# 114-hr-4256: Simple Income-Based Repayment Act

114-hr-4256, Simple Income-Based Repayment Act, is a 114th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Murphy, Patrick [D-FL-18] (D-FL); status Referred to the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training. (as of 2025-11-18).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/114-hr-4256
- As of: 2025-11-18
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 114-hr-4256
- Congress: 114
- Title: Simple Income-Based Repayment Act
- Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training.
- Introduced: 2015-12-15
- Sponsor: Rep. Murphy, Patrick [D-FL-18] (D-FL)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Policy area: Education
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2025-11-18

## Summary

Simple Income-Based Repayment Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to replace several existing federal student loan programs for graduated, extended, income-contingent, and income-based repayment with a single repayment plan that caps annual debt repayments based on the borrower's income. Under the new program, loan payments are made automatically through voluntary wage withholding based on quarterly estimated payments. The new income-based repayment program shall be available to both new and existing borrowers, excluding borrowers of specified federal loans made on behalf of a dependent student. Existing repayment plans other than standard repayment shall generally be unavailable to new borrowers, although the Department of Education (ED) may make graduated and extended plans available to new borrowers who demonstrate exceptional circumstances. Under the program, an individual's income-based repayment obligation shall be limited to 10% of the excess of the individual's taxable income over a specified amount. In the case of a joint return of two married individuals who each have an eligible loan, the income-based repayment amount with respect to each spouse shall generally be determined by apportioning half of the total income to each spouse. ED must provide an online tool to enable borrowers to make direct payments and access information regarding their loans. In the event of underpayment, a borrower who does not request and receive a reduction must pay to ED an amount equal to the difference between the annual repayment amount and the sum of payments made for that taxable year. In the event of overpayment, ED shall either refund the overpayment amount to the borrower or apply the amount as prepayment to the borrower's loans. Loan forgiveness is available after 240 qualifying payments are made under the program.

## Related bills

- 114-hr-6392: Systemic Risk Designation Improvement Act of 2016
- 114-hr-6225: Ensuring Diverse Leadership at the Federal Reserve Act of 2016
- 114-hr-6220: Providing Veterans Overdue Care Act of 2016
- 114-hr-6211: Fair Housing for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Survivors Act of 2016
- 114-hr-6148: To amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to publish a maximum contaminant level goal and promul…
- 114-hr-6027: Puerto Rico Health Insurance Fairness Act of 2016

## Sources
- [114-hr-4256 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4256)

## Related
- [114-hr-6392: Systemic Risk Designation Improvement Act of 2016](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/114-hr-6392)
- [114-hr-6225: Ensuring Diverse Leadership at the Federal Reserve Act of 2016](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/114-hr-6225)
- [114-hr-6220: Providing Veterans Overdue Care Act of 2016](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/114-hr-6220)
- [114-hr-6211: Fair Housing for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Survivors Act of 2016](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/114-hr-6211)
- [114-hr-6148: To amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to require the Administrator of the Enviro…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/114-hr-6148)
- [114-hr-6027: Puerto Rico Health Insurance Fairness Act of 2016](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/114-hr-6027)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/114-hr-4256 (as of 2025-11-18).