Public Act 90-0122 of the 90th General Assembly

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Public Act 90-0122

SB1050 Enrolled                                LRB9003451THpk

    AN ACT to amend the Higher Education  Student  Assistance
Act by changing Sections 10 and 35.

    Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:

    Section 5.  The Higher Education Student  Assistance  Act
is amended by changing Sections 10 and 35 as follows:

    (110 ILCS 947/10)
    Sec.  10.  Definitions.  In  this  Act, and except to the
extent  that  any  of  the  following  words  or  phrases  is
specifically qualified by its context:
    "Commission"  means  the  Illinois   Student   Assistance
Commission created by this Act.
    "Enrollment"  means  the establishment and maintenance of
an individual's status as a  student  in  an  institution  of
higher   learning,  regardless  of  the  terms  used  at  the
institution to describe that status.
    "Approved high  school"  means  any  public  high  school
located  in  this State; and any high school, located in this
State or elsewhere (whether  designated  as  a  high  school,
secondary  school, academy, preparatory school, or otherwise)
which  in  the  judgment  of  the  State  Superintendent   of
Education  provides  a course of instruction at the secondary
level and maintains standards  of  instruction  substantially
equivalent  to  those  of  the public high schools located in
this State.
    "Institution    of    higher    learning",     "qualified
institution",   or   "institution"   means   an   educational
organization located in this State which
         (1)  provides  at  least an organized 2 year program
    of collegiate grade in the liberal arts or  sciences,  or
    both,  directly  applicable  toward  the  attainment of a
    baccalaureate degree, or, beginning  with  academic  year
    1972,  a  program in health education directly applicable
    toward the attainment of a certificate,  diploma,  or  an
    associate degree;,
         (2)  either is
              (A)  operated by this State, or
              (B)  operated  publicly  or  privately, not for
         profit, or
              (C)  operated for  profit,  provided  such  for
         profit organization
                   (i)  offers  degree  programs  which  have
              been  approved by the Board of Higher Education
              for a minimum of 3  years  under  the  Academic
              Degree Act, and
                   (ii)  enrolls  a  majority of its students
              in such degree programs, and
                   (iii)  maintains an accredited status with
              the  Commission  on  Institutions   of   Higher
              Education  of  the North Central Association of
              Colleges and Schools;
         (3)  in  the  judgment  of  the   Commission   meets
    standards substantially equivalent to those of comparable
    institutions operated by this State;, and
         (4)  if  so  required  by  the  Commission, uses the
    State as its primary  guarantor  of  student  loans  made
    under the federal Higher Education Act of 1965.
For   otherwise   eligible  educational  organizations  which
provide academic  programs  for  incarcerated  students,  the
terms    "institution   of   higher   learning",   "qualified
institutions", and "institution" shall  specifically  exclude
academic programs for incarcerated students.
    "Academic Year" means a 12 month period of time, normally
but  not  exclusively,  from  September 1 of any year through
August 31 of the ensuing year.
    "Full-time  student"  means  any  undergraduate   student
enrolled  in  12  or more semester or quarter hours of credit
courses in any given semester or quarter or in the equivalent
number  of  units  of  registration  as  determined  by   the
Commission.
    "Part-time  student"  means  any  undergraduate  student,
other  than  a  full-time  student,  enrolled  in  6  or more
semester or quarter hours of  credit  courses  in  any  given
semester  or  quarter or in the equivalent number of units of
registration as determined by the Commission.
(Source: P.A. 87-997.)

    (110 ILCS 947/35)
    Sec. 35. Monetary award program.
    (a)  The  Commission  shall,  each  year,   receive   and
consider   applications   for  grant  assistance  under  this
Section.   Subject  to  a  separate  appropriation  for  such
purposes, an applicant is eligible for  a  grant  under  this
Section when the Commission finds that the applicant:
         (1)  is  a  resident  of this State and a citizen or
    permanent resident of the United States; and
         (2)  in the absence of  grant  assistance,  will  be
    deterred  by  financial considerations from completing an
    educational program at the qualified institution  of  his
    or her choice.
    (b)  The  Commission  shall  award renewals only upon the
student's application and upon the Commission's finding  that
the applicant:
         (1)  has remained a student in good standing;
         (2)  remains a resident of this State; and
         (3)  is  in  a financial situation that continues to
    warrant assistance.
    (c)  All grants shall be applicable only to  tuition  and
necessary  fee  costs  for  2  semesters  or 3 quarters in an
academic year.  Requests for summer term assistance  will  be
made  separately  and  shall  be  considered on an individual
basis according to Commission policy.  The  Commission  shall
determine  the  grant amount for each full-time and part-time
student,  which  shall  be  the  smallest  of  the  following
amounts:
         (1)  $4,120 $4,000 for 2 semesters or 3 quarters  of
    full-time undergraduate enrollment or $2,060 $2,000 for 2
    semesters   or  3  quarters  of  part-time  undergraduate
    enrollment, or such lesser amount as the Commission finds
    to be available; or
         (2)  the amount which equals the 2  semesters  or  3
    quarters   tuition  and  other  necessary  fees  required
    generally   by   the   institution   of   all   full-time
    undergraduate students,  or  in  the  case  of  part-time
    students an amount of tuition and fees for 2 semesters or
    3  quarters which shall not exceed one-half the amount of
    tuition and necessary fees generally charged to full-time
    undergraduate students by the institution; or
         (3)  such amount  as  the  Commission  finds  to  be
    appropriate   in   view   of  the  applicant's  financial
    resources.
"Tuition and other necessary fees" as used  in  this  Section
include  the  customary  charge  for  instruction  and use of
facilities in general, and the additional fixed fees  charged
for  specified  purposes,  which  are  required  generally of
nongrant recipients for each academic period  for  which  the
grant  applicant  actually  enrolls,  but do not include fees
payable only once  or  breakage  fees  and  other  contingent
deposits  which  are  refundable  in  whole  or in part.  The
Commission may prescribe, by rule not inconsistent with  this
Section,  detailed  provisions  concerning the computation of
tuition and other necessary fees.
    (d)  No applicant, including  those  presently  receiving
scholarship  assistance  under  this  Act,  is  eligible  for
monetary  award  program  consideration  under this Act after
receiving a baccalaureate degree  or  the  equivalent  of  10
semesters  or  15 quarters of award payments.  The Commission
shall determine when award payments for part-time  enrollment
or  interim  or  summer  terms  shall be counted as a partial
semester or quarter of payment.
    (e)  The Commission, in determining the number of  grants
to  be offered, shall take into consideration past experience
with the rate of grant funds unclaimed  by  recipients.   The
Commission  shall  notify applicants that grant assistance is
contingent upon the availability of appropriated funds.
    (f)  The  Commission  may  request   appropriations   for
deposit into the Monetary Award Program Reserve Fund.  Monies
deposited into the Monetary Award Program Reserve Fund may be
expended  exclusively for one purpose: to make Monetary Award
Program grants to eligible students.  Amounts on  deposit  in
the  Monetary Award Program Reserve Fund may not exceed 2% of
the current annual State appropriation for the Monetary Award
Program.
    The purpose of the Monetary Award Program Reserve Fund is
to enable the Commission each year to assure as many students
as possible of their eligibility for a Monetary Award Program
grant and to do so before commencement of the academic  year.
Moneys deposited in this Reserve Fund are intended to enhance
the  Commission's  management  of the Monetary Award Program,
minimizing  the  necessity,  magnitude,  and   frequency   of
adjusting award amounts and ensuring that the annual Monetary
Award Program appropriation can be fully utilized.
    (g)  The  Commission  shall  determine the eligibility of
and  make  grants  to  applicants   enrolled   at   qualified
for-profit  institutions  in accordance with the criteria set
forth  in  this  Section.   The  eligibility  of   applicants
enrolled  at such for-profit institutions shall be limited as
follows:
         (1)  Beginning with the academic year 1997, only  to
    eligible  first-time  freshmen  and  first-time  transfer
    students who have attained an associate degree.
         (2)  Beginning  with the academic year 1998, only to
    eligible freshmen students, transfer  students  who  have
    attained  an associate degree, and students who receive a
    grant under paragraph (1) for the academic year 1997  and
    whose  grants  are  being  renewed  for the academic year
    1998.
         (3)  Beginning with the academic year 1999,  to  all
    eligible students.
(Source:  P.A.  88-553;  89-163,  eff.  7-19-95; 89-330, eff.
8-17-95; 89-512, eff. 7-11-96; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96.)

    Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  July
1, 1997.

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