EFFECT OF CERTAIN CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE AND FELONY CONVICTIONS.

SEC. 631. EFFECT OF CERTAIN CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE AND FELONY CONVICTIONS. (a) General Rule.— Except as provided in subsection (b), or by a court under the authority of section 5301 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 (102 Stat. 4310), if any person is convicted under Federal or State law of the illegal use, possession, or distribution of a controlled substance (as such term is defined in the Controlled Substances Act), or of any crime which is a felony under Federal law or for an act which, if committed in a Federal jurisdiction, would be a felony under Federal law, and such crime was committed during a period in which such person received an award under this title, such person shall not be eligible to receive any further such awards, and shall be liable to the United States for the repayment, within 1 year after such conviction, of all amounts received pursuant to such awards, plus the interest on such amounts which would be payable if at the time the amounts were received they were loans bearing interest at the maximum legal prevailing rate, as of the time of such conviction, as determined by the Treasurer of the United States. (b) Exemption.— A person subject to the provisions of subsection (a) may be exempted from those provisions in whole or in part if— (1) that person, within 90 days of a conviction described in subsection (a), petitions the Secretary of Education for a good cause exemption from subsection (a); and (2) the Secretary of Education approves the petition.