1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education; providing for a rural teacher 
  1.3             loan forgiveness program; appropriating money; 
  1.4             proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, 
  1.5             chapter 122A. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [122A.628] [RURAL TEACHER LOAN FORGIVENESS 
  1.8   PROGRAM.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHMENT.] A rural teacher loan 
  1.10  forgiveness program is established.  The commissioner shall 
  1.11  develop application forms and procedures under this section, and 
  1.12  shall administer all aspects of the program.  
  1.13     Subd. 2.  [ELIGIBILITY.] A post-secondary graduate after 
  1.14  January 1, 2000, is eligible for the rural teacher loan 
  1.15  forgiveness program if the graduate: 
  1.16     (1) is licensed under Minnesota Rules, chapter 8710, as a 
  1.17  teacher of agricultural education, teacher of English as a 
  1.18  second language, teacher of mathematics, teacher of science, 
  1.19  teacher of technology, teacher of world languages and cultures, 
  1.20  or teacher of special education; 
  1.21     (2) is employed as a teacher by a school district that has 
  1.22  its central administrative office located within economic 
  1.23  development regions one to ten and that serves, on average, 100 
  1.24  or fewer pupils per grade; and 
  1.25     (3) has secured and is responsible for a qualified loan. 
  2.1      Subd. 3.  [QUALIFIED LOAN.] For the purposes of this 
  2.2   section, "qualified loan" means government and commercial loans 
  2.3   for actual costs paid for tuition and reasonable education 
  2.4   expenses related to the undergraduate education of a licensed 
  2.5   teacher. 
  2.6      Subd. 4.  [LOAN FORGIVENESS.] The commissioner may approve 
  2.7   loan forgiveness payments for no more than 500 eligible rural 
  2.8   teachers in each fiscal year.  Approved applicants are eligible 
  2.9   for loan repayments that are the lesser of $2,000 or 20 percent 
  2.10  of the outstanding balance of their qualified loan each fiscal 
  2.11  year.  Participation in the program is limited to five years.  
  2.12  If the amount appropriated for rural teacher loan forgiveness is 
  2.13  insufficient to fully fund all approved applicants, the 
  2.14  commissioner shall prorate the appropriated amount evenly. 
  2.15     Sec. 2.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  2.16     $1,000,000 is appropriated in fiscal year 2001 to the 
  2.17  commissioner of children, families, and learning for the 
  2.18  purposes of section 1.