COVID-19 Graduate Relief Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 3556 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for deferral of loan repayment for graduates during the period of the coronavirus. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 20, 2020 Mr. ROMNEY introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for deferral of loan repayment for graduates during the period of the coronavirus. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘COVID-19 Graduate 4 Relief Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFERRAL OF LOAN REPAYMENT FOR GRADUATES 6 DURING THE PERIOD OF THE CORONAVIRUS. 7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part G of title IV of the Higher 8 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088 et seq.) is amend- 9 ed by adding at the end the following: 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:22 Apr 04, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3556.IS S3556 2 •S 3556 IS ‘‘SEC. 493E. DEFERRAL OF LOAN REPAYMENT FOR GRAD- 1 UATES DURING THE PERIOD OF THE 2 CORONAVIRUS. 3 ‘‘(a) DEFERRAL OF LOAN REPAYMENT.—In addition 4 to any deferral of repayment of a loan made under this 5 title pursuant to this title, a borrower of a loan under this 6 title who is an eligible individual as described in subsection 7 (b), shall be eligible for a deferment of such loan during 8 the period, not to exceed 3 years, following the date of 9 enactment of the COVID-19 Graduate Relief Act. 10 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUAL.— 11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A borrower of a loan under 12 this title is an eligible individual if the individual 13 graduates from the eligible institution for which the 14 individual borrowed the loan to enroll during the pe- 15 riod beginning on January 1, 2020, and ending on 16 December 31, 2020. 17 ‘‘(2) EXTENSION.—The Secretary may extend 18 the period described in paragraph (1) for additional 19 1-year periods, but not later than through December 20 31, 2022, if the Secretary determines, in writing, in 21 consultation with the Secretary of Labor, the Sec- 22 retary of Treasury, and the Secretary of Health and 23 Human Services, that the anticipated economic im- 24 pact of the coronavirus on graduates of eligible insti- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:22 Apr 04, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3556.IS S3556 3 •S 3556 IS tutions over the relevant 1-year extension period ne- 1 cessitates such extension. 2 ‘‘(3) CONSIDERATIONS.—In making a deter- 3 mination regarding whether the anticipated eco- 4 nomic impact of the coronavirus on graduates of eli- 5 gible institutions necessitates an extension pursuant 6 to paragraph (2), the Secretary shall consider— 7 ‘‘(A) whether a national emergency with 8 respect to the coronavirus is in effect; 9 ‘‘(B) relevant economic indicators, includ- 10 ing recent unemployment statistics from the 11 Bureau of Labor Statistics; and 12 ‘‘(C) relevant data and projections related 13 to the transmission or seasonal recurrence of 14 the coronavirus and any existing or anticipated 15 measures by Federal, State, or local govern- 16 ments to prevent, prepare for, and respond to 17 the coronavirus. 18 ‘‘(c) CORONAVIRUS.—The term ‘coronavirus’ means 19 coronavirus as defined in section 506 of the Coronavirus 20 Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations 21 Act, 2020 (Public Law 116–123).’’. 22 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 23 subsection (a) shall take effect from the period beginning 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:22 Apr 04, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3556.IS S3556 4 •S 3556 IS on the date of enactment of this Act until the date that 1 is 3 years after such date of enactment. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:22 Apr 04, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S3556.IS S3556