HR 5810 IHCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To amend title V of the Social Security Act to provide grants for school-based mentoring programs for at risk teenage girls to prevent and reduce teen pregnancy, and to provide student loan forgiveness for mentors participating in such programs.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

April 15, 2008

Ms. VELAZQUEZ introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Labor, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concernedCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

To amend title V of the Social Security Act to provide grants for school-based mentoring programs for at risk teenage girls to prevent and reduce teen pregnancy, and to provide student loan forgiveness for mentors participating in such programs.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Mentor-Mentee Teen Pregnancy Reduction Act of 2008'.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) The U.S. has the highest teenage pregnancy rate of any fully industrialized country.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) One in three girls in the U.S. becomes pregnant at least once by the age of 20.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) Girls who become pregnant are more likely to drop out of high school, less likely to complete college, more likely to give birth to low-birth weight babies, and more likely to live in poverty.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(4) The children born to teenage mothers are more likely to have learning disabilities, less likely to complete high school, and more likely to live in poverty.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(5) Girls born to teenage mothers are more likely to become teenager mothers themselves; boys born to teenage mothers are more likely to end up in prison.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(6) Innovative initiatives, such as increasing parental involvement and portraying the consequences of teenage pregnancy through the media, exist that can reduce the rates of teenage pregnancy and give every young person a better hope for the future.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(7) Research shows that a wide variety of programs have been successful at delaying sexual activity and reducing teenage pregnancy, including efforts that engage students in community service, promote youth development, provide preventive health services, offer sex and HIV/AIDS education, and more.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 3. MENTOR-MENTEE TEEN PREGNANCY REDUCTION GRANT PROGRAM.

Title V of the Social Security Act is amended--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) in section 510(d) (42 U.S.C. 710(d)), by inserting `and grants under section 511' after `under subsection (a)' ; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) by adding at the end the following new section:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

`MENTOR-MENTEE TEEN PREGNANCY REDUCTION GRANT PROGRAM

`Sec. 511. (a) From the amount appropriated in section 510(d) for a fiscal year (beginning with fiscal year 2009) which is not allotted to a State under section 510, the Secretary shall award competitive grants for the creation of school-based programs that provide mentoring to at-risk teenage girls to prevent and reduce teen pregnancy. In awarding such grants for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall give priority to programs in States that have elected not to receive an allotment under section 510 for the fiscal year.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(b)(1) No grant may be awarded under this section except to an entity that is a local educational agency (as defined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965) or a community-based organization.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(2) Funds provided under such a grant may only be used in a school-based setting for the following purposes:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(A) To recruit, train, and support mentors.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(B) To hire mentoring coordinators and provide professional development.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(C) To pay for outreach materials.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(D) To provide activities that will help in the development of a mentee, such as--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(i) workshops, classes, and after-school activities, which may include family life and sex education and may provide--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(I) information that stresses the importance of abstinence and postponing sexual involvement;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(II) medically accurate information on the importance of contraception for those who are sexually active, on condom use, and on HIV and sexually transmitted diseases; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(III) information that reflects mores and values of the community involved.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(ii) preparation for standardized examinations;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(iii) assistance with college entrance;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(iv) education in financial literacy;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(v) tutoring;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(vi) sports;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(vii) education in health and nutrition; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(viii) education in the arts.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(3) No grant may be awarded under this section unless the grantee agrees that, in carrying out the purposes described in paragraph (2), the grantee will, whenever possible, use strategies relating to family life and sex education that have been demonstrated to be effective, or that incorporate characteristics of effective programs.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(4) No grant may be awarded under this section unless the grantee agrees that only qualified individuals will serve as mentors under this section. For the purposes of this paragraph, a `qualified individual' is an individual who--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(A) is a woman who has received at least a baccalaureate degree from an institution of higher education (as such term is defined in section 102(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002(a)));CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(B) is mentoring no more than two mentees under this section; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(C) has been trained and screened by a local educational agency or community-based organization to do the following for individual mentees:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(i) To encourage setting goals and planning for the future.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(ii) To promote responsible behavior and help delay sexual activity.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(iii) To provide general guidance.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(iv) To increase participation in school.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(5) No grant shall be made under this section unless the grantee agrees to submit to the Secretary, in accordance with the criteria of the Secretary, a report that provides information on the program conducted under this section, including outcomes and increased education and awareness about the prevention of teen pregnancy under the grant. The Secretary shall make such reports available to the public.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(6) Grantees under this section shall expend funds received under the grant not later than 18 months after the date such funds are provided under the grant.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(c)(1) Paragraph (3) of section 502(a) shall apply to grants under this section in the same manner as it applies to funding made available under section 502(b).CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(2) Sections 507 and 508 shall apply to grants under this section to the same extent and in the same manner as such sections apply to allotments under section 502(c).CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(3) Section 506 shall apply to grants under this section to the extent determined by the Secretary to be appropriate.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(d) The Secretary shall, directly or through contract, provide for evaluations of programs receiving funds under grants under this section. Such an evaluation shall cover at least 6 programs and programs representing at least 10 percent of the funding provided under this section. Each such evaluation for a program shall describe--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(1) the activities carried out under the grant; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





`(2) the extent to which such activities were effective in changing attitudes and behavior to achieve the project strategies consistent with this section.'.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

SEC. 4. LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR MENTORS WHO PARTICIPATE IN TEEN PREGNANCY REDUCTION PROGRAM.

(a) Program Authorized- The Secretary of Health and Human Services is authorized, from the funds appropriated under subsection (g), to carry out a program to assume the obligation to repay a qualified loan amount (as determined under subsection (b)) for a Federal student loan, in accordance with this section, for an individual who--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) is a qualified individual to serve as a mentor under subsection (b)(4) of section 511 of the Social Security Act;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) has served as a mentor for the teen pregnancy reduction grant program authorized under section 511 of the Social Security Act for not less than 200 hours in an academic year or its equivalent (as determined by the Secretary); andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) is not in default on a loan for which the individual seeks forgiveness.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(b) Qualified Loan Amount- The amount of loan forgiveness the Secretary provides under this section--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) shall be equal to $2,000 for every 200 hours of service an individual serves as a mentor under section 511 of the Social Security Act in an academic year or its equivalent (as determined by the Secretary), after the date of the enactment of this section; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) may not exceed a total of $20,000 for an individual.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(c) Priority- In providing loan forgiveness under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to individuals who serve as mentors for programs under section 511 of the Social Security Act that are carried out by local educational agencies or community-based organizations that are located in areas with the highest rates of teen pregnancy, as determined by the Secretary.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(d) Construction- Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the refunding of any repayment of a loan.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(e) Regulations- The Secretary is authorized to issue such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(f) Definitions- In this section:CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) FEDERAL STUDENT LOAN-CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(A) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the term `Federal student loan' means any loan made, insured, or guaranteed under part B, D, or E of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(B) TREATMENT OF CONSOLIDATION LOANS- A loan amount for a loan made under section 428C or section 455(g) shall be considered a Federal student loan under this paragraph only to the extent that such loan amount was used to repay a loan made under section 428 or 428H, a Federal Direct Stafford Loan, or a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan for an individual who meets the requirements of subsection (a), as determined in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) SECRETARY- The term `Secretary' means the Secretary of Health and Human Services.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(g) Authorization of Appropriations- There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2009 and each of the 3 succeeding fiscal years.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink