04/28/2001 04:58 PM House FIN

HOUSE BILL NO. 43                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
     An Act relating to reimbursement of certain student                                                                        
     loans; and providing for an effective date.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair  Mulder  MOVED  to report  CS  HB  43 (HES)  out  of                                                                   
Committee  with  individual  recommendations   and  with  the                                                                   
accompanying fiscal  note.  There being NO  OBJECTION, it was                                                                   
so ordered.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Mulder  MOVED to  RESCIND action taken  on CS  HB 43                                                                   
(HES).    There  being  NO  OBJECTION,  previous  action  was                                                                   
rescinded.  Co-Chair  Mulder observed that the  Committee had                                                                   
been  provided with  a  proposed committee  substitute,  work                                                                   
draft, 22-LS0225\P, Ford, 2/13/01.  [Copy on File].                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
KEVIN  JARDELL, STAFF,  REPRESENTATIVE  GREEN, explained  the                                                                   
committee substitute.   He noted that the HESS  Committee had                                                                   
expanded the  language to include counselors,  librarians and                                                                   
private  schools.   The sponsor  requested  that language  be                                                                   
narrowed.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair Mulder MOVED to ADOPT  the work draft as the version                                                                   
before the  Committee.  There  being NO OBJECTION, it  was so                                                                   
ordered.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
Co-Chair  Mulder  MOVED  to report  CS  HB  43 (FIN)  out  of                                                                   
Committee  with  individual  recommendations   and  with  the                                                                   
accompanying fiscal  note.  There being NO  OBJECTION, it was                                                                   
so ordered.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
CS  HB 43  (FIN) was  reported out  of Committee  with a  "do                                                                   
pass" recommendation  and with  a fiscal  note by the  Alaska                                                                   
Commission on Postsecondary Education dated 2/16/01.                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
#HB37                                                                                                                         
HOUSE BILL NO. 37                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
     An Act relating to reimbursement of certain student                                                                        
     loans; and providing for an effective date.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   GARY  STEVENS  spoke   in  support   of  the                                                                   
legislation.   He noted that the  bill would allow  the State                                                                   
to reimburse  a borrower  who has  received an  undergraduate                                                                   
degree from  a college  or university and  was employed  at a                                                                   
public elementary  or secondary school within the  State as a                                                                   
teacher and  had complied with  AS 14.43.120.  The  amount to                                                                   
be reimbursed  would be the portion  of payments made  by the                                                                   
borrower for a loan made under  AS 14.43.110 and equal to the                                                                   
following  percentages  of  the   total  loan  received  plus                                                                   
interest, for  up to a  total of 50%  of the total  loan plus                                                                   
interest:                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
     ·    One year employment, 10 percent;                                                                                      
    ·    Two year employment, an additional 10 percent;                                                                         
     ·    Three years employment, an additional 10 percent;                                                                     
     ·    Four years employment, an additional 10 percent;                                                                      
     ·    Five years employment, an additional 10 percent.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
Representative Stevens noted that  the loan amount reimbursed                                                                   
to the borrower  may not exceed  the loan amount paid  by the                                                                   
borrower to the State.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
He  discussed that  school  districts throughout  the  State,                                                                   
primarily in the rural school  system, are experiencing great                                                                   
difficulties  recruiting teachers.    Currently, the  Teacher                                                                   
Scholarship Loan  program is available  to rural  Alaska high                                                                   
school  graduates  who declare  an  interest  in teaching  in                                                                   
rural Alaska  and are  nominated by  their school  districts.                                                                   
HB  37 would  allow students  of any  academic discipline  to                                                                   
receive  reimbursement  of  their Alaska  student  loan  upon                                                                   
meeting the criteria of the bill.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Representative  Stevens added  that he  was "shocked"  at the                                                                   
size that  the fiscal  note had  grown too.   He pointed  out                                                                   
that the  original fiscal note  did not include  Anchorage or                                                                   
Fairbanks.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
HB 37 was HELD in Committee for further consideration.