United States 116th Congress Status: In Committee 1 D cosponsors

S 1002 — Affordable Loans for Any Student Act

Last action — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 116th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Affordable Loans for Any Student Act This bill addresses repayment options, loan disclosures, and loan counseling for student loans. The bill revises requirements concerning repayment options for student loan borrowers. For instance, the bill terminates interest capitalization and origination fees for Federal Direct Loans, provides assistance to low-income borrowers or borrowers who are delinquent on loan payments, and replaces the existing income-based repayment plans with two new plans. Under the new plans, borrowers may choose (1) a fixed repayment plan with equal monthly payments paid over a period of 10 years, or (2) an income-based repayment plan with monthly payments equal to 10% percent of their income above the poverty level. The income-based plan is capped at 20 years of payments. The bill also revises requirements concerning student loan disclosures and student loan counseling for borrowers. For instance, the bill requires the Department of Education to maintain online counseling tools that provide borrowers with annual and exit student loan counseling.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

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Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to modify the income-based repayment program, impacting how borrower monthly payments are calculated, defined, and handled.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    Income-Based Repayment Program Authorized.-- → Income-Based Repayment Program for Borrowers Who Enter Income-Based Repayment Before July 1, 2020.--

    Changes the title of the existing income-based repayment program section to specify eligibility based on the date of entering the program.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    except that

    Removes existing conditions related to payment calculations under the income-based repayment program.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    the standard repayment plan; → the fixed repayment plan under section 493E;

    Replaces linkage to the standard repayment plan with a fixed repayment plan in payment calculations.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    the monthly payment amount calculated under this section for all loans → the annual repayment amount under this subsection shall be an amount equal to 10 percent of the result obtained by calculating, on at least an annual basis, the amount by which...

    Changes the basis for determining monthly payments to a percentage of annual income exceeding a defined poverty threshold.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    250 percent reduced by 5 percentage points for each $1,000 by which ...

    Establishes a new metric for determining repayment amounts based on adjusted gross income level.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    25 years → 20 years

    Reduces the repayment period from 25 years to 20 years for certain borrowers under income-based repayment.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    The Secretary may issue rules and regulations, as the Secretary determines necessary, regarding the treatment of excepted PLUS loans or excepted consolidation loans that are to be repaid under an income-based repayment plan under this subsection.

    Grants the Secretary authority to develop regulations for including certain loans under the new income-based repayment structures.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, if a borrower's monthly payment for a loan ...

    Establishes guidelines for handling insufficient monthly payments in relation to accrued interest for different types of loans.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e

    A borrower of a loan made under this part may elect to repay such loan under the income-based repayment plan under this subsection by providing written, electronic, or verbal notice to the Secretary...

    Expands how borrowers can enroll in the income-based repayment plan to include various forms of communication.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1098e(d)

    The Secretary shall calculate the adjusted gross income of a married borrower under this section...

    Establishes new guidelines for considering spousal income in determining eligible repayment amounts for married borrowers.

Action History

  1. Introduced in Senate

  2. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 546 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (546)

546 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

finance education
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Frequently asked questions

What does S 1002 do?
Affordable Loans for Any Student Act This bill addresses repayment options, loan disclosures, and loan counseling for student loans. The bill revises requirements concerning repayment options for student loan borrowers. For instance, the bill terminates interest capitalization and origination fees for Federal Direct Loans, provides assistance to low-income borrowers or borrowers who are delinquent on loan payments, and replaces the existing income-based repayment plans with two new plans. Under the new plans, borrowers may choose (1) a fixed repayment plan with equal monthly payments paid over a period of 10 years, or (2) an income-based repayment plan with monthly payments equal to 10% percent of their income above the poverty level. The income-based plan is capped at 20 years of payments. The bill also revises requirements concerning student loan disclosures and student loan counseling for borrowers. For instance, the bill requires the Department of Education to maintain online counseling tools that provide borrowers with annual and exit student loan counseling.
Who sponsors S 1002?
S 1002 is sponsored by Merkley, Jeff (Democratic).
What is the current status of S 1002?
This bill died with 116th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track S 1002?
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