Full Text of SB3528 98th General Assembly
SB3528 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014 SB3528 Introduced 2/14/2014, by Sen. Jason A. Barickman SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
| 15 ILCS 505/16.5 | | 110 ILCS 979/15 | | 110 ILCS 979/45 | |
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Amends the State Treasurer Act and the Illinois Prepaid Tuition Act. With respect to the College Savings Pool, provides that for accounts opened on or after the effective date of the amendatory Act, the State Treasurer may receive moneys paid into the pool by the Illinois Neighborhood Recovery Initiative, which shall be permitted to match, dollar for dollar, with limitations, annual contributions made to an account. Provides that Illinois prepaid tuition contracts may not be entered into on or after the effective date of the amendatory Act. Provides that only annuities may be purchased under the Illinois prepaid tuition program. Provides that the purchaser of a contract entered into before the effective date of the amendatory Act may (i) retain funds under the contract, (ii) transfer the cash value of the contract to the College Savings Pool, (iii) cash out of the contract pursuant to the contract's terms, or (iv) transfer funds into an annuity. Effective immediately.
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| | | FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY | |
| | A BILL FOR |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning education.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The State Treasurer Act is amended by changing | 5 | | Section 16.5 as follows:
| 6 | | (15 ILCS 505/16.5)
| 7 | | Sec. 16.5. College Savings Pool. The State Treasurer may | 8 | | establish and
administer a College Savings Pool to supplement | 9 | | and enhance the investment
opportunities otherwise available | 10 | | to persons seeking to finance the costs of
higher education. | 11 | | The State Treasurer, in administering the College Savings
Pool, | 12 | | may receive moneys paid into the pool by a participant and may | 13 | | serve as
the fiscal agent of that participant for the purpose | 14 | | of holding and investing
those moneys. For accounts opened on | 15 | | or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 98th | 16 | | General Assembly, the State Treasurer may also receive moneys | 17 | | paid into the pool by the Illinois Neighborhood Recovery | 18 | | Initiative, which shall be permitted to match, dollar for | 19 | | dollar, annual contributions made to an account. However, the | 20 | | Illinois Neighborhood Recovery Initiative may not contribute | 21 | | more than $250 to an account per year or more than $5 million | 22 | | per year for all accounts.
| 23 | | "Participant", as used in this Section, means any person |
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| 1 | | who has authority to withdraw funds, change the designated | 2 | | beneficiary, or otherwise exercise control over an account. | 3 | | "Donor", as used in this Section, means any person who makes
| 4 | | investments in the pool. "Designated beneficiary", as used in | 5 | | this Section,
means any person on whose behalf an account is | 6 | | established in the College
Savings Pool by a participant. Both | 7 | | in-state and out-of-state persons may be
participants, donors, | 8 | | and designated beneficiaries in the College Savings Pool. The | 9 | | College Savings Pool must be available to any individual with a | 10 | | valid social security number or taxpayer identification number | 11 | | for the benefit of any individual with a valid social security | 12 | | number or taxpayer identification number, unless a contract in | 13 | | effect on August 1, 2011 (the effective date of Public Act | 14 | | 97-233) does not allow for taxpayer identification numbers, in | 15 | | which case taxpayer identification numbers must be allowed upon | 16 | | the expiration of the contract.
| 17 | | New accounts in the College Savings Pool may be processed | 18 | | through
participating financial institutions. "Participating | 19 | | financial institution",
as used in this Section, means any | 20 | | financial institution insured by the Federal
Deposit Insurance | 21 | | Corporation and lawfully doing business in the State of
| 22 | | Illinois and any credit union approved by the State Treasurer | 23 | | and lawfully
doing business in the State of Illinois that | 24 | | agrees to process new accounts in
the College Savings Pool. | 25 | | Participating financial institutions may charge a
processing | 26 | | fee to participants to open an account in the pool that shall |
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| 1 | | not
exceed $30 until the year 2001. Beginning in 2001 and every | 2 | | year thereafter,
the maximum fee limit shall be adjusted by the | 3 | | Treasurer based on the Consumer
Price Index for the North | 4 | | Central Region as published by the United States
Department of | 5 | | Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics for the immediately preceding
| 6 | | calendar year. Every contribution received by a financial | 7 | | institution for
investment in the College Savings Pool shall be | 8 | | transferred from the financial
institution to a location | 9 | | selected by the State Treasurer within one business
day | 10 | | following the day that the funds must be made available in | 11 | | accordance with
federal law. All communications from the State | 12 | | Treasurer to participants and donors shall
reference the | 13 | | participating financial institution at which the account was
| 14 | | processed.
| 15 | | The Treasurer may invest the moneys in the College Savings | 16 | | Pool in the same
manner and in the same types of investments
| 17 | | provided for the investment of moneys by the Illinois State | 18 | | Board of
Investment. To enhance the safety and liquidity of the | 19 | | College Savings Pool,
to ensure the diversification of the | 20 | | investment portfolio of the pool, and in
an effort to keep | 21 | | investment dollars in the State of Illinois, the State
| 22 | | Treasurer may make a percentage of each account available for | 23 | | investment in
participating financial institutions doing | 24 | | business in the State. The State
Treasurer may deposit with the | 25 | | participating financial institution at which
the account was | 26 | | processed the following percentage of each account at a
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| 1 | | prevailing rate offered by the institution, provided that the | 2 | | deposit is
federally insured or fully collateralized and the | 3 | | institution accepts the
deposit: 10% of the total amount of | 4 | | each account for which the current age of
the beneficiary is | 5 | | less than 7 years of age, 20% of the total amount of each
| 6 | | account for which the beneficiary is at least 7 years of age | 7 | | and less than 12
years of age, and 50% of the total amount of | 8 | | each account for which the current
age of the beneficiary is at | 9 | | least 12 years of age.
The Treasurer shall develop, publish, | 10 | | and implement an investment policy
covering the investment of | 11 | | the moneys in the College Savings Pool. The policy
shall be | 12 | | published each year as part
of the audit of the College Savings | 13 | | Pool by the Auditor General, which shall be
distributed to all | 14 | | participants. The Treasurer shall notify all participants
in | 15 | | writing, and the Treasurer shall publish in a newspaper of | 16 | | general
circulation in both Chicago and Springfield, any | 17 | | changes to the previously
published investment policy at least | 18 | | 30 calendar days before implementing the
policy. Any investment | 19 | | policy adopted by the Treasurer shall be reviewed and
updated | 20 | | if necessary within 90 days following the date that the State | 21 | | Treasurer
takes office.
| 22 | | Participants shall be required to use moneys distributed | 23 | | from the College
Savings Pool for qualified expenses at | 24 | | eligible educational institutions.
"Qualified expenses", as | 25 | | used in this Section, means the following: (i)
tuition, fees, | 26 | | and the costs of books, supplies, and equipment required for
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| 1 | | enrollment or attendance at an eligible educational | 2 | | institution and (ii)
certain room and board expenses incurred | 3 | | while attending an eligible
educational institution at least | 4 | | half-time. "Eligible educational
institutions", as used in | 5 | | this Section, means public and private colleges,
junior | 6 | | colleges, graduate schools, and certain vocational | 7 | | institutions that are
described in Section 481 of the Higher | 8 | | Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088)
and that are eligible to | 9 | | participate in Department of Education student aid
programs. A | 10 | | student shall be considered to be enrolled at
least half-time | 11 | | if the student is enrolled for at least half the full-time
| 12 | | academic work load for the course of study the student is | 13 | | pursuing as
determined under the standards of the institution | 14 | | at which the student is
enrolled. Distributions made from the | 15 | | pool for qualified expenses shall be
made directly to the | 16 | | eligible educational institution, directly to a vendor, or
in | 17 | | the form of a check payable to both the beneficiary and the | 18 | | institution or
vendor. Any moneys that are distributed in any | 19 | | other manner or that are used
for expenses other than qualified | 20 | | expenses at an eligible educational
institution shall be | 21 | | subject to a penalty of 10% of the earnings unless the
| 22 | | beneficiary dies, becomes disabled, or receives a scholarship | 23 | | that equals or
exceeds the distribution. Penalties shall be | 24 | | withheld at the time the
distribution is made.
| 25 | | The Treasurer shall limit the contributions that may be | 26 | | made on behalf of a
designated beneficiary based on the |
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| 1 | | limitations established by the Internal Revenue Service. The | 2 | | contributions made on behalf of a
beneficiary who is also a | 3 | | beneficiary under the Illinois Prepaid Tuition
Program shall be | 4 | | further restricted to ensure that the contributions in both
| 5 | | programs combined do not exceed the limit established for the | 6 | | College Savings
Pool. The Treasurer shall provide the Illinois | 7 | | Student Assistance Commission
each year at a time designated by | 8 | | the Commission, an electronic report of all
participant | 9 | | accounts in the Treasurer's College Savings Pool, listing total
| 10 | | contributions and disbursements from each individual account | 11 | | during the
previous calendar year. As soon thereafter as is | 12 | | possible following receipt of
the Treasurer's report, the | 13 | | Illinois Student Assistance Commission shall, in
turn, provide | 14 | | the Treasurer with an electronic report listing those College
| 15 | | Savings Pool participants who also participate in the State's | 16 | | prepaid tuition
program, administered by the Commission. The | 17 | | Commission shall be responsible
for filing any combined tax | 18 | | reports regarding State qualified savings programs
required by | 19 | | the United States Internal Revenue Service. The Treasurer shall
| 20 | | work with the Illinois Student Assistance Commission to | 21 | | coordinate the
marketing of the College Savings Pool and the | 22 | | Illinois Prepaid Tuition
Program when considered beneficial by | 23 | | the Treasurer and the Director of the
Illinois Student | 24 | | Assistance
Commission. The Treasurer's office shall not | 25 | | publicize or otherwise market the
College Savings Pool or | 26 | | accept any moneys into the College Savings Pool prior
to March |
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| 1 | | 1, 2000. The Treasurer shall provide a separate accounting for | 2 | | each
designated beneficiary to each participant, the Illinois | 3 | | Student Assistance
Commission, and the participating financial | 4 | | institution at which the account
was processed. No interest in | 5 | | the program may be pledged as security for a
loan. Moneys held | 6 | | in an account invested in the Illinois College Savings Pool | 7 | | shall be exempt from all claims of the creditors of the | 8 | | participant, donor, or designated beneficiary of that account, | 9 | | except for the non-exempt College Savings Pool transfers to or | 10 | | from the account as defined under subsection (j) of Section | 11 | | 12-1001 of the Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/12-1001(j)).
| 12 | | The assets of the College Savings Pool and its income and | 13 | | operation shall
be exempt from all taxation by the State of | 14 | | Illinois and any of its
subdivisions. The accrued earnings on | 15 | | investments in the Pool once disbursed
on behalf of a | 16 | | designated beneficiary shall be similarly exempt from all
| 17 | | taxation by the State of Illinois and its subdivisions, so long | 18 | | as they are
used for qualified expenses. Contributions to a | 19 | | College Savings Pool account
during the taxable year may be | 20 | | deducted from adjusted gross income as provided
in Section 203 | 21 | | of the Illinois Income Tax Act. The provisions of this
| 22 | | paragraph are exempt from Section 250 of the Illinois Income | 23 | | Tax Act.
| 24 | | The Treasurer shall adopt rules he or she considers | 25 | | necessary for the
efficient administration of the College | 26 | | Savings Pool. The rules shall provide
whatever additional |
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| 1 | | parameters and restrictions are necessary to ensure that
the | 2 | | College Savings Pool meets all of the requirements for a | 3 | | qualified state
tuition program under Section 529 of the | 4 | | Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 529).
The rules shall provide | 5 | | for the administration expenses of the pool to be paid
from its | 6 | | earnings and for the investment earnings in excess of the | 7 | | expenses and
all moneys collected as penalties to be credited | 8 | | or paid monthly to the several
participants in the pool in a | 9 | | manner which equitably reflects the differing
amounts of their | 10 | | respective investments in the pool and the differing periods
of | 11 | | time for which those amounts were in the custody of the pool. | 12 | | Also, the
rules shall require the maintenance of records that | 13 | | enable the Treasurer's
office to produce a report for each | 14 | | account in the pool at least annually that
documents the | 15 | | account balance and investment earnings. Notice of any proposed
| 16 | | amendments to the rules and regulations shall be provided to | 17 | | all participants
prior to adoption. Amendments to rules and | 18 | | regulations shall apply only to
contributions made after the | 19 | | adoption of the amendment.
| 20 | | Upon creating the College Savings Pool, the State Treasurer | 21 | | shall give bond
with 2 or more sufficient sureties, payable to | 22 | | and for the benefit of the
participants in the College Savings | 23 | | Pool, in the penal sum of $1,000,000,
conditioned upon the | 24 | | faithful discharge of his or her duties in relation to
the | 25 | | College Savings Pool.
| 26 | | (Source: P.A. 97-233, eff. 8-1-11; 97-537, eff. 8-23-11; |
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| 1 | | 97-813, eff. 7-13-12.)
| 2 | | Section 10. The Illinois Prepaid Tuition Act is amended by | 3 | | changing Sections 15 and 45 as follows:
| 4 | | (110 ILCS 979/15)
| 5 | | Sec. 15. Creation of Illinois prepaid tuition program. | 6 | | (a) There is created
the Illinois prepaid tuition program | 7 | | to be administered by the Illinois Student
Assistance | 8 | | Commission.
This program is to be administered so that the full | 9 | | cost of tuition
and mandatory fees at Illinois public | 10 | | universities and Illinois community
colleges may be paid in | 11 | | advance of enrollment
through the prior purchase of an Illinois | 12 | | prepaid tuition contract. The
Commission may enter into | 13 | | contracts as may be
necessary to provide for administration of | 14 | | the program and shall develop and
implement rules and | 15 | | regulations necessary for the efficient administration of
the | 16 | | program.
| 17 | | All reasonable charges incidental to the administration of | 18 | | the program by the
Commission shall be paid in the initial | 19 | | start-up period for the program's
operation from
the General | 20 | | Revenue Fund, pursuant to appropriations made for that purpose | 21 | | by
the General Assembly. Those charges and expenses in | 22 | | subsequent years shall be
paid exclusively from the Illinois | 23 | | Prepaid Tuition Trust Fund established by
Section 35 of this | 24 | | Act.
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| 1 | | (b) Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory Act | 2 | | of the 98th General Assembly, only annuities may be purchased | 3 | | under the program. | 4 | | (c) The Commission shall adopt all rules necessary to | 5 | | implement the changes made to this Act by this amendatory Act | 6 | | of the 98th General Assembly. | 7 | | (Source: P.A. 90-546, eff. 12-1-97.)
| 8 | | (110 ILCS 979/45)
| 9 | | Sec. 45. Illinois prepaid tuition contracts.
| 10 | | (a) The Commission may enter into an Illinois prepaid | 11 | | tuition contract with
a purchaser under which the Commission | 12 | | contracts on behalf of the State to pay
full tuition and | 13 | | mandatory fees at an Illinois public university or Illinois
| 14 | | community college for a qualified beneficiary to attend the | 15 | | eligible
institution to which the qualified beneficiary is | 16 | | admitted. However, Illinois prepaid tuition contracts may not | 17 | | be entered into on or after the effective date of this | 18 | | amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly. The purchaser of a | 19 | | contract entered into before the effective date of this | 20 | | amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly may (i) retain | 21 | | funds under the contract, (ii) transfer the cash value of the | 22 | | contract to the College Savings Pool established under Section | 23 | | 16.5 of the State Treasurer Act, pursuant to rules of the State | 24 | | Treasurer, (iii) cash out of the contract pursuant to the | 25 | | contract's terms, or (iv) transfer funds into an annuity under |
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| 1 | | subsection (b) of Section 15 of this Act. Each
contract shall | 2 | | contain terms, conditions, and provisions that the Commission
| 3 | | determines to be necessary for ensuring the educational | 4 | | objectives and
sustainable financial viability of the Illinois | 5 | | prepaid tuition program.
| 6 | | (b) Each contract shall have one designated purchaser and | 7 | | one designated
qualified beneficiary. Unless otherwise | 8 | | specified in the contract, the
purchaser
owns the contract and | 9 | | retains any tax liability for its assets only until the
first | 10 | | distribution of benefits. Contracts shall be purchased in units | 11 | | of 15 credit
hours.
| 12 | | (c) Without exception, benefits may be received by a | 13 | | qualified beneficiary
of an Illinois prepaid tuition contract | 14 | | no earlier than 3 years from the date
the contract is | 15 | | purchased.
| 16 | | (d) A prepaid tuition contract shall contain, but is not | 17 | | limited to,
provisions for (i) refunds or withdrawals in | 18 | | certain circumstances, with or
without interest or penalties;
| 19 | | (ii) conversion of the contract at the time of distribution | 20 | | from accrued
prepayment value at one type of eligible | 21 | | institution to the accrued
prepayment value at a different type | 22 | | of eligible institution; (iii)
portability of the accrued value | 23 | | of the prepayment value for use at an eligible institution | 24 | | located outside this State; (iv) transferability of the | 25 | | contract
benefits within the qualified beneficiary's immediate | 26 | | family; and (v) a
specified benefit period during which the |
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| 1 | | contract may be redeemed.
| 2 | | (e) Each Illinois prepaid tuition contract also shall | 3 | | contain, at minimum,
all of
the following:
| 4 | | (1) The amount of payment or payments and the number of | 5 | | payments required
from a purchaser on behalf of a qualified | 6 | | beneficiary.
| 7 | | (2) The terms and conditions under which purchasers | 8 | | shall remit payments,
including, but not limited to, the | 9 | | date or dates upon which each payment shall
be due.
| 10 | | (3) Provisions for late payment charges and for | 11 | | default.
| 12 | | (4) Provisions for penalty fees payable incident to an | 13 | | authorized
withdrawal.
| 14 | | (5) The name, date of birth, and social security number | 15 | | or taxpayer identification number of the qualified
| 16 | | beneficiary on whose behalf the contract is drawn and the | 17 | | terms and conditions
under which the contract may be | 18 | | transferred to another qualified beneficiary.
| 19 | | (6) The name and social security number or taxpayer | 20 | | identification number of any person who may
terminate the | 21 | | contract, together with terms that specify whether the | 22 | | contract
may be terminated by the
purchaser, the qualified | 23 | | beneficiary, a specific designated person, or any
| 24 | | combination of these persons.
| 25 | | (7) The terms and conditions under which a contract may | 26 | | be terminated, the
name and social security number or |
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| 1 | | taxpayer identification number of the person entitled to | 2 | | any refund due as a
result of the termination of the | 3 | | contract pursuant to those terms and
conditions,
and the | 4 | | method for determining the amount of a refund.
| 5 | | (8) The time limitations, if any, within which the | 6 | | qualified beneficiary
must claim his or her benefits | 7 | | through the program.
| 8 | | (9) Other terms and conditions determined by the | 9 | | Commission to be
appropriate.
| 10 | | (f) In addition to the contract provisions set forth in | 11 | | subsection (e), each
Illinois prepaid tuition contract shall | 12 | | include:
| 13 | | (1) The number of credit hours contracted by the | 14 | | purchaser.
| 15 | | (2) The type of eligible institution and the prepaid | 16 | | tuition plan
toward which the credit hours shall be | 17 | | applied.
| 18 | | (3) The explicit contractual obligation of the | 19 | | Commission to the qualified
beneficiary to provide a | 20 | | specific number of credit hours of undergraduate
| 21 | | instruction at an eligible institution, not to exceed the | 22 | | maximum number of
credit hours required for the conference | 23 | | of a degree that corresponds to the
plan purchased on | 24 | | behalf of the qualified beneficiary.
| 25 | | (g) The Commission shall indicate by rule the conditions | 26 | | under which refunds
are payable to a contract purchaser. |
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| 1 | | Generally, no refund shall exceed the
amount paid into the | 2 | | Illinois Prepaid Tuition Trust Fund by the purchaser. In
the | 3 | | event that a contract is converted from a Public University | 4 | | Plan described
in subsection (j) of this Section to a Community | 5 | | College Plan described in
subsection (k) of this Section, the | 6 | | refund amount shall be reduced
by the amount transferred to the | 7 | | Illinois community college on behalf of the
qualified | 8 | | beneficiary. Except where the Commission may otherwise rule, | 9 | | refunds
may exceed the amount paid into the Illinois Prepaid | 10 | | Tuition Trust Fund only
under the following circumstances:
| 11 | | (1) If the qualified beneficiary is awarded a grant or | 12 | | scholarship at a
public institution of higher education, | 13 | | the
terms of
which duplicate the benefits included in the | 14 | | Illinois prepaid tuition contract,
then moneys paid for the | 15 | | purchase of the contract shall be returned to the
| 16 | | purchaser, upon request, in semester installments that | 17 | | coincide with the
matriculation by the
qualified | 18 | | beneficiary, in an amount equal to the current cost
of | 19 | | tuition
and mandatory fees at the public institution of | 20 | | higher education where the qualified
beneficiary is | 21 | | enrolled.
| 22 | | (1.5) If the qualified beneficiary is awarded a grant | 23 | | or scholarship
while enrolled at either an eligible | 24 | | nonpublic institution of higher
education or an eligible | 25 | | public or private out-of-state higher education
| 26 | | institution, the terms of which duplicate the benefits |
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| 1 | | included in the
Illinois prepaid tuition contract, then | 2 | | money paid for the purchase of the
contract shall be | 3 | | returned to the purchaser, upon request, in semester
| 4 | | installments that coincide with the matriculation by the | 5 | | qualified
beneficiary. The amount paid shall not exceed the | 6 | | current average
mean-weighted credit hour value of the | 7 | | registration fees purchased
under the contract.
| 8 | | (2) In the event of the death or total disability of | 9 | | the qualified
beneficiary, moneys paid for the purchase of | 10 | | the Illinois prepaid tuition
contract shall be returned to | 11 | | the purchaser together with all accrued earnings.
| 12 | | (3) If an Illinois prepaid tuition contract is | 13 | | converted from a Public
University Plan to a Community | 14 | | College Plan, then the amount refunded shall be
the value | 15 | | of the original Illinois prepaid tuition contract minus the | 16 | | value of
the contract after conversion.
| 17 | | No refund shall be authorized under an Illinois prepaid | 18 | | tuition contract for
any semester partially attended but not | 19 | | completed.
| 20 | | The Commission, by rule, shall set forth specific | 21 | | procedures for
making contract payments in conjunction with | 22 | | grants and scholarships awarded to
contract beneficiaries.
| 23 | | Moneys paid into or out of the Illinois Prepaid Tuition | 24 | | Trust Fund by or on
behalf of the purchaser or the qualified | 25 | | beneficiary of an Illinois prepaid
tuition contract are exempt | 26 | | from all claims of creditors of the purchaser or
beneficiary, |
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| 1 | | so long as the contract has not been terminated.
| 2 | | The State or any State agency, county, municipality, or | 3 | | other political
subdivision, by contract or collective | 4 | | bargaining agreement, may agree with any
employee to remit | 5 | | payments toward the purchase of Illinois
prepaid tuition | 6 | | contracts through payroll deductions made by the appropriate
| 7 | | officer or officers of the entity making the payments. Such | 8 | | payments shall be
held and administered in accordance with this | 9 | | Act.
| 10 | | (h) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as a promise or | 11 | | guarantee that a
qualified beneficiary will be admitted to an | 12 | | eligible institution or to a
particular eligible institution, | 13 | | will be allowed to continue enrollment at an eligible
| 14 | | institution after admission, or will be graduated from an | 15 | | eligible institution.
| 16 | | (i) The Commission shall develop and make prepaid tuition | 17 | | contracts
available under a minimum of at least 2 independent | 18 | | plans to be known as the
Public University Plan and the | 19 | | Community College Plan.
| 20 | | Contracts shall be purchased in units of 15 credit hours at | 21 | | either an
Illinois public university or an Illinois community | 22 | | college.
The minimum purchase amount per qualified beneficiary | 23 | | shall be one unit or 15
credit hours. The maximum purchase | 24 | | amount shall be 9 units (or 135 credit
hours) for the Public | 25 | | University Plan and 4 units (or 60 credit hours) for the
| 26 | | Community College Plan.
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| 1 | | (j) Public University Plan. Through the Public University | 2 | | Plan, the
Illinois prepaid tuition contract shall provide | 3 | | prepaid registration fees,
which include full tuition costs as | 4 | | well as mandatory fees, for a specified
number of undergraduate | 5 | | credit hours, not to exceed the maximum number of
credit hours | 6 | | required for the conference of a baccalaureate degree. In
| 7 | | determining the cost of participation in the Public University | 8 | | Plan, the
Commission shall reference the combined | 9 | | mean-weighted current registration fees
from Illinois public | 10 | | universities.
| 11 | | In the event that a qualified beneficiary for whatever | 12 | | reason chooses to
attend an Illinois community college, the | 13 | | qualified beneficiary may convert the
average number of credit | 14 | | hours required for the conference of an associate
degree from | 15 | | the Public University Plan to the Community College
Plan and | 16 | | may retain the remaining Public University Plan credit hours or | 17 | | may
request a refund for prepaid credit hours in excess of | 18 | | those required for
conference of an associate degree. In | 19 | | determining the amount of any refund,
the Commission also shall | 20 | | recognize the current relative credit hour cost of
the 2 plans | 21 | | when making any conversion.
| 22 | | Qualified beneficiaries shall bear the cost of any | 23 | | laboratory or other
non-mandatory fees associated with | 24 | | enrollment in specific courses. Qualified
beneficiaries who | 25 | | are not Illinois residents shall bear the difference in
cost | 26 | | between in-state registration fees guaranteed by the prepaid |
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| 1 | | tuition
contract and tuition and other charges assessed upon | 2 | | out-of-state students by
the eligible institution.
| 3 | | (k) Community College Plan. Through the Community College | 4 | | Plan, the
Illinois prepaid tuition contract shall provide | 5 | | prepaid registration fees,
which include full tuition costs as | 6 | | well as mandatory fees, for a specified
number of undergraduate | 7 | | credit hours, not to exceed the maximum number of
credit hours | 8 | | required for the conference of an associate degree. In
| 9 | | determining the cost of participation in the Community College | 10 | | Plan, the
Commission shall reference the combined | 11 | | mean-weighted current registration fees
from all Illinois | 12 | | community colleges.
| 13 | | In the event that a qualified beneficiary for whatever | 14 | | reason chooses to
attend an Illinois public university, the | 15 | | qualified beneficiary's prepaid
tuition contract shall be | 16 | | converted for use at that Illinois public university
by | 17 | | referencing the current average mean-weighted credit hour | 18 | | value of
registration fees at Illinois community colleges | 19 | | relative to the corresponding
value of registration fees at | 20 | | Illinois public universities.
| 21 | | Qualified beneficiaries shall bear the cost of any | 22 | | laboratory or other
non-mandatory fees associated with | 23 | | enrollment in specific courses. Qualified
beneficiaries who | 24 | | are not Illinois residents shall bear the difference in
cost | 25 | | between in-state registration fees guaranteed by the prepaid | 26 | | tuition
contract and tuition and other charges assessed upon |
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| 1 | | out-of-state students by
the eligible institution.
| 2 | | (l) A qualified beneficiary may apply the benefits of any | 3 | | Illinois prepaid
tuition contract toward a nonpublic | 4 | | institution of higher education. In the
event that a qualified | 5 | | beneficiary for whatever reason chooses to attend a
nonpublic | 6 | | institution of higher education, the qualified beneficiary's | 7 | | prepaid
tuition contract shall be converted for use at that | 8 | | nonpublic institution of
higher education by referencing the | 9 | | current average mean-weighted credit hour
value of | 10 | | registration fees purchased under the
contract. The Commission | 11 | | shall
transfer, or cause to have transferred, this amount, less | 12 | | a transfer fee, to
the nonpublic institution on behalf of the | 13 | | beneficiary. In the event that the
cost of registration charged | 14 | | to the beneficiary at the nonpublic institution of
higher | 15 | | education is less than the aggregate value of the Illinois | 16 | | prepaid
tuition contract, any remaining amount shall be | 17 | | transferred in subsequent
semesters until the transfer value is | 18 | | fully depleted.
| 19 | | (m) A qualified beneficiary may apply the benefits of any | 20 | | Illinois prepaid
tuition contract toward an eligible | 21 | | out-of-state college or university.
Institutional eligibility | 22 | | for out-of-state colleges and universities shall be
determined | 23 | | by the Commission according to standards substantially | 24 | | equivalent to those for an eligible institution located in this | 25 | | State, as described in the definition of "institution of higher | 26 | | learning" in Section 10 of the Higher Education Student |
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| 1 | | Assistance Act.
In the
event that a qualified beneficiary for | 2 | | whatever reason chooses to attend an
eligible out-of-state | 3 | | college or university, the qualified beneficiary's
prepaid | 4 | | tuition contract shall be converted for use at that college or
| 5 | | university by referencing the current average mean-weighted | 6 | | credit hour value
of registration fees purchased under the | 7 | | contract. The Commission shall
transfer, or cause to have
| 8 | | transferred, this amount, less a transfer fee, to the college | 9 | | or university on
behalf of the beneficiary. In the event that | 10 | | the cost of registration charged
to the beneficiary at the | 11 | | eligible out-of-state college or university is less
than the | 12 | | aggregate value of the Illinois prepaid tuition contract, any
| 13 | | remaining amount shall be transferred in subsequent semesters | 14 | | until the
transfer value is fully depleted.
| 15 | | (n) Illinois prepaid tuition contracts may be purchased | 16 | | either by lump sum
or by installments. No penalty shall be | 17 | | assessed for early
payment of installment contracts.
| 18 | | (o) The Commission shall annually adjust the price of new | 19 | | contracts, in
accordance with the annual changes in | 20 | | registration fees at Illinois public
universities and | 21 | | community colleges.
| 22 | | (Source: P.A. 96-1282, eff. 7-26-10; 97-233, eff. 8-1-11.)
| 23 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 24 | | becoming law.
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