Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act
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Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to establish a program of student loan forgiveness for borrowers who agree to remain employed, for at least three years, as public attorneys who are: (1) State or local criminal prosecutors; or (2) State, local, or Federal public defenders in criminal cases.
Directs the Secretary of Education to provide such student loan repayment benefits for such public attorneys on a first-come, first-served basis, and subject to the availability of appropriations. Requires priority to be given to borrowers who received repayment benefits for the preceding fiscal year and have completed less than three years of the first required service period. Allows the borrower and the Secretary to enter into an additional agreement, after the required three-year period, for a successive period of service which may be less than three years. Limits the amount paid under such program on behalf of any borrower to $6,000 per calendar year and $40,000 total.
Includes public defenders among those eligible under a current HEA program of cancellation of student loans for certain public service.
Referred to the Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness.
- Introduced in House Formatted Text PDF Formatted XML
Cite this page
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 198: Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act. 109th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/109-HR-198/
"H.R. 198: Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act." 109th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/109-HR-198/.
H.R. 198, 109th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/109-HR-198/.
[H.R. 198: Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/109-HR-198/)