Senate Bill sb0196
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Florida Senate - 2007 SB 196
By Senator Aronberg
27-144A-07
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to student loans; creating s.
3 43.45, F.S.; providing for a financial
4 assistance program administered by the Justice
5 Administrative Commission and the Office of the
6 Attorney General to assist a career assistant
7 state attorney, assistant public defender,
8 assistant attorney general, or assistant
9 statewide prosecutor in the repayment of
10 eligible student loans; providing definitions;
11 providing elements of the program; requiring
12 the administering body to make a payment of a
13 certain amount; providing for funding;
14 requiring rulemaking; providing an effective
15 date.
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17 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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19 Section 1. Section 43.45, Florida Statutes, is created
20 to read:
21 43.45 Student loan assistance program;
22 administration.--
23 (1) The administering body shall implement a student
24 loan assistance program for eligible career attorneys. The
25 purpose of the program is to provide financial assistance to
26 eligible career attorneys for the repayment of eligible
27 student loans.
28 (2) As used in this section, the term:
29 (a) "Administering body" means the Justice
30 Administrative Commission when the eligible career attorney is
31 employed as an assistant state attorney or assistant public
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Florida Senate - 2007 SB 196
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1 defender or the Office of the Attorney General when the
2 eligible career attorney is employed as an assistant attorney
3 general or assistant statewide prosecutor.
4 (b) "Eligible attorney" means an assistant state
5 attorney, assistant public defender, assistant attorney
6 general, or assistant statewide prosecutor.
7 (c) "Eligible career attorney" means an eligible
8 attorney who has completed at least 3 years but not more than
9 12 years of continuous service on his or her employment
10 anniversary date. However, eligibility for student loan
11 repayment assistance may not be lost due to a break in
12 employment of less than 2 weeks while an eligible attorney
13 transfers to another employer of eligible attorneys.
14 (d) "Eligible student loan" means a loan that was
15 issued pursuant to the Higher Education Act of 1965, as
16 amended, to an eligible career attorney to fund his or her law
17 school education and which is not in default.
18 (e) "Maximum available amount" means, in the event
19 that the amount of an appropriation from the General Revenue
20 Fund to an administering body is less than the amount
21 necessary to fund total payments by the administering body,
22 the amount that results from multiplying the percentage of
23 total funding appropriated by the payment amount of $3,000 or
24 $5,000 as provided in paragraph (3)(b). The percentage of
25 total funding appropriated is the amount that results from
26 dividing the amount of the appropriation by the amount
27 necessary to fund total payments under paragraph (3)(b).
28 (3) The student loan assistance program shall be
29 administered in the following manner:
30 (a) Within 30 days after the employment anniversary
31 date of an individual, the individual may submit to his or her
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Florida Senate - 2007 SB 196
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1 employer a certification affidavit on a form authorized by the
2 administering body, which certifies that he or she, as of his
3 or her last employment anniversary date, is an eligible career
4 attorney with one or more eligible student loans. Upon
5 approval by the employing state attorney, public defender,
6 Attorney General, or statewide prosecutor, the certification
7 affidavit shall be submitted to the administering body within
8 60 days following the last employment anniversary date of the
9 eligible career attorney.
10 (b) The administering body that receives a
11 certification affidavit for an eligible career attorney
12 having:
13 1. Three to five years of continuous service shall
14 make a payment in the amount of $3,000 or in the maximum
15 available amount, whichever is less.
16 2. Six to twelve years of continuous service shall
17 make a payment in the amount of $5,000 or in the maximum
18 available amount, whichever is less.
19 (c) A payment under paragraph (b) shall be made by the
20 administering body:
21 1. For the benefit of the eligible career attorney
22 named in the certification affidavit and for the purpose of
23 satisfying his or her eligible student loan obligation.
24 2. To the lender that services the eligible student
25 loan between July 1 and July 31 of the next fiscal year
26 following receipt of the certification affidavit by the
27 administering body.
28 3. For the eligible student loan that has the highest
29 current interest rate if the eligible career attorney holds
30 more than one eligible student loan.
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Florida Senate - 2007 SB 196
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1 (d) Payments under paragraph (b) shall cease upon
2 totaling $44,000 per eligible career attorney or upon full
3 satisfaction of the eligible student loan, whichever occurs
4 first.
5 (4) The student loan assistance program shall be
6 funded annually by an appropriation from the General Revenue
7 Fund to the administering body.
8 (5) The administering body shall adopt rules to
9 administer this section.
10 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.
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13 SENATE SUMMARY
14 Provides for a financial assistance program administered
by the Justice Administrative Commission and the Office
15 of the Attorney General to assist a career assistant
state attorney, assistant public defender, assistant
16 attorney general, or assistant statewide prosecutor in
the repayment of eligible student loans. Provides
17 definitions. Provides elements of the program. Requires
the administering body to make a payment of a certain
18 amount. Provides for funding. Requires rulemaking.
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