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Committee advances bill to broaden Public Service Loan Forgiveness certification for adjuncts and public employees
Summary
House Bill 69 would require institutions to use a 4.35 multiplier to convert adjunct contact hours into full-time equivalents for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) certification, mandate timely certification and require annual employee notification. The committee gave HB 69 a due pass after proponents described the multiplier and cited state
Representative Garrett, sponsor of House Bill 69, told the House Education Committee the bill seeks to ensure public-service employees, including adjunct and contingent faculty, can qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) by standardizing how institutions calculate hours for certifying eligibility.
Amy Salata of the Student Borrower Protection Center and other witnesses described two central changes in the bill: a required multiplier of 4.35 to convert a single class contact hour into an equivalent number of work hours for PSLF certification, and a requirement that institutions timely certify current and former employees and proactively distribute Department of Education materials about PSLF. “This bill will ensure that those eligible for PSLF in New Mexico get to reap the benefits of the program,” Salata said; she added that only 5,450 New Mexicans had received PSLF to date.
Supporters including AFT New Mexico and New Mexico State University testified that adjunct and contingent faculty spend time on grading, office hours and student support outside classroom contact hours and that the multiplier is used in other states to recognize that out-of-class work. John Dert of AFT New Mexico said the measure recognizes “what adjuncts do outside the classroom” and will help them qualify faster.
Committee members asked how the multiplier would be applied across multiple employers and whether institutions could certify for former employees; sponsors said the bill allows for aggregating employment across institutions and for timely certification of former employees. The bill also asks public-service employers to annually distribute Department of Education fact sheets, letters and FAQs to employees so eligible workers know to pursue PSLF certification.
After public testimony and questions, Representative Roybal Caballero moved a due-pass recommendation; Representative Mirabal Moya seconded the motion. The chair announced there was no opposition and the committee granted a due pass on House Bill 69.
