Senate Bill sb1138c1

    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1138

    By the Committee on Judiciary; and Senator Campbell





    308-2109-02

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to student loans; creating s.

  3         43.201, F.S.; providing for a financial

  4         assistance program administered by the Justice

  5         Administrative Commission to provide assistance

  6         to qualified assistant state attorneys,

  7         assistant public defenders, and assistant

  8         capital collateral counsels for the repayment

  9         of government student loans; providing for the

10         elements of the program; providing for funding;

11         providing an effective date.

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13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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15         Section 1.  Section 43.201, Florida Statutes, is

16  created to read:

17         43.201  Justice Administrative Commission; student loan

18  program administration.--

19         (1)  The commission shall administer a student loan

20  program for career assistant state attorneys, assistant public

21  defenders, and assistant capital collateral counsels as

22  described in chapter 27. The purpose of the program shall be

23  to provide financial assistance to assistant state attorneys,

24  assistant public defenders, and assistant capital collateral

25  counsels with law school government loans.

26         (2)  The program shall be administered in the following

27  manner:

28         (a)  No assistant state attorney, public defender, or

29  assistant capital collateral counsel shall be eligible for

30  assistance under the program until the assistant state

31  attorney, public defender, or assistant capital collateral

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1138
    308-2109-02




  1  counsel has been employed as an assistant state attorney,

  2  assistant public defender, or assistant capital collateral

  3  counsel for a period of 3 years of continuous service on his

  4  or her employment anniversary date.

  5         (b)  After completing 3 years of continuous service an

  6  affidavit of certification on a form approved by the

  7  commission shall be submitted to the state attorney's office,

  8  the public defender's office, or the capital collateral

  9  regional counsel's office as the case may be. The affidavit of

10  certification shall, upon approval of the state attorney,

11  public defender, or the capital collateral regional counsel,

12  be submitted to the commission.

13         (c)  Upon receipt of the certificate, the commission

14  may begin yearly payments in the amount of $3,000 to the

15  government student loan on behalf of the qualified assistant

16  state attorney, assistant public defender, or assistant

17  capital collateral counsel named in the certificate.

18         (d)  Upon completion of 6 years of continuous service

19  the loan assistance payment amount shall increase to $5,000.

20  After 12 years of continuous service or upon completion of the

21  payment of the student loan, whichever occurs first, loan

22  assistance shall cease. The total amount of loan assistance

23  permitted under the program for any one assistant state

24  attorney, assistant public defender, or assistant capital

25  collateral counsel shall not exceed $44,000.

26         (3)  The program shall be funded by appropriations from

27  the Legislature out of the General Revenue Fund to the Justice

28  Administrative Commission on an annual basis.

29         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1138
    308-2109-02




  1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
  2                         Senate Bill 1138

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  4  Corrects improper nomenclature by replacing the word
    "Judicial" with "Justice" when used in reference to the
  5  Justice Administrative Commission.

  6  Expands the bill to provide for the repayment of law school
    government student loans for qualified attorneys in the
  7  offices of the Capital Collateral Regional Counsel.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.