HBA-KDB H.B. 2553 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2553 By: Uher Higher Education 3/18/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, rural district and county attorney's offices are struggling to compensate attorneys for long hours and heavy caseloads. With the potential to earn considerably higher salaries in urban areas, many attorneys will not even consider working in a rural community. This may be caused by the large amounts of loans law students must often take to earn their degrees. Unless county and district attorney's offices are able to provide a tangible incentive to eligible licensed attorneys, recruiting and maintaining a qualified staff may become even more difficult. House Bill 2553 requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to provide repayment assistance for loans accrued by law graduates who work in a district or county attorney's office in a rural area. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in SECTION 1 (Section 61.959, Education Code) and SECTION 2 of this bill. ANALYSIS House Bill 2553 amends the Education Code to require the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (board) to provide assistance in the repayment of law school education loans for attorneys who apply to the board, are currently employed as an attorney by a district or county's office that serves a rural county, and enter into an agreement to remain employed by the district or county attorney's office. The bill authorizes the board to provide repayment assistance for the repayment of any education loan received by the attorney through any lender for education at a school of law authorized by the board to award a degree that satisfies the law study requirements for licensure as an attorney in this state. The bill prohibits the board from providing repayment assistance for an education loan that is in default at the time of the attorney's application. The bill sets forth provisions for the agreement that a person must enter into with the board to qualify for loan repayment. The bill sets forth the repayment assistance amounts the board is required to pay. The bill authorizes the board to appoint an advisory committee from outside the board's membership to assist the board in performing the board's duties in providing repayment assistance. The bill sets forth provisions for the funding of the loan repayment assistance program. The bill requires the board to adopt rules necessary for the administration of the repayment assistance, including a rule that sets the maximum amount of loan repayment assistance that an attorney may receive in one year. The bill requires the board to distribute a copy of the adopted rules and pertinent information to each law school authorized by the board to award law degrees and any appropriate district or county attorney's office. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.