Territories College Access Act

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1421 To establish a program that enables college-bound residents of outlying areas of the United States to have greater choices among institutions of higher education, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 26, 2021 Ms. PLASKETT introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To establish a program that enables college-bound residents of outlying areas of the United States to have greater choices among institutions of higher education, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Territories College Ac- 4 cess Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 6 It is the purpose of this Act to establish a program 7 that enables college-bound residents of outlying areas to 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 1421 IH have greater choices among institutions of higher edu- 1 cation. 2 SEC. 3. COLLEGE ACCESS GRANTS. 3 (a) GRANTS.— 4 (1) IN GENERAL.— 5 (A) ALLOCATION TO OUTLYING AREAS.— 6 From the total amount appropriated under sub- 7 section (n) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall 8 allocate 25 percent to each outlying area to 9 make grants to eligible institutions in accord- 10 ance with subparagraph (B). 11 (B) GRANTS TO ELIGIBLE INSTITU- 12 TIONS.—From the amount allocated to an out- 13 lying area under subparagraph (A) for a fiscal 14 year, the Governor of the outlying area shall 15 carry out a program under which the Governor 16 awards grants to eligible institutions, on behalf 17 of each eligible student from the outlying area 18 who is enrolled in such institution, to pay the 19 difference between— 20 (i) the base amount of tuition and 21 fees charged to the eligible student; and 22 (ii) the base amount of tuition and 23 fees charged to a student of the institution 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 1421 IH who is a resident of the State in which the 1 institution is located. 2 (2) MAXIMUM STUDENT AMOUNTS.—The 3 amount paid on behalf of an eligible student under 4 this section shall be— 5 (A) not more than $15,000 for any one 6 award year (as defined in section 481 of the 7 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8 1088)); and 9 (B) not more than $45,000 in the aggre- 10 gate. 11 (3) PRORATION.—In the case of a grant made 12 under this section on behalf of an eligible student 13 who is attending an eligible institution on a less 14 than full-time basis, the amount of the grant shall 15 be reduced in proportion to the degree to which that 16 student is not so attending on a full-time basis. 17 (b) REDUCTION FOR INSUFFICIENT APPROPRIA- 18 TIONS.— 19 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the funds appropriated 20 pursuant to subsection (n) for any fiscal year are in- 21 sufficient to enable the Governor of an outlying area 22 to award a grant in the amount determined under 23 subsection (a) on behalf of each eligible student from 24 the outlying area enrolled in an eligible institution, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 1421 IH then the Governor, in consultation with the Sec- 1 retary, shall— 2 (A) first, ratably reduce the amount of the 3 tuition and fee payment made on behalf of each 4 eligible student from the outlying area who has 5 not received funds under this section for a pre- 6 ceding year; and 7 (B) after making reductions under sub- 8 paragraph (A), ratably reduce the amount of 9 the tuition and fee payments made on behalf of 10 all other eligible students from the outlying 11 area. 12 (2) ADJUSTMENTS.—The Governor of an out- 13 lying area, in consultation with the Secretary, may 14 adjust the amount of tuition and fee payments made 15 under paragraph (1) based on— 16 (A) the financial need of the eligible stu- 17 dents to avoid undue hardship to the eligible 18 students; or 19 (B) undue administrative burdens on the 20 Governor. 21 (3) FURTHER ADJUSTMENTS.—Notwith- 22 standing paragraphs (1) and (2), the Governor of an 23 outlying area may prioritize the making or amount 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 1421 IH of tuition and fee payments under this subsection 1 based on the income and need of eligible students. 2 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec- 3 tion shall be construed to require an institution of higher 4 education to alter the institution’s admissions policies or 5 standards in any manner to enable an eligible student to 6 enroll in the institution. 7 (d) APPLICATIONS.—Each student desiring that a 8 Governor award a grant under this section to an eligible 9 institution on behalf of the student shall submit an appli- 10 cation to the eligible institution at such time, in such man- 11 ner, and accompanied by such information as the eligible 12 institution may require. 13 (e) EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub- 15 section (g), each application submitted under sub- 16 section (d) shall contain or be accompanied by an 17 agreement by the applicant that the applicant will— 18 (A) maintain full-time employment within 19 the outlying area where the applicant was domi- 20 ciled, as described in subsection (l)(3)(A), for a 21 period of not less than 2 years within the 4- 22 year period after the date the applicant com- 23 pletes the course of study for which the appli- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 1421 IH cant received grant assistance under this sec- 1 tion; and 2 (B) submit evidence of such employment in 3 the form of a certification by the employer upon 4 completion of each year of such employment. 5 (2) FAILURE OR REFUSAL TO CARRY OUT EM- 6 PLOYMENT OBLIGATION.—In the event that an ap- 7 plicant is determined to have failed or refused to 8 carry out the employment obligation described in 9 paragraph (1), the sum of the grant assistance 10 under this section received by such applicant shall be 11 treated as a loan and collected from the applicant in 12 accordance with subsection (f) and the policies and 13 procedures under subsection (h)(2). 14 (f) REPAYMENT FOR FAILURE TO COMPLETE EM- 15 PLOYMENT.—In the event that a student on whose behalf 16 a grant is made under this section fails or refuses to com- 17 ply with the employment obligation in the agreement 18 under subsection (e), the sum of the amounts of any such 19 grant received by such student shall, upon a determination 20 of such a failure or refusal in such employment obligation, 21 be treated as a loan, and shall be subject to repayment, 22 together with interest thereon accruing from the date of 23 the grant award, in accordance with terms and conditions 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 1421 IH specified by the Governor through policies and procedures 1 under subsection (h)(2). 2 (g) EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each Governor shall identify 4 extenuating circumstances under which a student on 5 whose behalf a grant is made under this section who 6 is unable to fulfill all or part of the student’s em- 7 ployment obligation under subsection (e) may be ex- 8 cused from fulfilling that portion of the employment 9 obligation. 10 (2) CONTINUOUS ENROLLMENT.—If a student 11 on whose behalf a grant is made under this section 12 is continuously enrolled at an institution of higher 13 education in one or more postbaccalaureate pro- 14 grams and is maintaining satisfactory progress in 15 the course of study the student is pursuing in ac- 16 cordance with section 484(c) of the Higher Edu- 17 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1091(c)), the employ- 18 ment obligation in the agreement under subsection 19 (e) shall begin once such recipient is no longer con- 20 tinuously enrolled. 21 (h) ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAM.— 22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each Governor shall carry 23 out the program authorized under this section in 24 consultation with the Secretary. Each Governor may 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 1421 IH enter into a grant, contract, or cooperative agree- 1 ment with another public or private entity to admin- 2 ister the program under this section if the Governor 3 determines that doing so is a more efficient way of 4 carrying out the program. 5 (2) POLICIES AND PROCEDURES.—Each Gov- 6 ernor, in consultation with institutions of higher 7 education eligible for participation in the program 8 authorized under this section, shall develop policies 9 and procedures for the administration of the pro- 10 gram. 11 (3) MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT.—Each 12 Governor and the Secretary shall enter into a memo- 13 randum of agreement that describes— 14 (A) the manner in which the Governor 15 shall consult with the Secretary with respect to 16 administering the program authorized under 17 this section; and 18 (B) any technical or other assistance to be 19 provided to the Governor by the Secretary for 20 purposes of administering the program (which 21 may include access to the information in the 22 common financial reporting form developed 23 under section 483 of the Higher Education Act 24 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1090)). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 1421 IH (i) GOVERNOR’S REPORT.—Each Governor shall re- 1 port to the authorizing committees annually regarding— 2 (1) the number of eligible students from the 3 outlying area attending each eligible institution and 4 the amount of the grant assistance paid to such in- 5 stitutions on behalf of the eligible students; 6 (2) the extent, if any, to which a ratable reduc- 7 tion was made in the amount of tuition and fee pay- 8 ments made on behalf of eligible students from the 9 outlying area; 10 (3) the progress in obtaining recognized aca- 11 demic credentials of the cohort of eligible students 12 from the outlying area for each year; and 13 (4) the number of eligible students whose grant 14 assistance under this section has been converted to 15 a loan, and the repayment of such loans. 16 (j) GAO REPORT.—Beginning on the date of enact- 17 ment of this section, the Comptroller General of the 18 United States shall monitor the effect of the program au- 19 thorized under this section on educational opportunities 20 for eligible students. The Comptroller General shall ana- 21 lyze whether eligible students had difficulty gaining admis- 22 sion to eligible institutions because of any preference af- 23 forded in-State residents by eligible institutions, and shall 24 expeditiously report any findings regarding such difficulty 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 1421 IH to the authorizing committees. In addition, the Comp- 1 troller General shall— 2 (1) analyze the extent to which there are an in- 3 sufficient number of eligible institutions to which 4 students from outlying areas can gain admission, in- 5 cluding admission aided by assistance provided 6 under this section, due to— 7 (A) caps on the number of out-of-State 8 students the institution will enroll; 9 (B) significant barriers imposed by aca- 10 demic entrance requirements (such as grade 11 point average and standardized scholastic ad- 12 missions tests); and 13 (C) absence of admission programs benefit- 14 ting minority students; and 15 (2) report the findings of the analysis described 16 in paragraph (1) to the authorizing committees. 17 (k) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.— 18 (1) PERSONNEL.—The Secretary shall arrange 19 for the assignment of an individual, pursuant to sub- 20 chapter VI of chapter 33 of title 5, United States 21 Code, to serve as an adviser to each Governor with 22 respect to the program authorized under this sec- 23 tion. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 1421 IH (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Each Gov- 1 ernor may use not more than 5 percent of the funds 2 made available for the program authorized under 3 this section for a fiscal year to pay the administra- 4 tive expenses of the program for the fiscal year. 5 (3) INSPECTOR GENERAL REVIEW.—The pro- 6 gram authorized under this section shall be subject 7 to audit and other review by the Inspector General 8 of the Department of Education in the same manner 9 as programs are audited and reviewed under the In- 10 spector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 11 (4) GIFTS.—Each Governor may accept, use, 12 and dispose of donations of services or property for 13 purposes of carrying out this section. 14 (5) MAXIMUM STUDENT AMOUNT ADJUST- 15 MENTS.—Each Governor shall establish rules to ad- 16 just the maximum student amounts described in 17 subsection (a)(2)(B) for eligible students who trans- 18 fer between the eligible institutions. 19 (l) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 20 (1) AUTHORIZING COMMITTEES.—The term 21 ‘‘authorizing committees’’ has the meaning given the 22 term in section 103 of the Higher Education Act of 23 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1003). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:25 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1421.IH H1421 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 1421 IH (2) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.—The term ‘‘eligi- 1 ble institution’’ means an institution that— 2 (A) is a public 4-year institution of higher 3 education located in one of the several States of 4 the United States, the District of Columbia, or 5 the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 6 (B) is eligible to participate in the student 7 financial assistance programs under title IV of 8 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 9 1070 et seq.); and 10 (C) enters into an agreement with a Gov- 11 ernor containing such terms and conditions as 12 the Governor and institution may jointly speci- 13 fy, including a requirement that the institution 14 use the funds made available under this section 15 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]