repayment 5 program in the college student aid commission to provide 6 loan repayments for individuals who agree to practice as 7 licensed veterinarians in rural service commitment areas or 8 in veterinary shortage areas in Iowa for four years, and 9 establishes in the state treasury a rural veterinary care trust 10 fund under the control of the commission. 11 “Rural service commitment area” means a city in Iowa with 12 a population of less than 26,000 that is located more than 13 20 miles from a city with a population of 50,000 or more 14 and which provides a contribution for deposit in the rural 15 veterinary care trust fund equivalent to 12.5 percent of the 16 veterinarian’s total eligible loan amount upon graduation. 17 “Veterinary shortage area” means a designated veterinary 18 service shortage situation in Iowa identified or nominated by 19 the state veterinarian, and recommended for designation in 20 accordance with the federal National Veterinary Medical Service 21 Act, 7 U.S.C. §3101 et seq., and published by the United States 22 department of agriculture. 23 An individual is eligible to enter into an agreement with 24 the commission for loan repayment if the individual is either 25 enrolled in the final year of a veterinary degree program 26 at an accredited college of veterinary medicine or is a 27 licensed veterinarian who, within five years of applying for 28 the program, received a veterinary medicine degree from an 29 accredited college of veterinary medicine. 30 To receive loan repayments, in addition to being or becoming 31 a licensed veterinarian, the individual must secure an offer of 32 employment or establish and maintain a practice in a veterinary 33 shortage situation or rural service commitment area and engage 34 in the full-time practice of veterinary medicine for a period 35 -6- LSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm 6/ 8
H.F. 2448 of four consecutive years in the veterinary shortage area or 1 rural service commitment area. 2 The commission shall give priority to applicants who 3 graduated from an Iowa high school or completed private 4 instruction in Iowa. The bill also directs the commission, 5 when possible, to enter into agreements with individuals 6 who agree to practice in areas in the following priority 7 order: private practice food supply veterinary medicine in 8 any veterinary shortage area; private practice food supply 9 veterinary medicine in a city in Iowa with a population 10 of less than 26,000 located more than 20 miles from a city 11 with a population of 50,000 or more, especially in remote or 12 economically depressed rural areas; and animal veterinary 13 medicine in a rural service commitment area. However, the 14 commission may consult with the state veterinarian to determine 15 prioritization. 16 The bill defines “practice of food supply veterinary 17 medicine” to include corporate and private practices devoted to 18 food animal medicine, mixed animal medicine located in a rural 19 area, food safety, epidemiology, public health, animal health, 20 and other public and private practices that contribute to the 21 production of a safe and wholesome food supply. 22 Unless the agreement stipulates otherwise, the amount of 23 loan repayment shall not exceed $15,000 annually and shall not 24 exceed a total of $60,000 or the amount of outstanding eligible 25 loans, whichever amount is less. 26 Subject to funding, the commission must enter into at least 27 five program agreements annually. 28 The commission may waive the requirement that the loan 29 repayment recipient practice in the same veterinary shortage 30 area or rural service commitment area for all four years. 31 The bill establishes the conditions under which the service 32 obligation may be postponed and terms for satisfaction of the 33 service obligation. Except for a postponement for a medical 34 condition, the service obligation shall not be postponed for 35 -7- LSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm 7/ 8
H.F. 2448 more than two years. The commission is authorized to waive 1 the requirement that the person who entered into the agreement 2 fulfill the obligation to engage in practice. 3 If a loan repayment recipient fails to fulfill their 4 obligation, the recipient shall be subject to repayment of 5 moneys paid by the commission and may also be subject to 6 repayment of moneys advanced by the rural service commitment 7 area. 8 A rural veterinary care trust fund is created in the 9 state treasury as a separate fund under the control of the 10 commission. All moneys deposited or paid into the trust 11 fund are appropriated and made available to the commission 12 to be used for the program and to increase the number of 13 veterinarians in the program and do not revert to the general 14 fund of the state at the end of the fiscal year. The commission 15 may accept gifts, grants, bequests, and other private 16 contributions, as well as state or federal moneys, for deposit 17 in the fund. 18 -8- LSB 5338HV (3) 88 kh/jh/tm 8/ 8
feedback