Henry J. Hyde Scholarships for Haiti Act of 2006 - Directs the President, acting through the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, to provide undergraduate scholarships, in the form of student loans followed by loan forgiveness, to needy Haitian students who, upon completion of their studies in the United States, promptly return to Haiti for a period at least one year longer than the duration of such scholarships. Authorizes appropriations for FY2007-FY2009.
Reserves a specified minimum amount of certain authorized development assistance appropriations under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 for literacy and basic education programs in Haiti.
Expresses the sense of Congress that the President, acting through the Director of the Peace Corps, should make available again to the Government of Haiti qualified Peace Corps volunteers who would serve under hardship conditions to: (1) assist the people of Haiti to improve literacy rates and meet other basic needs so that they can become economically self-sufficient; and (2) promote mutual understanding between the peoples of the United States and of Haiti.
Urges the President to: (1) design a program to match scholarship contributions from private and public sectors in either country; (2) seek to engage domestic and international businesses in Haiti to maximize the opportunities of returning scholarship recipients for the development of Haiti; and (3) provide the scholarships through existing scholarship programs, such as the Cooperative Association of States for Scholarships program.
[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5091 Introduced in House (IH)]
109th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5091
To authorize assistance to the people of the Republic of Haiti to fund
scholarships for talented disadvantaged students in Haiti to continue
their education in the United States and to return to Haiti to
contribute to the development of their country, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 5, 2006
Mr. Lantos (for himself, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Mr. Engel, Ms. Ros-
Lehtinen, Mr. Delahunt, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Ms. Lee, Mr. Weller,
Mr. Berman, Mr. Wexler, Mr. Payne, Mr. Crowley, Mrs. Napolitano, and
Mr. Meeks of New York) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on International Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize assistance to the people of the Republic of Haiti to fund
scholarships for talented disadvantaged students in Haiti to continue
their education in the United States and to return to Haiti to
contribute to the development of their country, 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 ``Henry J. Hyde Scholarships for Haiti
Act of 2006''.
SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to establish an undergraduate
scholarship program which is designed to bring talented students of
limited financial means from Haiti to the United States for study at
United States institutions of higher education to--
(1) improve the diversity and quality of educational
opportunities for such students;
(2) assist the development efforts of Haiti by providing
training and educational assistance to persons who can help
address the social and economic needs of Haiti;
(3) build a well-educated middle-class in Haiti which is
capable and willing to provide leadership in the public and
private sectors to help sustain the political and economic
progress that is sorely needed to confront the daunting
challenges of that country; and
(4) promote positive and productive relationships between
the United States and Haiti.
SEC. 3. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) It is in the national interest of the United States to
provide a stable source of financial support to give talented
students in Haiti the opportunity to study in the United States
in order to improve the range and quality of educational
alternatives for these students, further the development of
Haiti, and build enduring relationships between the people of
the United States and the people of Haiti.
(2) Providing scholarship to foreign students to study in
the United States has proven to be an effective means of
creating strong bonds between the United States and the future
leadership of developing countries and assisting those
countries to substantially further their development
objectives.
(3) Talented students from families of limited financial
means in Haiti traditionally have few, if any, opportunities to
continue their education in their own country and are less
likely to pursue higher education in the United States.
(4) In 2003, 76 percent of the population in Haiti earned
less than the equivalent of $2.00 per day, and 56 percent of
the population in the country in the same year earned less than
the equivalent of $1.00 per day.
(5) In 2003, the literacy rate of individuals in Haiti who
are older than 15 years of age was less than 52 percent. The
net primary school enrollment rate was 68 percent, as compared
to the average of approximately 78 percent for other low income
countries, such as Afghanistan and Guinea-Bissau.
(6) Women in Haiti are more likely to be adversely affected
by the dire economic and social conditions in Haiti.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF ASSISTANCE.
(a) In General.--The President, acting through the Administrator of
the United States Agency for International Development, shall provide
scholarships (including partial assistance) for undergraduate study at
United States institutions of higher education (as such term is defined
in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)) by
citizens and nationals of Haiti who have completed their secondary
education with distinction and who would not otherwise have the
opportunity to study in the United States due to financial constraints.
(b) Form of Scholarship; Forgiveness of Loan Repayment.--To
encourage Haitian students to use their training and education for the
benefit of Haiti, each scholarship that is extended under this Act
shall be in the form of a loan. All repayment of the loan (including
principal and accrued interest) shall be forgiven upon the scholarship
recipient's prompt return to Haiti for a period which is at least one
year longer than the period spent studying in the United States under
the scholarship.
(c) Guidelines.--The scholarship program under this Act shall be
carried out in accordance with the pertinent guidelines of section 604
of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1986 and 1987
(22 U.S.C. 4704; Public Law 99-93; relating to guidelines for United
States scholarship program for developing countries).
SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING THE PEACE CORPS.
It is the sense of Congress that the President, acting through the
Director of the Peace Corps, should, as soon as practicable, make
available again to the Government of Haiti qualified Peace Corps
volunteers who would serve under hardship conditions to--
(1) assist the people of Haiti to improve literacy rates
and meet other basic needs so that they can become economically
self-sufficient; and
(2) promote mutual understanding between the people of the
United States and the people of Haiti.
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated $2,500,000
for each of fiscal years 2007, 2008, and 2009, for the President,
acting through the Administrator for the United States Agency for
International Development, to carry out this Act.
(b) Additional Authorities.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to the
authorization of appropriations under subsection (a) are--
(1) authorized to remain available until expended; and
(2) shall be in addition to funds otherwise available for
such purposes.
(c) Literacy and Other Basic Education Programs.--Of the amounts
authorized to be appropriated to carry out chapter 1 of part I of the
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.; relating to
development assistance) for each of fiscal years 2007, 2008, and 2009,
and which are not allocated for assistance for countries in Latin
America and the Caribbean, not less than $3,000,000 for each such
fiscal year is authorized to be made available for assistance for
literacy and other basic education programs in Haiti.
SEC. 7. GENERAL AUTHORITIES.
(a) Public and Private Sector Contributions.--The public and
private sectors, particularly the Haitian-American community, in the
United States and in Haiti shall be encouraged to contribute to the
costs of the scholarship program financed under this Act. To this end,
the President, acting through the Administrator for the United Sates
Agency for International Development, is strongly encouraged to design
a matching program in which contributions made by the public and
private sectors of either country are matched by amounts authorized
under this Act. Not more than twenty-five percent of the amounts
authorized to be appropriated under this Act may be dedicated to such a
matching program.
(b) Utilization of Returning Scholarship Recipients.--The
President, acting through the Administrator for the United States
Agency for International Development, shall seek to engage the private
sector of Haiti and international private enterprises that are
conducting business in Haiti to maximize the opportunities for
productive contributions to the development of Haiti by returning
scholarship recipients.
(c) Delivery of Assistance Through the Cooperative Association of
States for Scholarships.--The President, acting through the
Administrator for the United States Agency for International
Development, is strongly encouraged to carry out the purposes of this
Act through existing scholarship programs, such as the Cooperative
Association of States for Scholarships program.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on International Relations.
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