Adelita Grijalva

Loan Forgiveness for Educators Act of 2026

This bill expands loan forgiveness for educators by revising the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program. The program provides loan forgiveness (up to $17,500) for teachers who are highly qualified, teach full-time in a low-income elementary or secondary school or educational service agency, and complete five years of consecutive service.

Specifically, the bill renames the program as the Educator Loan Forgiveness Programs.

Additionally, the bill expands the program by making additional loan types eligible for benefits under the program (e.g., Parent PLUS Loans).

Further, the bill expands program eligibility to early childhood educators and program directors serving in early childhood education programs and school leaders serving in public high-need schools.

The bill requires the Department of Education to

• make monthly student loan payments on behalf of the educator during qualifying service (i.e., employment as a full-time qualifying educator in a high-need school or an early childhood education program),

• provide complete loan forgiveness after five years of qualifying service (which does not have to be consecutive), and

• take steps to notify borrowers about changes to the program.

Hemp Planting Predictability Act

This bill extends by two years the implementation of changes to the regulation of hemp products, which reimpose certain federal controls over some hemp products.

Specifically, Congress enacted the FY2026 agriculture appropriations act (P.L. 119-37) on November 12, 2025. Effective November 12, 2026, the act modifies the statutory definition of hemp products that are considered to be lawful. This bill extends the effective date to November 12, 2028.

As background, the 2018 farm bill excluded hemp from the Controlled Substances Act definition of marijuana and defined hemp. As a result, hemp and hemp-derived products at or below the 0.3% delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, the psychoactive component of marijuana) concentration threshold were no longer regulated as Schedule I controlled substances and registration with the Drug Enforcement Administration was no longer required to cultivate or handle hemp and hemp-derived products. However, hemp remained subject to Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration regulation.

The 2025 changes to the definition of hemp, include

• changing the limit to a total THC concentration of not more than 0.3% on a dry weight basis rather than only delta-9 THC,

• explicitly including industrial hemp,

• excluding seeds from a cannabis plant that exceed a certain THC concentration, and

• excluding various types of hemp-derived cannabinoid products.

Cannabinoids refer to unique chemical compounds that are found in hemp and marijuana (e.g., THC) and are known to exhibit a range of psychological and physiological effects.

Resident Education Deferred Interest Act or the REDI Act

This bill allows borrowers in medical or dental internships or residency programs to defer student loan payments until the completion of their programs.

This concurrent resolution directs the President to remove U.S. Armed Forces from Lebanon within seven days of the resolution's adoption.

Innovative Maternal Payment and Coverage To Save Moms Act or the IMPACT to Save Moms Act

This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to establish the Perinatal Care Alternative Payment Model Demonstration Project through FY2031 to allow states to test payment models for maternity care, including postpartum care, under Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).