H.R. 9272

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9272 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9272

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to allow certain Federal 
student loans to be transferred from a parent to a child, and for other 
purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

June 11, 2026

Mr. Foster (for himself, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, 
and Ms. Norton) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on Education and Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to allow certain Federal 
student loans to be transferred from a parent to a child, 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 ``Parent PLUS Loan Fairness and 
Responsibility Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. TRANSFER OF FEDERAL STUDENT LOANS FROM PARENT TO CHILD.

Part G of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1088 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 493D the following:

``SEC. 493E. TRANSFER OF FEDERAL STUDENT LOANS FROM PARENT TO CHILD.

``(a) In General.--A covered parent loan may be transferred from 
the original borrower of the loan to a child of such borrower in 
accordance with this section.
``(b) Transfer Requirements.--A covered parent loan may be 
transferred to a child under subsection (a) only if--
``(1) the loan is in good standing, as determined by the 
Secretary;
``(2) the loan was used to pay the educational expenses of 
the child to whom the loan is to be transferred;
``(3) the child to whom the loan is to be transferred--
``(A) has attained the age of 18 years; and
``(B) demonstrates the ability to repay the loan, 
as determined by the Secretary in accordance with 
subsection (c);
``(4) the child, the parent, and the lender agree, in 
writing, to the transfer of the loan;
``(5) the agreement described in paragraph (4) notifies the 
child to whom the loan is transferred of the effect of the 
transfer on the eligibility of the loan for forgiveness under 
section 455(m); and
``(6) a period of 180 days has elapsed during which the 
child was not pursuing--
``(A) at least a half-time course of study as 
determined by an institution of higher education; or
``(B) a course of study pursuant to a graduate 
fellowship program approved by the Secretary, or 
pursuant to a rehabilitation training program for 
disabled individuals approved by the Secretary.
``(c) Determination of Ability To Repay Loan.--In determining the 
ability of a child to repay a covered parent loan under subsection 
(b)(3)(B), the Secretary shall consider the following:
``(1) The child's employment status, income level, and 
credit history.
``(2) The total dollar amount of the loans proposed to be 
transferred to the child.
``(3) The debt-to-income ratio of the child before such 
transfer.
``(4) The projected debt-to-income ratio of the child after 
such transfer.
``(5) Any other factors the Secretary determines to be 
relevant to the ability of the child to repay the loan.
``(d) Treatment of Transferred Loan.--
``(1) In general.--A covered parent loan transferred to a 
child under subsection (a) shall have the same terms, 
conditions, and benefits applicable to the loan before the date 
of such transfer except that--
``(A) the child to whom the loan is transferred 
shall be treated as the original borrower of the loan;
``(B) the parent who transferred the loan to the 
child shall not be responsible for paying--
``(i) the outstanding balance of principal 
or interest on the loan; or
``(ii) any other costs associated with the 
loan, including fees; and
``(C) notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
at the election of the child to whom the loan is 
transferred such loan may be treated as a Federal 
Direct PLUS Loan for purposes of determining the 
eligibility of the loan for any repayment plan under 
this title.
``(2) Origination date.--The origination date of a covered 
parent loan transferred to a child under subsection (a) shall 
be the date on which the loan was originally made to the parent 
of such child and such loan may not be treated as a new loan 
made after the date of such transfer.
``(3) PSLF payments.--
``(A) In general.--Any qualifying PSLF payment made 
on a covered parent loan before the date of transfer to 
a child under subsection (a) shall be treated as a 
qualifying PSLF payment made by the child for purposes 
of determining the child's eligibility for public 
service loan forgiveness under section 455(m).
``(B) Qualifying pslf payment defined.--In this 
paragraph, the term `qualifying PSLF payment' means a 
payment eligible to be counted toward the 120 monthly 
payment threshold described in section 455(m)(1).
``(e) Effect on Loan Limits.--Notwithstanding any other provision 
of this Act, a covered parent loan transferred to a child under 
subsection (a) shall not be counted toward the child's annual or 
aggregate maximum loan limits under this title.
``(f) Covered Parent Loan Defined.--In this section, the term 
`covered parent loan' means--
``(1) a loan made to a parent on behalf of a dependent 
student under section 428B;
``(2) a Federal Direct PLUS Loan made to the parent of a 
dependent student; or
``(3) a loan made under section 428C or 455(g), to the 
extent that such loan was used to repay--
``(A) a loan made to the parent of a dependent 
student under section 428B; or
``(B) a Federal Direct PLUS Loan made to the parent 
of a dependent student.''.
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