ATTORNEY LOAN REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE POLICY (B7020) 05-09-2018.PDF

MARICOPA COUNTY INTERNAL POLICY
Policy Number: B7020
Policy Title:
ATTORNEY LOAN REPAYMENT Current Adoption 5-9-2018
Date:
ASSISTANCE
Current
5-9-2018
Implementation Date:
Board Agenda
Approved by: C-06-18-392-6-00
Number:
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Original Adoption
02-24-2010
Date:
I. PURPOSE
To provide recruitment and retention incentives to attorneys who work for Maricopa County and
Maricopa County Special Districts by providing benefits to attorneys with high student loan debt who
may otherwise be precluded from accepting a position with the County, or who would be unable to
continue working for the County, because they hold lower paying public sector jobs compared to the
private sector.
II. APPLICATION
This policy is authorized by the Board of Supervisors pursuant to A.R.S. § 11-251. The Board of
Supervisors reserves the right to modify this policy within its sole discretion and any modifications will
apply to all eligible attorneys.
Departmental participation in this program is not required. Participation in this program is made at the
discretion of the Appointing Authority and shall apply to all attorneys under his/her direction and
control. An Appointing Authority may also consistently apply stricter eligibility rules than outlined in
this policy for attorneys under his/her direction and control.
III. DEFINITIONS
A. Administrative Panel: A panel consisting of one Plan Administrator from a department within the
Public Defense System, the Plan Administrator from the County Attorney’s Office, and a
representative from Human Resources.
B. ALRAP: Attorney Loan Repayment Assistance Program.
C. Appointing Authority: An elected official, the single administrative or executive head of a
Department/Special District, or the designated representative authorized to act in this capacity.
D. Plan Administrator: An employee designated by an Appointing Authority to administer the
Attorney Loan Repayment Assistance Program for a department.
IV. POLICY
A. Eligibility
Employee participation in this program is voluntary. A participating employee may decide to end
their participation in the program at any time. To be eligible, an employee must:
1. Be in a position that requires a licensed attorney in good standing with the State Bar of
Arizona.

Policy Title: Policy Number: B7020
ATTORNEY LOAN REPAYMENT
Current Adoption
ASSISTANCE 5-9-2018
Date:
2. Be a regular employee who works at least 20 hours per week (contract and temporary
attorneys are not eligible).
3. Have successfully completed their first twelve (12) months of continuous employment prior to
submitting an application to participate in the program.
4. Have a rating of at least “meets” or equivalent on their most recent evaluation within the last
12 months prior to each reimbursement. An employee who receives an evaluation rating
below “meets” or equivalent is ineligible for benefits from this program for the quarter during
which the evaluation is completed, and remains ineligible for these benefits until the quarter
in which the employee receives a completed evaluation with a rating of at least “meets” or
equivalent.
5. Apply and be accepted for participation in the program in accordance with the procedures
outlined under §V.B below.
B. Benefit
1. Eligible employees may be reimbursed for payments made on their student loans up to
$1,800 per quarter with a maximum total benefit of $72,000. The reimbursement cannot
exceed the actual amount of payment made for that quarter nor can it exceed $1,800 per
quarter.
2. Eligible employees may receive reimbursement at the beginning of the full quarter after
acceptance into the program for payments made during the quarter in which they are
accepted.
3. Reimbursements are prorated for part-time employee working at least 20 hours per week.
4. Receipt of a reimbursement under this policy does not constitute a legal entitlement to any
future reimbursements nor does it constitute any right, actual or implied promise of, or
entitlement to continued employment.
C. Educational Debt Eligibility
1. A student or educational loan is eligible for repayment if it is a:
a. Stafford Direct Subsidized or Unsubsidized Loan
A loan made, insured, or guaranteed under Part B of Title IV of the Higher Education Act
of 1965, as amended, 20 U.S.C. § 1071, 20 U.S.C. § 1078-8, and 20 U.S.C. § 1087a, et.
seq.
b. Perkins Loan
A loan made, insured, or guaranteed under Part D or E of Title IV of the Higher Education
Act of 1965, as amended, 20 U.S.C. §§1087aa-1087ii.
c. Federal Consolidated or Federal Direct Consolidated Loan
A loan made, insured, or guaranteed under section 428C or 455 (g) of the Higher
Education Act of 1965, as amended, 20 U.S.C. § 1078-3 and 20 U.S.C. § 1087e(g) to the
extent that such loan was used to repay a Federal Direct Stafford, a Federal Direct
Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, or a loan made under section 428 or section 428H of such
Act.
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Policy Title: Policy Number: B7020
ATTORNEY LOAN REPAYMENT
Current Adoption
ASSISTANCE 5-9-2018
Date:
d. Private Educational Loans or Private Educational Consolidated Loan
A private commercial educational loan or private commercial educational consolidated
loan, subject to the provisions of Subsection 3(b).
e. Bar Study Loan
A commercial credit-qualified private loan specifically intended by the lender to help cover
expenses incurred after graduation while a student prepares for the Arizona Bar
Examination.
f. Graduate Plus Loan
A low, fixed interest rate student loan guaranteed by the U.S. Government.
2. All need-based undergraduate and law school loan debt, and loan debt incurred in joint
degree programs where one degree obtained is a juris doctorate that meets the requirements
of the preceding section are eligible for reimbursement. Non-law graduate study debt is not
eligible. If eligible employees have ineligible educational debt that is consolidated with eligible
educational debt, the employee is eligible to receive a prorated benefit under this program.
3. All need-based institutional loans used for educational expenses that meet the requirements
of the preceding section are eligible.
4. Spouses’ consolidated education loans that meet the program’s eligibility requirements are
eligible for reimbursement. If both spouses meet the eligibility requirements, but one spouse
successfully completed their first twelve (12) months of continuous employment prior to the
other, he or she is eligible to receive prorated benefits even though the other spouse is not
yet eligible. Where only one spouse meets the eligibility requirements, he or she is eligible to
receive prorated benefits even though the other spouse is not eligible. Each spouse’s benefit
is limited to the amount they could receive absent the consolidation. Upon application of an
eligible spouse, his or her share of the consolidated loan’s remaining balance will be
determined based on his or her share of the original consolidated loan, and that amount will
be used to determine the prorated benefit under this program. An employee eligible for
prorated benefits must submit documentation that clearly establishes that the original loans
meet the eligibility requirements and from which the eligible attorney’s prorated share can
accurately be determined.
5. The following loans do not qualify for reimbursement:
a. Federal PLUS loans.
b. Private loans from friends or family members, or credit card or other consumer debt used
to finance legal education.
c. Loans consolidated with non-educational loans.
d. Educational loan debt that has been paid and/or discharged.
e. Educational loan debt incurred in non-law master’s degree studies.
D. Tax Consequences
1. Under current tax laws, reimbursements under this program are considered taxable income
and employees are responsible for any associated tax liability.
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Policy Title: Policy Number: B7020
ATTORNEY LOAN REPAYMENT
Current Adoption
ASSISTANCE 5-9-2018
Date:
2. The County will provide appropriate notice of receipt of income in compliance with existing
law.
E. Separations
Immediately upon voluntary or involuntary separation from County employment, an employee is
ineligible to receive reimbursements under this policy. An employee is eligible for reimbursement
for completed quarters preceding their separation if: 1) the employee was eligible for the entire
quarter, and 2) the employee submits the quarterly request for reimbursement by their last day of
employment or the quarterly reimbursement deadline, whichever is sooner.
V. PROCEDURES
A. Agency Responsibilities
1. Plan Administrator: Each agency will designate a Plan Administrator who is responsible for
the following:
a. Determining all questions of eligibility, subject to the dispute resolution process outlined
in Section V(C) below.
b. Making the official ALRAP application form available to employees.
c. Timely processing of all applications and subsequent documentation.
d. Providing Payroll with all necessary documentation within 60 days of the end of each
quarter.
e. Verifying that the employee is eligible to receive benefits under the program during each
quarter that the employee makes a claim for educational loan reimbursement.
f. Maintaining all records related to the ALRAP including employee applications, eligibility
verification documents, account update requests, quarterly reimbursement requests,
Managing for Results required documents, and a list of the employees participating in the
program.
While serving as the Plan Administrator, the employee is ineligible for benefits under this
program.
2. Managing for Results (MFR): Each agency will be responsible for measuring ALRAP’s
performance and impact by:
a. Tracking attorney turnover and attrition rates for a period beginning with the market
increase implemented in fiscal year 2006.
b. Tracking attorney turnover and attrition rates for attorneys.
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Policy Title: Policy Number: B7020
ATTORNEY LOAN REPAYMENT
Current Adoption
ASSISTANCE 5-9-2018
Date:
B. Employee Responsibilities
1. Employees must apply for and participate in all other sources of loan repayment assistance,
forgiveness, and cancellation that are available to them (i.e. governmental programs, NAPIL
or EJW fellowships, law school programs, etc.). Any remaining loan amounts an employee is
required to pay after participating in any other programs are eligible for this program.
Employees shall certify on the initial application and quarterly request for reimbursement
forms that they have taken advantage of all other programs available to them and that they
are otherwise eligible for reimbursement.
2. Initial Application: The initial application must be submitted no later than the last day of the
first month of a quarter to be eligible to request reimbursement for that quarter. Employees
must submit the following to be considered for this program:
a. ALRAP application.
b. Documentation showing that each loan was for educational purposes only.
c. Documentation verifying loan debt.
d. Documentation for each loan including: the account number, proof of the original principal
loan amount, the amount of debt remaining, and the calculated monthly repayment.
e. The name, address, and phone number of each lender, and any further documentation
required by the Plan Administrator.
3. Quarterly Reimbursements: Employees must submit proof of educational loan payments
made during the most recent quarter, and any other supporting documentation required by
the Plan Administrator, in accordance with the following deadlines:
April 30: 1st quarter (January, February, March)
July 31: 2nd quarter (April, May, June)
October 31: 3rd quarter (July, August, September)
January 31: 4th quarter (October, November, December)
4. Employees must provide updates and supporting documentation to verify any changes to
approved loans, including but not limited to changes in the lender, servicer, and account
number. Updates must be submitted within the quarter in which the change occurs.
5. Employees must maintain qualifying employment during the entire quarter for which
reimbursement is requested. Employees shall report any change in participation or loan
eligibility within 30 days of such change to the Plan Administrator.
6. Employees who fail to comply with this policy shall be ineligible for reimbursements for the
quarter during which such noncompliance occurred.
C. Administrative Panel Responsibilities
1. The Administrative Panel shall develop any administrative procedures necessary to
implement this policy.
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Policy Title: Policy Number: B7020
ATTORNEY LOAN REPAYMENT
Current Adoption
ASSISTANCE 5-9-2018
Date:
2. This panel is the final arbiter of any disputes that arise under the policy. An employee who
disagrees with a decision of a Plan Administrator may appeal to the Administrative Panel
within 30 days of the decision by submitting a written memorandum that specifies the
disagreement and contains supporting documentation.
Revision History
Version Revision Date Description of Revision
1 2-24-2010 Initial version.
2 4-24-2013 This policy was revised to extend the maximum total benefit per employee
from $50,400 to $72,000. Without this extension, employees would hit the
maximum total benefit in 2013 which would negatively impact the County’s
recruitment and retention efforts for attorneys (C-31-13-015-6-00).
3 12-9-2015 Minor revisions to align with changes to the Employee Merit System Rules
(C-31-16-016-6-00).
4 3-28-2017 Removed from §IV.D the requirement for deductions to the Arizona State
Retirement System. (Revision approved by the County Manager)
5 5-9-2018 Formalized the change to §IV.D regarding deductions to the Arizona State
Retirement System through the Board of Supervisors, along with minor
clarifications to format and grammar (C-06-18-392-6-00).
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