| |
|
| |
| THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA |
| |
| SENATE BILL |
|
| |
| |
| INTRODUCED BY GREENLEAF, KASUNIC, TARTAGLIONE, BROWNE, ERICKSON, KITCHEN, ALLOWAY, GORDNER AND MENSCH, JANUARY 12, 2011 |
| |
| |
| REFERRED TO EDUCATION, JANUARY 12, 2011 |
| |
| |
| |
| AN ACT |
| |
1 | Establishing the Child Welfare Workers Loan Forgiveness Program |
2 | for Commonwealth residents who graduate from institutions of |
3 | higher education and who apply their degrees to careers in |
4 | child welfare work. |
5 | The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania |
6 | hereby enacts as follows: |
7 | Section 1. Short title. |
8 | This act shall be known and may be cited as the Child Welfare |
9 | Workers Loan Forgiveness Act. |
10 | Section 2. Declaration of purpose. |
11 | The primary purpose of a child welfare loan forgiveness |
12 | program is to attract capable and promising students to the |
13 | child welfare profession and to increase employment and |
14 | retention of individuals who are working towards or who have |
15 | received either a bachelor's degree or a master's degree in |
16 | social work, psychology or sociology. |
17 | Section 3. Definitions. |
18 | The following words and phrases when used in this act shall |
19 | have the meanings given to them in this section unless the |
|
1 | context clearly indicates otherwise: |
2 | "Certified child welfare employer." An agency certified by |
3 | the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency as employing |
4 | child welfare workers as provided for under section 4(c). |
5 | "Child welfare worker." A staff person who holds a |
6 | bachelor's, master's or doctorate degree in the field of social |
7 | work, psychology or sociology and is employed by a public or |
8 | private agency serving dependent children or those children who |
9 | have been referred for child welfare services and who works in |
10 | any of the following functional areas: family preservation, |
11 | family support, children's protective services, including on- |
12 | call, investigative assessment and case planning and case |
13 | management, and foster care and adoption, including placement of |
14 | children, recruitment of families, licensing and adoption |
15 | assessment. |
16 | "PHEAA." The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance |
17 | Agency. |
18 | "Program." The Child Welfare Workers Loan Forgiveness |
19 | Program established under this act. |
20 | "Qualified applicant." A person who meets all of the |
21 | following criteria: |
22 | (1) Is a resident of this Commonwealth. |
23 | (2) Has successfully completed a bachelor's, master's or |
24 | doctorate degree in the field of social work, psychology or |
25 | sociology at an accredited institution of higher education. |
26 | (3) Has been hired as a full-time employee of a |
27 | certified child welfare employer. |
28 | (4) Has borrowed through and has a current outstanding |
29 | balance on a Federal Stafford, Graduate PLUS or Consolidation |
30 | Loan Programs administered by the Pennsylvania Higher |
|
1 | Education Assistance Agency. |
2 | Section 4. Child Welfare Workers Loan Forgiveness Program. |
3 | (a) Establishment.--The Child Welfare Workers Loan |
4 | Forgiveness Program is hereby established. PHEAA shall |
5 | administer the program. |
6 | (b) Nature of program.--For each year that a qualified |
7 | applicant is employed by a certified child welfare employer, |
8 | PHEAA may forgive a proportional part of the applicant's student |
9 | loan so that the loan may be partially or entirely forgiven. |
10 | (c) Employer eligibility.--Eligible certified child welfare |
11 | employers for purposes of the program shall include county |
12 | children and youth agencies charged with enforcing 23 Pa.C.S. |
13 | Ch. 63 (relating to child protective services) and private |
14 | providers who serve youth who have been adjudicated dependent or |
15 | delinquent and other entities as determined by PHEAA. |
16 | (d) Limitations.-- |
17 | (1) For qualified applicants with an undergraduate |
18 | degree, no more than $2,500 shall be forgiven in any one |
19 | year, and no more than $10,000 shall be forgiven for any one |
20 | qualified applicant. |
21 | (2) For qualified applicants with both an undergraduate |
22 | degree and either a master's or doctorate degree, no more |
23 | than $5,000 shall be forgiven in any one year, and no more |
24 | than $20,000 shall be forgiven for any one qualified |
25 | applicant. |
26 | (3) PHEAA shall establish procedures for making payments |
27 | to qualified applicants. |
28 | (4) No qualified applicant may receive a larger amount |
29 | of forgiveness than the outstanding balance the applicant has |
30 | with the Guaranteed Stafford or Consolidation Loan Programs |
|
1 | administered by PHEAA. |
2 | (e) Eligibility.--A qualified applicant shall be eligible |
3 | for loan forgiveness regardless of whether the applicant's |
4 | outstanding loan balance is acquired before or after the date of |
5 | the effective date of this section and no loan forgiveness shall |
6 | be given for years of service before the date of this section. |
7 | Section 5. Qualifications for loan forgiveness awards. |
8 | (a) Application.--PHEAA shall establish procedures for |
9 | qualified applicants to apply and be approved for participation |
10 | in the program. |
11 | (b) Employment.--Recipients of loan forgiveness awards must |
12 | be full-time employees of a certified child welfare employer who |
13 | maintain satisfactory employment with the organization and agree |
14 | to continue employment with a certified child welfare employer |
15 | for a least three years after the end of their participation in |
16 | the program. |
17 | (c) Documentation.--PHEAA may require qualified applicants |
18 | who are participating in the program to submit documentation in |
19 | order to maintain continued eligibility for the program. |
20 | Section 6. Funding. |
21 | Loan forgiveness awards under this act may be made to the |
22 | extent that funds are appropriated by the General Assembly or |
23 | available from other sources and are sufficient to cover the |
24 | administration of the program. In the event that funding is |
25 | insufficient to fully fund administration and all eligible |
26 | applicants, priority shall be given to renewal applicants. |
27 | Thereafter, PHEAA shall utilize a random lottery system for |
28 | determining which applicants receive loan forgiveness awards. |
29 | Section 7. Tax applicability. |
30 | Loan forgiveness repayments shall not be considered taxable |
|
1 | income for purposes of Article III of the act of March 4, 1971 |
2 | (P.L.6, No.2), known as the Tax Reform Code of 1971. |
3 | Section 8. Annual report. |
4 | (a) Development of report.--PHEAA shall publish a report by |
5 | October 1, 2012, and every year thereafter for the immediately |
6 | preceding fiscal year. The report shall provide information |
7 | regarding the operation of the program, including: |
8 | (1) The number and amount of child welfare worker loan |
9 | forgiveness grants issued and renewed for qualified |
10 | applicants. |
11 | (2) The number and type of enforcement actions taken by |
12 | the agency. |
13 | (b) Submission.--The annual report shall be submitted to the |
14 | Governor, the chair and minority chair of the Appropriations |
15 | Committee of the Senate, the chair and minority chair of the |
16 | Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives, the |
17 | chair and minority chair of the Education Committee of the |
18 | Senate, the chair and minority chair of the Education Committee |
19 | of the House of Representatives, the chair and minority chair of |
20 | the Public Health and Welfare Committee of the Senate and the |
21 | chair and minority chair of the Health and Human Services |
22 | Committee of the House of Representatives. |
23 | Section 9. Responsibility of PHEAA. |
24 | PHEAA shall administer the program and shall adopt such |
25 | regulations, policies, procedures and forms as are necessary and |
26 | not inconsistent with the provisions of this act. |
27 | Section 10. Effective date. |
28 | This act shall take effect in 60 days. |
|