Amends TCA Title 8; Title 9 and Title 49.

This bill requires the department of education to administer a financial award program for applicants who are employed in high-need fields within eligible counties. "High-need field" means a field experiencing a shortage of qualified applicants in rural or underserved communities, and "eligible county" means a county that has experienced a net population decline over the most recent seven-year period for which information is available or has experienced the highest net population loss in this state over the most recent 10-year period for which information is available. To be eligible for a financial award under this bill, an applicant must: (1) Have graduated from high school or obtained a GED or HiSET credential; (2) Have graduated and earned an undergraduate degree or certificate from a college or university, apply for this program within five years of obtaining such degree or certificate, and provide proof of the applicant's hourly wage or salary; (3) Participate in a federal income-driven repayment plan for the applicant's student loans; and (4) Reside in an eligible county and work in a high-need field in this state, if employed. An applicant whose annual income is less than $50,000 is eligible to receive an award equal to 100 percent of the applicant's monthly federal income-driven repayment plan payments for 24 months of repayment under the federal program. The awards granted under this bill will be deferred for a recipient who has been granted a deferment or forbearance under the federal income-driven repayment plan. Upon completion of the deferment or forbearance period, the recipient will be eligible to receive an award for the remaining time period under this provision. If an applicant is delinquent or in default on a repayment or service obligation under any federal family education loan program, a student loan guaranteed or administered by the state, or any other state or federal educational loan or service conditional scholarship program or has failed to comply with the terms of a service condition imposed by an award made pursuant to this state's education laws or has failed to repay an award, then the applicant will not receive an award under the bill until the delinquency, default, or failure is cured. This bill requires the department to: (1) Publicly identify, in consultation with the commissioner of economic and community development, high-need fields and eligible counties; (2) Publish, on or before January 1, 2022, and on January 1 of each subsequent year, a list of high-need fields and eligible counties in this state where residents may be eligible for a financial award under this bill; and (3) Assist counties to publicize this program to potential applicants. This bill provides that a recipient who is not a resident of an eligible county or otherwise does not meet the eligibility criteria established under this bill at the time a payment is made under this bill must refund the payments to the state. The department may recover the payments in accordance with rules promulgated by the department. For purposes of promulgating rules, this bill will take effect upon becoming law. For all other purposes, this bill will take effect on January 1, 2022.