The act establishes a system of loan insurance and a supplementary system of direct loans, to assist students to attend postsecondary business, trade, technical, and other vocational schools.

The stated purpose of the act is to enable the Commissioner of Education (1) to encourage States and nonprofit private institutions and organizations to establish adequate loan insurance programs for students in eligible institutions (as defined in the act), (2) to provide a Federal program of student loan insurance for students who do not have reasonable access to a State or private nonprofit program of student loan insurance covered by an agreement under provisions of the act, and (3) to pay a portion of the interest on loans to qualified students who are insured under this act or under a program of a State or of a nonprofit private institution or organization which meets requirements set forth in the act.

The act authorizes appropriation of $250,000 and such further sums as may become necessary for the adequacy of a vocational student loan insurance fund established hereunder which shall be available to the Commissioner for carrying out the provisions of the act.

The act authorizes advances totaling $1,875,000 to be allotted among the States on the basis of population aged 18 to 22. In the absence of State programs meeting the statutory standards, the act provides for advances to the reserve funds of private loan insurance programs in order that all eligible students will have reasonable access to insured loans. If vocational students do not have such access, the Federal Government is authorized to insure commercial loans.

In exceptional circumstances where students are unable to secure loans at reasonable interest rates, the act authorizes the Commissioner of Education to make loans directly to students in vocational schools. Appropriations are authorized for these direct loans.

The terms of loans made available to students in vocational schools under this legislation are similar to the student loan insurance provisions of the Higher Education Act of 1965. A student may borrow up to $1,000 each year for a period of 2 years.

All of the interest is to be paid by the Federal Government while the borrower is pursuing his studies and 3 percent thereafter if at the time the loan is made the family income of the borrower does not exceed $15,000.

The act requires that repayment on the loan begin from 9 months to 1 year after the student ceases his studies in a vocational school. S. HEALTH PROFESSIONS EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE AMENDMENTS OF 1965

(PUBLIC LAW 89-290, APPROVED OCT. 22, 1965)

On January 19, 1965, Senator Lister Hill, of Alabama, introduced the Health Professions Educational Amendments of 1965, as S. 595. The bill was referred to the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare. On the same date a similar bill, H.R. 3141, was introduced in the House by Representative Oren Harris, of Arkansas. H.R. 3141 was referred to the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.

On June 8 and 9, 1965, the Subcommittee on Public Health and Welfare, of the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, held hearings on H.R. 3141 and other bills. The record of the hearings was printed in a volume of 779 pages.

Hearings on S. 595 and H.R. 3141 were held before the Subcommittee on Health, of the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, on September 8, 1965. The record of the hearings was printed in a volume of 184 pages.

H.R. 3141 was reported from the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce on August 12, 1965 (Rept. No. 781). It passed the House on September 1, 1965. It was reported in the Senate, from the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, on September 28, 1965 (Rept. No. 789). It passed the Senate, amended, on September 30, 1965. The House agreed to the Senate amendments on October 11, 1965. The act was approved by the President on October 22, 1965, and became Public Law 89-290.

Following is a digest of the act.

Authorizes the appropriation of $200 million from 1966 to 1969 for grants to assist schools of medicine, dentistry, osteopathy, optometry, and podiatry in improving the quality of their educational programs. Requires that recipient schools be (1) public or nonprofit schools, and (2) accredited by bodies approved by the Commissioner of Education, except that if the Commissioner finds that with the aid of a grant, a school will meet the accreditation standards within a reasonable time such grant may be approved.

Establishes a National Advisory Council on Medical, Dental, Optometric, and Podiatric Education consisting of the Surgeon General and 12 members appointed by him to advise in the preparation of general regulations and with respect to policy matters arising during the administration of the program.

Sets forth criteria for computing the amount of grants to which eligible schools are entitled and limits a school to a total of $700,000 in grants under this new program.

Extends and expands existing law for construction of new teaching facilities to train physicians, pharmacists, optometrists, podiatrists, dentists, and professional public health personnel or for the replacement of existing facilities. Authorizes the appropriation of $480 million from 1966 to 1969 for grants under the existing law.

Provides for scholarship grants to students in the health professions from low-income families up to $2,500 per year. Permits forgiveness of up to 50 percent (10 percent annually) of such loans for students subsequently practicing in an area certified by the appropriate State health authority as having a shortage of health personnel. T. MEDICAL LIBRARY ASSISTANCE ACT OF 1965

(PUBLIC LAW 89-291, APPROVED OCT. 22, 1965)

S. 597, the Medical Library Assistance Act, was introduced on January 19, 1965, by Senator Lister Hill, of Alabama. The bill was referred to the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare.

In the House, a companion bill, H.R. 3142, was introduced on January 19, 1965, by Representative Oren Harris, of Arkansas. This bill was referred to the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.

On September 14, 1965, the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce held hearings on H.R. 3142 and a similar bill, H.R. 6001, introduced on March 9, 1965, by Representative John E. Fogarty, of Rhode Island. The record of the hearings was printed in a volume of 97 pages.

H.R. 3142 was reported from the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce on September 20, 1965 (Rept. No. 1026). On October 1, 1965, the bill passed the House; the proceedings were vacated; the bill was laid on the table, and S. 597, as amended, was passed in lieu.

S. 597 was reported in the Senate, from the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, on September 20, 1965 (Rept. No. 756). The bill passed the Senate on September 22, 1965. It passed the House, amended, on October 1, 1965. The Senate agreed to the House amendments on October 12, 1965. The bill was approved by the President on October 22, 1965, and became Public Law 89-291.

The act declares a congressional policy and authorizes grants to assist in

(1) The construction of new or the rehabilitation of existing medical library facilities;

(2) The training of medical librarians and other information specialists in the health sciences;

(3) The compilation and creation of written matter to facilitate distribution of knowledge relating to scientific, social, and cultural advancements in sciences related to health through the awarding of fellowships to physicians and scientists;

(4) The conduct of research in the medical library science field to develop new techniques;

(5) Improving and expanding the basic resources of medical libraries;

(6) The development of a national system of regional medical libraries; and

(7) Providing support to biomedical scientific publications. The act designates the Board of Regents of the National Library of Medicine created under the Public Health Service Act to serve as the National Medical Library Assistance Advisory Board to assist the Surgeon General in the promulgation of regulations and with respect to policy matters arising during the administration of the act. Authorizes the Surgeon General, with Board approval, to make grants in accordance with standards herein toward the cost of construction (limited to 75 percent) to carry out the other purposes of the act.

U. SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION IN AREAS AFFECTED BY DISASTERS

(PUBLIC LAW 89-313, APPROVED NOV. 1, 1965)

S. 289, a bill to amend Public Laws 815 and 874, 81st Congress, to provide financial assistance in the construction and operation of public elementary and secondary schools in areas affected by a major disaster, was introduced on January 6, 1965, by Senator Wayne Morse, of Oregon, for himself and other Senators. The bill was referred to the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare.

Hearings on S. 289 were held before the Subcommittee on Education, of the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, on May 4, 1965. The record of the hearings was printed in a volume of 57 pages.

In the House, hearings on a number of bills proposing disaster school assistance and measures to eliminate inequities in Public Laws 815 and 874 were held before the General Subcommittee on Education, of the Committee on Education and Labor, on May 18, 19, 24, and 26, 1965. The record of the hearings was printed in a volume of 146 pages.

H.R. 9002 was introduced by Representative William D. Ford, of Michigan, on June 14, 1965. The bill was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor. It was reported from that committee on July 1, 1965 (Rept. No. 587). It passed the House on August 30, 1965. It was reported in the Senate, from the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, on September 28, 1965 (Rept. No. 783). It passed the Senate, amended, on October 1, 1965. The House concurred in Senate amendments Nos. 1 through 10 and No. 12, and the House concurred in Senate amendment No. 11 with an amendment, on October 13, 1965. The Senate concurred in the House amendment to the Senate amendment No. 11 on October 15, 1965. The act was approved by the President on November 1, 1965, and became Public Law 89-313.

The act amends Public Laws 815 and 874, 81st Congress, to provide financial assistance in the construction and operation of public elementary and secondary schools in areas affected by a major disaster; to eliminate inequities in the application of Public Law 815 in certain military base closings to make uniform eligibility requirements for school districts in Public Law 874; and for other purposes.

The act authorizes the Commissioner of Education, upon a presidential finding that a major natural disaster has occurred, to provide immediate financial assistance to local educational agencies in the disaster-struck areas through use of funds appropriated for the operation of Public Law 815 and Public Law 874.

The funds provided under the act will become available upon the findings by the Commissioner

(1) That public elementary and secondary school facilities have been destroyed or seriously damaged;

(2) That the local educational agency is making a reasonable tax effort and is exercising due diligence in availing itself of State and other financial assistance, including insurance, for the replacement or restoration of the damaged facilities;

(3) That the local educational agency does not have sufficient funds available to it to provide minimum school facilities needed for restoration or replacement of the destroyed or damaged facilities;

(4) That, to the extent the operation of private elementary and secondary schools in the attendance area of the local educational agency have been disrupted or impaired by the disaster, the local educational agency has made provision for the conduct of educational programs under public auspices and administration in which children formerly enrolled in the private elementary and secondary schools may participate.

In addition to the immediate aid for restoration of damaged facilities, the act also provides for the assistance for a 5-year period following the disaster in an amount which would reflect the difference between what the local educational agency could raise from its tax resources and the amount necessary to provide a level of education equivalent to that maintained in the school during the year preceding the disaster, taking into account the additional costs reasonably necessary to meet its obligation of providing interim education to the nonpublic-school children.

The amount of the aid authorized for the fiscal year in which the disaster occurs and the first fiscal year thereafter is 100 percent of the difference between what can be raised by the local school agency and

what will be needed to provide such educational services, including services to non-public-school children. Thereafter, such aid must be progressively decreased to 75 percent, 50 percent, and 25 percent of the amount provided in the disaster year.

Section 3 of the act amends Public Law 815 to provide that the Commissioner of Education will disregard the announcement made November 19, 1964, of a decrease in or a cessation of Federal activities in certain areas and that he shall carry out the act as if such announcement had not been made. (This provision will affect only a few school districts which had made extensive preparation for the construction of new facilities, relying upon Federal funds to which they had been given preliminary notice of entitlement.)

Section 4 of the act modifies Public Law 874 to provide that basic eligibility for the provisions of Public Law 874 benefits shall be governed by a uniform 3-percent impaction criterion.

Other provisions of the act:

(1) Permit the Commissioner to make a repayable advance rather than a grant for construction in disaster areas where he considers it in the public interest.

(2) Permit the Commissioner in exceptional circumstances to waive minimum eligibility requirements of Public Law 815, thus enabling remote areas having a high concentration of Federal employees in very small school districts to obtain relief previously denied, based upon the minimum number enrolled.

(3) Permit payments under Public Law 89-10 to be made to the State-operated public schools providing specialized education to various types of handicapped children.

(4) Fix the effective date of the legislation as of the date H.R. 9022 passed the House (August 30, 1965).

(5) Amend Public Law 89-10 to provide a minimum of $75,000 to each State for the administration of that act; and to provide for the administration of the act in the outlying territories and dependencies.

V. THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965

(PUBLIC LAW 89-329, APPROVED NOV. 8, 1965)

The "Higher Education Act of 1965" was introduced in the Senate, as S. 600, on January 19, 1965, by Senator Wayne Morse, of Oregon, for himself and 23 other Senators. The bill was referred to the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare. Hearings on the bill were held before the Subcommittee on Education, of the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, on March 16, 22, 30; May 18, 19, 20; and June 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, and 11, 1965. The record of the hearings was printed in 3 parts comprising a total of 1,529 pages.

The "Higher Education Act of 1965" was introduced in the House, as H.R. 3220, by Representative Adam C. Powell, of New York, on January 19, 1965. The bill was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor. Hearings on this and similar bills were held before the Special Committee on Education, of the Committee on Education and Labor, on February 1, 2, 3, 4, 5; March 8, 9, 10, 12, 16, 17, 18, and 19; April 30; and May 1, 1965. The record of the hearings was printed in a volume of 889 pages.