(a)On or before January 1, 2025, the Commissioner of Higher Education shall establish, within available appropriations, a program to reimburse certain persons for student loan payments. The Office of Higher Education may approve the participation of any person in the student loan reimbursement program who (1) (A) attended a public or independent institution of higher education in the state and graduated with an associate or a bachelor's degree, (B) holds an occupational or professional license or certification issued pursuant to title 20, or (C) is granted a hardship waiver by the commissioner, pursuant to a waiver application submitted by such person in the form and manner prescribed by the commissioner;
(2)is a resident of the state, as defined in section 12-701, and has been a residen
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(a) On or before January 1, 2025, the Commissioner of Higher Education shall establish, within available appropriations, a program to reimburse certain persons for student loan payments. The Office of Higher Education may approve the participation of any person in the student loan reimbursement program who (1) (A) attended a public or independent institution of higher education in the state and graduated with an associate or a bachelor's degree, (B) holds an occupational or professional license or certification issued pursuant to title 20, or (C) is granted a hardship waiver by the commissioner, pursuant to a waiver application submitted by such person in the form and manner prescribed by the commissioner; (2) is a resident of the state, as defined in section 12-701, and has been a resident of the state for not less than five years, as determined by the commissioner; (3) has (A) a Connecticut adjusted gross income of not more than one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars and files a return under the federal income tax as an unmarried individual or a married individual filing separately, or (B) a Connecticut adjusted gross income of not more than one hundred seventy-five thousand dollars and files a return under the federal income tax as a head of household, a married individual filing jointly or a surviving spouse, as defined in Section 2(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as amended from time to time; and (4) has a student loan. (b) Persons who qualify under subsection (a) of this section may apply to the Office of Higher Education to participate in the student loan reimbursement program at such time and in such manner as the commissioner of said office prescribes. Not later than January 1, 2025, the commissioner shall post on said office's Internet web site the (1) qualifications for a hardship waiver described in subparagraph (C) of subdivision (1) of said subsection, and (2) forms required to apply for the student loan reimbursement program and a hardship waiver. The application for the student loan reimbursement program shall include, but not be limited to, an option for a person to disclose such person's demographic information. (c) (1) The Commissioner of Higher Education shall award grants to persons approved to participate in the student loan reimbursement program on a first-come, first-served basis, provided such person meets the requirements of this subsection. (2) Each participant in the program shall volunteer for a nonprofit organization that is registered with the Department of Consumer Protection or a municipal government in the state for not less than fifty unpaid hours for each year of participation in the student loan reimbursement program. For purposes of this section, “volunteer hours” shall include, but need not be limited to, service on the board of directors for a nonprofit organization and military service. (3) Each participant in the program shall annually submit to the Office of Higher Education, in the manner prescribed by the commissioner, a (A) statement from a student loan servicer that includes the amounts for the outstanding loan balance for such student loan and the total of the year-to-date payments made on such student loan, and (B) form documenting the number of volunteer hours completed by such participant that is (i) signed by such participant's supervisor or other employee of the nonprofit organization or municipal government for which such participant volunteered, or, for military service, such participant's commanding officer, and (ii) notarized. (4) The Office of Higher Education shall reimburse each program participant who meets the requirements of this section for student loan payments an amount of not more than five thousand dollars, annually, provided no person shall participate in the student loan reimbursement program for more than four years or receive more than twenty thousand dollars in aggregate reimbursement for student loan payments. (d) The Office of Higher Education may use up to two and one-half per cent of the funds appropriated for purposes of this section, annually, for program administration, promotion and recruitment activities. (e) Not later than July 1, 2026, and each January and July thereafter, the Commissioner of Higher Education shall report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a , to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to higher education and employment advancement and appropriations and the budgets of state agencies on the operation and effectiveness of the program and any recommendations to expand the program.