Regular Session 2021-2022 House Bill 2091 P.N. 2426

PRINTER'S NO. 2426

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

2091

Session of

2021

INTRODUCED BY HOWARD, HILL-EVANS, HOHENSTEIN, D. WILLIAMS,

KINSEY, SCHLOSSBERG, SAPPEY, SANCHEZ, BROOKS, GUENST,

NEILSON, INNAMORATO AND MADDEN, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, NOVEMBER 17, 2021

AN ACT

Establishing the Behavioral Welfare Educational Loan Lenience

Program and imposing duties on the Pennsylvania Higher

Education Assistance Agency.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Short title.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the Behavioral

Welfare Educational Loan Lenience Program (BWELL) Act.

Section 2. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Agency." The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance

Agency.

"Human services field." A field of study at an accredited

college or university that, once completed, allows an individual

to be hired in any of the professions enumerated under section

3(b)(5).

"Program." The Behavioral Welfare Educational Loan Lenience

Program established under section 3.

"Qualified applicant." An individual who meets all of the

criteria under section 3(b).

"Recipient." A qualified applicant who is selected by the

agency for participation in the program.

"Residential treatment facility." An inpatient health care

facility located in this Commonwealth that provides therapy and

treatment for emotional disorders, mental illnesses or other

behavioral problems.

Section 3. Behavioral Welfare Educational Loan Lenience

Program.

(a) Establishment.--The Behavioral Welfare Educational Loan

Lenience Program is established within the agency.

(b) Qualifications.--To qualify for the program, an

applicant must make an application to the agency and must meet

all of the following criteria:

(1) Be a resident of this Commonwealth.

(2) Have completed at least half the credit hours needed

to earn an undergraduate academic degree or diploma in social

work, sociology, counseling, psychology, nursing or any other

degree in the human services field.

(3) Have been hired as an employee of a residential

treatment facility in this Commonwealth and work a minimum of

20 hours per week.

(4) Have a recommendation from the faculty of the

residential treatment facility in which the applicant is

employed or from a professor under whom the applicant has

taken coursework from among the degrees listed in paragraph

(2), if currently studying.

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(5) Be employed by, or have been hired by, a residential

treatment facility as any of the following:

(i) A caseworker.

(ii) A dietitian or nutritionist.

(iii) A psychiatric aide.

(iv) A health information manager.

(v) A licensed social worker.

(vi) A licensed clinical social worker.

(vii) A licensed counselor, psychologist or

therapist.

(viii) A direct care staffer.

(ix) A residential treatment facility administrator.

(x) A registered nurse.

(xi) A registered nurse practitioner.

(xii) A clinical nurse specialist.

(xiii) A psychiatric mental health advance practice

registered nurse with a clinical nurse specialist

certification.

(1) An application must be made to the agency on or

before the deadline for submittal of the application as

established by the agency for participation in the program.

The following apply:

(i) The application shall contain all of the

information required under subsection (b) and shall

demonstrate that the applicant satisfies the required

criteria.

(ii) A qualified applicant may not submit another

application after satisfactorily completing the program,

withdrawing from the program or failing to satisfactorily

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comply with the program requirements as determined by the

agency.

(2) A recipient shall be eligible for a financial award

payment by the agency of a portion of the debt incurred by

the recipient through the agency-administered guaranteed

Stafford or consolidated loan programs if the recipient

enters into a contract with the agency that requires the

recipient to remain employed at a residential treatment

facility for a period of up to four years.

(3) The agency may grant an award to be applied directly

by the agency to the recipient's agency-administered

guaranteed Stafford or consolidated loan debt balance, or for

those recipients still enrolled in school, the award may be

direct cash assistance, to be awarded as follows:

(i) Not more than $5,000 shall be awarded in the

first full calendar year beginning after the recipient is

selected by the agency for participation in the program.

(ii) Not more than $10,000 shall be awarded in the

second full calendar year beginning after the recipient

is selected by the agency for participation in the

program.

(iii) Not more than $15,000 shall be awarded in the

third full calendar year beginning after the recipient is

selected by the agency for participation in the program.

(iv) Not more than $20,000 shall be awarded in the

fourth full calendar year beginning after the recipient

is selected by the agency for participation in the

program.

(v) Each amount under this paragraph shall be

adjusted annually for inflation in accordance with the

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Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for

the United States for all items as published by the

United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, for the previous 12-month period.

(4) Payments shall be made in accordance with the

procedures established by the agency.

(5) No financial award payment shall be made by the

agency and no applicant shall be considered a qualified

applicant or participate in the program unless the applicant

contracts for the following terms with the Commonwealth

through the agency:

(i) The applicant shall agree to be employed at a

qualified residential treatment facility for a period of

no less than one year.

(ii) The applicant shall permit the agency to

determine compliance with the work requirement and all

other terms or requirements deemed necessary by the

agency to perform its obligations under this act.

(iii) Upon the applicant's death or total and

permanent disability, the agency shall nullify the

service obligation of the applicant.

(iv) If the applicant is convicted of or pleads

guilty or no contest to a felony, the agency shall have

the authority to terminate the applicant's service in the

program and demand repayment of the amount of the

financial award as of the date of the conviction.

(v) An applicant who fails to begin or complete the

obligations contracted for shall pay to the agency the

amount of the financial award received under the terms of

the contract. The following apply:

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(A) Providing false information or

misrepresentation on an application or verification

of service shall be deemed a default.

(B) Determination as to the time of the default

shall be made by the agency.

(6) Every recipient shall certify annually to the agency

that the recipient continues to meet the qualifications for

participation in the program for each year that the recipient

continues to participate in the program.

(d) Limitation.--A financial award under this act shall not

be made for a tuition loan that is in default at the time of

application.

Section 4. Tuition payment awards.

(a) Employment.--Tuition payment awards under this act shall

be awarded to recipients who:

(1) are working in and have received a satisfactory

rating from a qualified residential treatment facility; or

(2) have been hired by a qualified residential treatment

facility.

(b) Documentation.--Recipients shall submit documentation of

eligibility as the agency may require, including documentation

to indicate employment. The documentation shall be presented to

the agency in the form of a letter from the recipient's employer

stating that the recipient is employed by a qualified

residential treatment facility and that the recipient performs

duties in a satisfactory manner.

Section 5. Tax applicability.

A financial award payment under the program shall not be

considered taxable income for the purposes of Article II of the

act of March 4, 1971 (P.L.6, No.2), known as the Tax Reform Code

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of 1971.

Section 6. Student financial aid.

The provisions of this act shall be subject to 22 Pa. Code

Ch. 121 (relating to student financial aid).

Section 7. Annual report.

(a) Requirements.--No later than October 1, 2022, and each

October 1 thereafter, the agency shall publish a report

regarding the operation of the program for the immediately

preceding fiscal year.

(b) Contents.--A report under this section shall include the

following information:

(1) The number and dollar amount of contracts executed

and renewed for qualified applicants.

(2) The number of defaulted contracts, reported by

cause.

(3) The number of employed staff participating in the

program, reported by position title, level of education and

type of residential treatment facility in which the recipient

is employed.

(4) The number and type of enforcement actions taken by

the agency.

submitted to the following:

(1) The Governor.

(2) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Appropriations Committee of the Senate.

(3) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives.

(4) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Education Committee of the Senate.

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(5) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Education Committee of the House of Representatives.

(6) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Health and Human Services Committee of the Senate.

(7) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Health Committee of the House of Representatives.

(8) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Human Services Committee of the House of Representatives.

Section 8. Funding.

Tuition payment awards under this act shall be made to the

extent that money is appropriated by the General Assembly and is

sufficient to cover the administration of the program. If

funding is insufficient to fully fund the administration and all

qualified applicants, the agency shall utilize a random lottery

system for determining which qualified applicants receive

tuition reimbursement awards.

Section 9. Responsibility of agency.

The agency shall administer the program and shall adopt

regulations, policies, procedures and forms as are necessary to

implement the program, which are not inconsistent with the

provisions of this act.

Section 10. Effective date.

This act shall take effect in 60 days.

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