119-hr3511

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3511 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 3511

 To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Assistant 
 Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use to establish a grant 
 program for certain undergraduate or graduate students who agree to 
 work as school psychologists, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 May 20, 2025

Mr. Gottheimer (for himself and Ms. Friedman) introduced the following 
 bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Assistant 
 Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use to establish a grant 
 program for certain undergraduate or graduate students who agree to 
 work as school psychologists, and for other purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Preparing for the Future Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM FOR SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS.

 Part D of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290dd 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``

SEC. 554. GRANT PROGRAM FOR SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS.

 ``

    (a) Program Established.--
 ``

    (1) Program authority.--Subject to the availability of 
 appropriations under subsection
            (c) , the Assistant Secretary 
 shall pay to each eligible institution such sums as may be 
 necessary to pay to each eligible recipient who files an 
 application and agreement in accordance with subsection

    (b) a 
 grant for school psychology in the amount of $8,000 for each 
 year during which such eligible recipient is within the period 
 of eligibility under paragraph

    (4) at such eligible 
 institution.
 ``

    (2) Payment methodology.--
 ``
        (A) Prepayment.--Not less than 85 percent of any 
 funds provided to an eligible institution under 
 paragraph

    (1) shall be advanced to such eligible 
 institution prior to the start of each payment period 
 (as such period is determined by the Assistant 
 Secretary) and shall be based upon an amount requested 
 by such institution as needed to pay eligible 
 recipients who receive grants under this section, until 
 such time as the Assistant Secretary determines and 
 publishes in the Federal Register (with an opportunity 
 for comment) an alternative payment system that 
 provides payments to such institutions in an accurate 
 and timely manner, except that this sentence shall not 
 be construed to limit the authority of the Assistant 
 Secretary to place an institution on a reimbursement 
 system of payment.
 ``
        (B) Direct payment.--Nothing in this subsection 
 shall be interpreted to prohibit the Assistant 
 Secretary from paying directly to an eligible 
 recipient, in advance of the beginning of the academic 
 term, an amount for which such eligible recipient is 
 eligible, in cases in which an eligible institution 
 fails to implement subparagraph
        (A) .
 ``
            (C) Distribution of grants to eligible 
 recipients.--Payments under this section shall be made, 
 in accordance with regulations promulgated by the 
 Assistant Secretary for such purpose, in such manner as 
 will best accomplish the purposes of this section. Any 
 payment allowed to be made by crediting the account of 
 an eligible recipient shall be limited to tuition and 
 fees and, in the case of housing owned by an eligible 
 institution, room and board.
 ``

    (3) Reductions in amount.--
 ``
        (A) Part-time students.--In any case in which an 
 eligible recipient attends an eligible institution on 
 less than a full-time basis (including an eligible 
 recipient who attends an eligible institution on less 
 than a half-time basis) during any year, the amount of 
 a grant under this section for which such eligible 
 recipient is eligible shall be reduced in proportion to 
 the degree to which such eligible recipient is not 
 attending on a full-time basis, in accordance with a 
 schedule of reductions established by the Assistant 
 Secretary for the purposes of this section, computed in 
 accordance with this section. Such schedule of 
 reductions shall be established by regulation and 
 published in the Federal Register.
 ``
        (B) No exceeding cost.--The amount of a grant 
 awarded under this section, in combination with Federal 
 assistance and other assistance an eligible recipient 
 who is a student may receive, shall not exceed the cost 
 of attendance (as defined in 

section 472 of the Higher 
 Education Act of 1965) of the eligible institution at 
 which such eligible recipient is in attendance.
 ``

    (4) Period of eligibility for grants.--
 ``
        (A) Undergraduate and post-baccalaureate 
 students.--The period during which an eligible 
 recipient who is an undergraduate or post-baccalaureate 
 student may receive a grant under this section shall be 
 the period after such eligible recipient has completed 
 half of the required credit hours for a first 
 undergraduate baccalaureate or post-baccalaureate 
 course of study being pursued by such eligible 
 recipient at an eligible institution at which such 
 eligible recipient is in attendance, except that the 
 total amount that an eligible recipient may receive 
 under this section for undergraduate or post-
 baccalaureate study shall not exceed $16,000.
 ``
        (B) Graduate students.--The period during which 
 an eligible recipient who is a graduate student may 
 receive grants under this section shall be the first 
 and second year of a graduate or professional degree 
 program in school psychology that is pursued by such 
 eligible recipient at an eligible institution at which 
 such eligible recipient is in attendance, except that 
 the total amount that an eligible recipient may receive 
 under this section for graduate study shall not exceed 
 $16,000.
 ``
            (C) Remedial course; study abroad.--Nothing in 
 this subsection shall be construed to exclude from 
 eligibility courses of study which are noncredit or 
 remedial in nature (including courses in English 
 language acquisition) which are determined by the 
 eligible institution at which an eligible recipient is 
 in attendance to be necessary to help such eligible 
 recipient be prepared for the pursuit of a first 
 undergraduate baccalaureate or post-baccalaureate 
 degree or certificate or, in the case of courses in 
 English language instruction, to be necessary to enable 
 such eligible recipient to utilize already existing 
 knowledge, training, or skills. Nothing in this 
 subsection shall be construed to exclude from 
 eligibility programs of study abroad that are approved 
 for credit by the home institution at which an eligible 
 recipient is enrolled.
 ``

    (b) Applications; Eligibility.--
 ``

    (1) Applications; demonstration of eligibility.--
 ``
        (A) Filing required.--The Assistant Secretary 
 shall periodically set dates by which an applicant 
 shall file an application for a grant under this 
 section. Each applicant desiring a grant under this 
 section for any year shall file an application 
 containing such information and assurances as the 
 Assistant Secretary may determine necessary to enable 
 the Assistant Secretary to carry out the functions and 
 responsibilities of this section.
 ``
        (B) Demonstration of eligibility.--Each 
 application submitted under subparagraph
        (A) shall 
 contain such information as is necessary to demonstrate 
 that--
 ``
            (i) if the applicant is an enrolled 
 student--
 ``
            (I) such applicant is an eligible 
 student for purposes of 

section 484 of 
 the Higher Education Act of 1965; and
 ``
            (II) such applicant--
 ``

    (aa) has a grade point 
 average that is determined, 
 under standards prescribed by 
 the Assistant Secretary, to be 
 comparable to a 3.25 average on 
 a zero to 4.0 scale, except 
 that, if such applicant is 
 eligible for a grant under this 
 section in the first year of a 
 program of undergraduate 
 education, the grade point 
 average of such applicant shall 
 be determined on the basis of 
 the cumulative secondary school 
 grade point average of such 
 student; or
 ``

    (bb) displayed high 
 academic aptitude by receiving 
 a score above the 75th 
 percentile on at least one of 
 the batteries in an 
 undergraduate, post-
 baccalaureate, or graduate 
 school admissions test; and
 ``
            (ii) such applicant has outlined and is 
 carrying out, or plans to carry out, a step-by-
 step educational plan for how to satisfy any 
 requirements needed to receive a school 
 psychologist credential, if such credential is 
 required, and begin serving as a school 
 psychologist.
 ``
            (C) Educational plan.--The educational plan 
 described in subparagraph
        (B)
            (ii) shall include, for an 
 applicant--
 ``
            (i) the courses such applicant has 
 enrolled in, or plans to enroll in;
 ``
            (ii) the plan of such applicant to 
 satisfy any requirements other than coursework 
 needed to receive a school psychologist 
 credential, if such credential is required, and 
 begin serving as a school psychologist; and
 ``
            (iii) a justification for any 
 undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, or graduate 
 or professional degree program related to 
 school psychology that such applicant is 
 enrolled in or plans to enroll in and for which 
 such applicant is receiving or plans to seek a 
 grant under this section, including whether 
 such program is needed to receive a school 
 psychologist credential.
 ``

    (2) Agreements to serve.--Each application under 
 paragraph

    (1) shall contain or be accompanied by an agreement 
 by the applicant that--
 ``
        (A) such applicant will--
 ``
            (i) serve as a full-time school 
 psychologist (referred to in this subsection as 
 the `service obligation') in a covered school 
 for a total of not less than 4 academic years 
 within 8 years after completing--
 ``
            (I) the course of study for which 
 the applicant received a grant under 
 this section; or
 ``
            (II) for an applicant who 
 received a grant under this section 
 during both a period described in 
 subsection

    (a)

    (4)
        (A) and a period 
 described in subsection

    (a)

    (4)
        (B) , the 
 graduate or professional degree program 
 for which the applicant received a 
 grant under this section; and
 ``
            (ii) submit a certification of employment 
 by the chief administrative officer of the 
 covered school in accordance with paragraph

    (4)
            (D) ; and
 ``
            (iii) receive a school psychologist 
 credential;
 ``
        (B) in the event that such applicant is 
 determined to have failed or refused to carry out such 
 service obligation, the sum of the amounts of any 
 grants received by such applicant under this section 
 will be treated as a loan and collected from such 
 applicant in accordance with paragraph

    (3) and the 
 regulations thereunder; and
 ``
            (C) contains, or is accompanied by, a plain-
 language disclosure form developed by the Assistant 
 Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of 
 Education (with respect to loan repayment 
 requirements), that clearly describes the nature of the 
 grant award under this section, the service obligation, 
 and the loan repayment requirements that are the 
 consequence of the failure to complete the service 
 obligation.
 ``

    (3) Repayment for failure to complete service.--
 ``
        (A) In general.--In the event that any eligible 
 recipient who receives a grant under this section fails 
 or refuses to comply with the service obligation in the 
 agreement under paragraph

    (2) , the sum of the amounts 
 of any grants received by such recipient under this 
 section shall, upon a determination of such a failure 
 or refusal in such service obligation, be treated as a 
 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D 
 of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, and 
 shall be subject to repayment, together with interest 
 thereon accruing from the date of the grant award, in 
 accordance with terms and conditions specified by the 
 Assistant Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary 
 of Education, in regulations under this section.
 ``
        (B) Reconsideration of conversion decisions.--
 ``
            (i) Request to reconsider.--In any case 
 where the Assistant Secretary has determined 
 that an eligible recipient who receives a grant 
 under this section has failed or refused to 
 comply with the service obligation in the 
 agreement under paragraph

    (2) and has 
 converted, in consultation with the Secretary 
 of Education, the grant into a Federal Direct 
 Unsubsidized Stafford Loan in accordance with 
 subparagraph
        (A) (including cases in which such 
 loans have been fully or partially paid), such 
 eligible recipient may request that the 
 Assistant Secretary reconsider such initial 
 determination and may submit additional 
 information to demonstrate satisfaction of such 
 service obligation. Upon receipt of such a 
 request, the Assistant Secretary shall 
 reconsider the determination in accordance with 
 this subparagraph not later than 90 days after 
 the date that such request was received.
 ``
            (ii) Reconsideration.--If, in 
 reconsidering an initial determination under 
 clause
            (i) , the Assistant Secretary determines 
 that the reason for such determination was the 
 failure of the eligible recipient who received 
 a grant under this section to timely submit a 
 certification required under paragraph

    (2)
        (A)
            (ii) , an error or processing delay by the 
 Assistant Secretary, a change to the covered 
 schools considered eligible for fulfillment of 
 the service obligation, an eligible recipient 
 who received a grant under this section having 
 previously requested to have such grant under 
 this section converted to a loan, or another 
 valid reason determined by the Assistant 
 Secretary, and that such recipient has, as of 
 the date of the reconsideration, demonstrated 
 that such recipient did meet, or is meeting, 
 the service obligation in the agreement under 
 paragraph

    (2) , the Assistant Secretary, in 
 consultation with the Secretary of Education, 
 shall--
 ``
            (I) discharge the Federal Direct 
 Unsubsidized Stafford Loan and 
 reinstate the grant under this section 
 to such recipient;
 ``
            (II) discharge any interest or 
 fees that may have accumulated during 
 the period that the grant was converted 
 to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized 
 Stafford Loan;
 ``
            (III) if such recipient has other 
 loans under part D of title IV of the 
 Higher Education Act of 1965, apply any 
 payments made for the Federal Direct 
 Unsubsidized Stafford Loan during such 
 period to those other loans;
 ``
            (IV) if such recipient does not 
 have other loans under such part D, 
 reimburse such recipient for any 
 amounts paid on the Federal Direct 
 Unsubsidized Stafford Loan during such 
 period;
 ``
            (V) request that consumer 
 reporting agencies remove any negative 
 item of information from a consumer 
 report due to the conversion of the 
 grant under this section to a loan; and
 ``
            (VI) use any additional 
 information provided under clause
            (i) to determine the progress such 
 recipient has made in meeting the 
 service obligation.
 ``
            (iii) Extension of time to complete 
 service obligation.--In the case of an eligible 
 recipient who receives a grant under this 
 section whose grant under this section was 
 reinstated in accordance with clause
            (ii) , the 
 Assistant Secretary shall, upon such 
 reinstatement--
 ``
            (I) extend the time remaining for 
 such recipient to fulfill the service 
 obligation described in paragraph

    (2)
        (A) to a period of time equal to--
 ``

    (aa) 8 years; minus
 ``

    (bb) the number of full 
 or partial academic years of 
 service as a school 
 psychologist that such 
 recipient completed prior to 
 the reconversion of the loan to 
 a grant under clause
            (ii) , 
 including any years of 
 qualifying service as a school 
 psychologist completed during 
 the period when the grant under 
 this section was in loan 
 status; and
 ``
            (II) treat any full or partial 
 academic years of service as a school 
 psychologist described in subclause
            (I) (bb) as years that count toward the 
 service obligation of such recipient 
 (regardless of whether the grant funds 
 under this section were in grant or 
 loan status) if such service otherwise 
 meet the requirements of this 
 subsection.
 ``

    (4) Additional administrative provisions.--
 ``
        (A) Extenuating circumstances.--The Assistant 
 Secretary shall establish, by regulation, categories of 
 extenuating circumstances under which an eligible 
 recipient who receives a grant under this section who 
 is unable to fulfill all or part of the service 
 obligation of such recipient may be excused from 
 fulfilling that portion of the service obligation.
 ``
        (B) Communication with recipients.--The Assistant 
 Secretary shall notify each eligible recipient who 
 receives a grant under this section not less than once 
 per calendar year regarding how to submit the 
 certification of employment under paragraph

    (2)
        (A)
            (ii) and the recommendations and requirements for submitting 
 such certification under subparagraph
            (D) of this 
 paragraph.
 ``
            (C) Covered schools.--The Assistant Secretary 
 shall maintain and annually update a list of covered 
 schools and shall make such list publicly available on 
 the website of the Administration in a sortable and 
 searchable format.
 ``
            (D) Submission of employment certification.--
 ``
            (i) Recommended submissions.--The 
 Assistant Secretary shall notify each eligible 
 recipient who receives a grant under this 
 section that the Administration recommends that 
 such recipient submits the certification of 
 employment described in paragraph

    (2)
        (A)
            (ii) as 
 soon as practicable after the completion of 
 each year of service.
 ``
            (ii) Required submission.--An eligible 
 recipient who receives a grant under this 
 section shall be required to submit to the 
 Administration the certification of employment 
 described in paragraph

    (2)
        (A)
            (ii) within a 
 timeframe that would allow such recipient to 
 complete the service obligation of such 
 recipient before the end of the period of such 
 service obligation.
 ``
            (iii) Notification.--The Assistant 
 Secretary shall notify each eligible recipient 
 who receives a grant under this section of the 
 required submission deadlines described in this 
 subparagraph.
 ``
            (iv) Adjustment of deadline.--The 
 Assistant Secretary shall adjust the submission 
 deadline described in clause
            (ii) to account 
 for any extension of the period of the service 
 obligation.
 ``
            (v) Alternative to certification.--The 
 Assistant Secretary shall provide an 
 alternative to the certification of employment 
 described in paragraph

    (2)
        (A)
            (ii) for any 
 eligible recipient who receives a grant under 
 this section who cannot obtain such required 
 certification of employment from the chief 
 administrative officer of the covered school of 
 such recipient because such recipient can 
 demonstrate such covered school is no longer in 
 existence or such covered school refuses to 
 cooperate.
 ``
            (c) Program Period; Authorization of Appropriations.--Beginning 
on January 1 of the year immediately following the year of the date of 
the enactment of this section, there are authorized to be appropriated 
to the Assistant Secretary to carry out this section such sums as may 
be necessary to provide grants to each eligible applicant in accordance 
with this section.
 ``
            (d) Program Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date 
described in subsection
            (c) , and every 2 years thereafter, the 
Assistant Secretary shall prepare and submit to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee 
on Education and Workforce of the House of Representatives a report on 
grants under this section with respect to the covered schools and 
students served by eligible recipients who receive grants under this 
section. Such report shall take into consideration information related 
to--
 ``

    (1) the number of such recipients;
 ``

    (2) the degrees obtained by each such recipient;
 ``

    (3) the location, including the covered school, local 
 educational agency, and State, where each such recipient is 
 completing or has completed the service obligation agreed to 
 under subsection

    (b)

    (2) ;
 ``

    (4) the duration of service of each such recipient;
 ``

    (5) any change in the ratio of school psychologists to 
 students at each such covered school; and
 ``

    (6) data about any change, beginning on the date that 
 each such recipient begins to carry out the service obligation 
 of such recipient at a covered school, in student well-being at 
 such covered school, including, to the maximum extent 
 practicable, any such change directly attributable to the 
 presence of such recipient at such covered school.
 ``

    (e) 

=== Definitions. ===
-For the purposes of this section:
 ``

    (1) Covered school.--The term `covered school' means a 
 public or other nonprofit private elementary school or 
 secondary school, which, for the purpose of that year--
 ``
        (A) has been determined by the Assistant 
 Secretary (pursuant to regulations of the Assistant 
 Secretary and after consultation with the State 
 educational agency of the State in which the school is 
 located) to be a school in which the ratio of school 
 psychologists to students is lesser than 1 to 500; and
 ``
        (B) is in the school district of a local 
 educational agency which is eligible in such year for 
 assistance pursuant to part A of title I of the 
 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
 ``

    (2) Eligible institution.--The term `eligible 
 institution' means an institution of higher education, as 
 defined in 

section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, 
 that the Assistant Secretary determines--
 ``
        (A) provides high quality preparation and 
 professional development services for school 
 psychology, including extensive clinical experience as 
 a part of pre-service preparation;
 ``
        (B) is financially responsible;
 ``
            (C) imposes coursework and other requirements 
 that enable or prepare, as applicable, a student, upon 
 graduation from such institution, to--
 ``
            (i) receive a school psychologist 
 credential, if such credential is required, and 
 begin serving as a school psychologist; or
 ``
            (ii) enter into a graduate or 
 professional degree program that imposes 
 coursework and other requirements that enable 
 or prepare, as applicable, such student, upon 
 graduation, to receive such credential, if 
 required, and begin such service; and
 ``
            (D) provides supervision and support services to 
 school psychologists, or assistance in the provision of 
 such services, including mentoring focused on 
 developing effective skills and strategies related to 
 school psychology.
 ``

    (3) Eligible recipient.--The term `eligible recipient' 
 means an applicant under subsection

    (b)

    (1) that the Assistant 
 Secretary has determined is eligible to receive a grant under 
 this section.
 ``

    (4) ESEA terms.--The terms `elementary school', `local 
 educational agency', `secondary school', and `State educational 
 agency' have the meanings given such terms, respectively, in 
 

section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
 1965.
 ``

    (5) Nonprofit; state.--The terms `nonprofit' and `State' 
 have the meanings given such terms, respectively, in 

section 103 of the Higher Education Act of 1965.
 ``

    (6) Post-baccalaureate.--The term `post-baccalaureate' 
 means a program of instruction for individuals who have 
 completed a baccalaureate degree, that does not lead to a 
 graduate degree, and that consists of courses required by a 
 State in order for an eligible recipient to receive a school 
 psychologist credential, except that such term shall not 
 include any program of instruction offered by an eligible 
 institution that offers a baccalaureate degree in school 
 psychology.
 ``

    (7) School psychologist credential.--The term `school 
 psychologist credential' means a professional certification or 
 licensing credential that is required for employment as a 
 school psychologist in an elementary school or secondary school 
 in a State.''.
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