103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB3397

 

Introduced 2/8/2024, by Sen. Celina Villanueva

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
110 ILCS 947/10
110 ILCS 947/35

    Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Removes a for-profit educational organization from the definition of "institution of higher learning", "qualified institution", and "institution". Provides that an applicant is eligible for a Monetary Award Program grant, including renewals of such grant, if the applicant, among other requirements, is not attending a for-profit institution of higher education. Removes a provision allowing Monetary Award Program grants to be made to applicants enrolled at qualified for-profit institutions. Makes conforming changes. Effective July 1, 2025.


LRB103 38539 RJT 68675 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

SB3397LRB103 38539 RJT 68675 b

1    AN ACT concerning education.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is
5amended by changing Sections 10 and 35 as follows:
 
6    (110 ILCS 947/10)
7    Sec. 10. Definitions. In this Act, and except to the
8extent that any of the following words or phrases is
9specifically qualified by its context:
10    "Commission" means the Illinois Student Assistance
11Commission created by this Act.
12    "Enrollment" means the establishment and maintenance of an
13individual's status as a student in an institution of higher
14learning, regardless of the terms used at the institution to
15describe that status.
16    "Approved high school" means any public high school
17located in this State; and any high school, located in this
18State or elsewhere (whether designated as a high school,
19secondary school, academy, preparatory school, or otherwise)
20which in the judgment of the State Superintendent of Education
21provides a course of instruction at the secondary level and
22maintains standards of instruction substantially equivalent to
23those of the public high schools located in this State.

 

 

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1    "Institution of higher learning", "qualified institution",
2or "institution" means an educational organization located in
3this State which
4        (1) provides at least an organized 2 year program of
5    collegiate grade in the liberal arts or sciences, or both,
6    directly applicable toward the attainment of a
7    baccalaureate degree or a program in health education
8    directly applicable toward the attainment of a
9    certificate, diploma, or an associate degree;
10        (2) either is
11            (A) operated by this State, or
12            (B) operated publicly or privately, not for
13        profit, or
14            (C) (blank); operated for profit, provided such
15        for profit organization
16                (i) offers degree programs which have been
17            approved by the Board of Higher Education for a
18            minimum of 3 years under the Academic Degree Act,
19            and
20                (ii) enrolls a majority of its students in
21            such degree programs, and
22                (iii) maintains an accredited status with the
23            Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of
24            the North Central Association of Colleges and
25            Schools;
26        (3) in the judgment of the Commission meets standards

 

 

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1    substantially equivalent to those of comparable
2    institutions operated by this State; and
3        (4) if so required by the Commission, uses the State
4    as its primary guarantor of student loans made under the
5    federal Higher Education Act of 1965.
6For otherwise eligible educational organizations which provide
7academic programs for incarcerated students, the terms
8"institution of higher learning", "qualified institutions",
9and "institution" shall specifically exclude academic programs
10for incarcerated students.
11    "Academic year" means a 12 month period of time, normally
12but not exclusively, from September 1 of any year through
13August 31 of the ensuing year.
14    "Full-time student" means any undergraduate student
15enrolled in 12 or more semester or quarter hours of credit
16courses in any given semester or quarter or in the equivalent
17number of units of registration as determined by the
18Commission.
19    "Part-time student" means any undergraduate student, other
20than a full-time student, enrolled in 6 or more semester or
21quarter hours of credit courses in any given semester or
22quarter or in the equivalent number of units of registration
23as determined by the Commission. Beginning with fiscal year
241999, the Commission may, on a program by program basis,
25expand this definition of "part-time student" to include
26students who enroll in less than 6 semester or quarter hours of

 

 

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1credit courses in any given semester or quarter.
2    "Public university" means any public 4-year university in
3this State.
4    "Public university campus" means any campus under the
5governance or supervision of a public university.
6(Source: P.A. 100-587, eff. 6-4-18; 100-1015, eff. 8-21-18.)
 
7    (110 ILCS 947/35)
8    Sec. 35. Monetary award program.
9    (a) The Commission shall, each year, receive and consider
10applications for grant assistance under this Section. Subject
11to a separate appropriation for such purposes, an applicant is
12eligible for a grant under this Section when the Commission
13finds that the applicant:
14        (1) is a resident of this State and a citizen or
15    permanent resident of the United States;
16        (2) is enrolled or has been accepted for enrollment in
17    a qualified institution for the purpose of obtaining a
18    degree, certificate, or other credential offered by the
19    institution, as applicable; and
20        (3) in the absence of grant assistance, will be
21    deterred by financial considerations from completing an
22    educational program at the qualified institution of his or
23    her choice ; and .
24        (4) is not attending a for-profit institution of
25    higher education.

 

 

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1    (b) The Commission shall award renewals only upon the
2student's application and upon the Commission's finding that
3the applicant:
4        (1) has remained a student in good standing;
5        (2) remains a resident of this State; and
6        (3) is in a financial situation that continues to
7    warrant assistance ; and .
8        (4) is not attending a for-profit institution of
9    higher education.
10    (c) All grants shall be applicable only to tuition and
11necessary fee costs. The Commission shall determine the grant
12amount for each student, which shall not exceed the smallest
13of the following amounts:
14        (1) subject to appropriation, $5,468 for fiscal year
15    2009, $5,968 for fiscal year 2010, $6,468 for fiscal year
16    2011 and each fiscal year thereafter through fiscal year
17    2022, $8,508 for fiscal year 2023, and $10,896 for fiscal
18    year 2024 and each fiscal year thereafter, or such lesser
19    amount as the Commission finds to be available, during an
20    academic year;
21        (2) the amount which equals 2 semesters or 3 quarters
22    tuition and other necessary fees required generally by the
23    institution of all full-time undergraduate students; or
24        (3) such amount as the Commission finds to be
25    appropriate in view of the applicant's financial
26    resources.

 

 

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1    Subject to appropriation, the maximum grant amount for
2students not subject to subdivision (1) of this subsection (c)
3must be increased by the same percentage as any increase made
4by law to the maximum grant amount under subdivision (1) of
5this subsection (c).
6    "Tuition and other necessary fees" as used in this Section
7include the customary charge for instruction and use of
8facilities in general, and the additional fixed fees charged
9for specified purposes, which are required generally of
10nongrant recipients for each academic period for which the
11grant applicant actually enrolls, but do not include fees
12payable only once or breakage fees and other contingent
13deposits which are refundable in whole or in part. The
14Commission may prescribe, by rule not inconsistent with this
15Section, detailed provisions concerning the computation of
16tuition and other necessary fees.
17    (d) No applicant, including those presently receiving
18scholarship assistance under this Act, is eligible for
19monetary award program consideration under this Act after
20receiving a baccalaureate degree or the equivalent of 135
21semester credit hours of award payments.
22    (d-5) In this subsection (d-5), "renewing applicant" means
23a student attending an institution of higher learning who
24received a Monetary Award Program grant during the prior
25academic year. Beginning with the processing of applications
26for the 2020-2021 academic year, the Commission shall annually

 

 

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1publish a priority deadline date for renewing applicants.
2Subject to appropriation, a renewing applicant who files by
3the published priority deadline date shall receive a grant if
4he or she continues to meet the eligibility requirements under
5this Section. A renewing applicant's failure to apply by the
6priority deadline date established under this subsection (d-5)
7shall not disqualify him or her from receiving a grant if
8sufficient funding is available to provide awards after that
9date.
10    (e) The Commission, in determining the number of grants to
11be offered, shall take into consideration past experience with
12the rate of grant funds unclaimed by recipients. The
13Commission shall notify applicants that grant assistance is
14contingent upon the availability of appropriated funds.
15    (e-5) The General Assembly finds and declares that it is
16an important purpose of the Monetary Award Program to
17facilitate access to college both for students who pursue
18postsecondary education immediately following high school and
19for those who pursue postsecondary education later in life,
20particularly Illinoisans who are dislocated workers with
21financial need and who are seeking to improve their economic
22position through education. For the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017
23academic years, the Commission shall give additional and
24specific consideration to the needs of dislocated workers with
25the intent of allowing applicants who are dislocated workers
26an opportunity to secure financial assistance even if applying

 

 

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1later than the general pool of applicants. The Commission's
2consideration shall include, in determining the number of
3grants to be offered, an estimate of the resources needed to
4serve dislocated workers who apply after the Commission
5initially suspends award announcements for the upcoming
6regular academic year, but prior to the beginning of that
7academic year. For the purposes of this subsection (e-5), a
8dislocated worker is defined as in the federal Workforce
9Innovation and Opportunity Act.
10    (f) (Blank).
11    (g) (Blank). The Commission shall determine the
12eligibility of and make grants to applicants enrolled at
13qualified for-profit institutions in accordance with the
14criteria set forth in this Section. The eligibility of
15applicants enrolled at such for-profit institutions shall be
16limited as follows:
17        (1) Beginning with the academic year 1997, only to
18    eligible first-time freshmen and first-time transfer
19    students who have attained an associate degree.
20        (2) Beginning with the academic year 1998, only to
21    eligible freshmen students, transfer students who have
22    attained an associate degree, and students who receive a
23    grant under paragraph (1) for the academic year 1997 and
24    whose grants are being renewed for the academic year 1998.
25        (3) Beginning with the academic year 1999, to all
26    eligible students.

 

 

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1    (h) The Commission may award a grant to an eligible
2applicant enrolled at an Illinois public institution of higher
3learning in a program that will culminate in the award of an
4occupational or career and technical certificate as that term
5is defined in 23 Ill. Adm. Code 1501.301.
6    (i) The Commission may adopt rules to implement this
7Section.
8(Source: P.A. 102-699, eff. 4-19-22; 103-8, eff. 6-7-23.)
 
9    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1,
102025.