Sen. Chapin Rose

Filed: 4/4/2014

 

 


 

 


 
09800SB3306sam003LRB098 19694 NHT 58240 a

1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 3306

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 3306, AS AMENDED,
3by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the
4following:
 
5    "Section 5. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is
6amended by changing Section 35 as follows:
 
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; and
16        (2) in the absence of grant assistance, will be

 

 

09800SB3306sam003- 2 -LRB098 19694 NHT 58240 a

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

 

 

09800SB3306sam003- 3 -LRB098 19694 NHT 58240 a

1students not subject to subdivision (1) of this subsection (c)
2must be increased by the same percentage as any increase made
3by law to the maximum grant amount under subdivision (1) of
4this subsection (c).
5    "Tuition and other necessary fees" as used in this Section
6include the customary charge for instruction and use of
7facilities in general, and the additional fixed fees charged
8for specified purposes, which are required generally of
9nongrant recipients for each academic period for which the
10grant applicant actually enrolls, but do not include fees
11payable only once or breakage fees and other contingent
12deposits which are refundable in whole or in part. The
13Commission may prescribe, by rule not inconsistent with this
14Section, detailed provisions concerning the computation of
15tuition and other necessary fees.
16    (d) No applicant, including those presently receiving
17scholarship assistance under this Act, is eligible for monetary
18award program consideration under this Act after receiving a
19baccalaureate degree or the equivalent of 135 semester credit
20hours of award payments.
21    (e) The Commission, in determining the number of grants to
22be offered, shall take into consideration past experience with
23the rate of grant funds unclaimed by recipients. The Commission
24shall notify applicants that grant assistance is contingent
25upon the availability of appropriated funds.
26    (e-5) The General Assembly finds and declares that it is an

 

 

09800SB3306sam003- 4 -LRB098 19694 NHT 58240 a

1important purpose of the Monetary Award Program to facilitate
2access to college both for students who pursue postsecondary
3education immediately following high school and for those who
4pursue postsecondary education later in life, particularly
5Illinoisans who are dislocated workers with financial need and
6who are seeking to improve their economic position through
7education. For the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 academic years, the
8Commission shall give additional and specific consideration to
9the needs of dislocated workers with the intent of allowing
10applicants who are dislocated workers an opportunity to secure
11financial assistance even if applying later than the general
12pool of applicants. The Commission's consideration shall
13include, in determining the number of grants to be offered, an
14estimate of the resources needed to serve dislocated workers
15who apply after the Commission initially suspends award
16announcements for the upcoming regular academic year, but prior
17to the beginning of that academic year. For the purposes of
18this subsection (e-5), a dislocated worker is defined as in the
19federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998.
20    (f) The Commission may request appropriations for deposit
21into the Monetary Award Program Reserve Fund. Monies deposited
22into the Monetary Award Program Reserve Fund may be expended
23exclusively for one purpose: to make Monetary Award Program
24grants to eligible students. Amounts on deposit in the Monetary
25Award Program Reserve Fund may not exceed 2% of the current
26annual State appropriation for the Monetary Award Program.

 

 

09800SB3306sam003- 5 -LRB098 19694 NHT 58240 a

1    The purpose of the Monetary Award Program Reserve Fund is
2to enable the Commission each year to assure as many students
3as possible of their eligibility for a Monetary Award Program
4grant and to do so before commencement of the academic year.
5Moneys deposited in this Reserve Fund are intended to enhance
6the Commission's management of the Monetary Award Program,
7minimizing the necessity, magnitude, and frequency of
8adjusting award amounts and ensuring that the annual Monetary
9Award Program appropriation can be fully utilized.
10    (g) The Commission shall determine the eligibility of and
11make grants to applicants enrolled at qualified for-profit
12institutions in accordance with the criteria set forth in this
13Section. The eligibility of applicants enrolled at such
14for-profit institutions shall be limited as follows:
15        (1) Beginning with the academic year 1997, only to
16    eligible first-time freshmen and first-time transfer
17    students who have attained an associate degree.
18        (2) Beginning with the academic year 1998, only to
19    eligible freshmen students, transfer students who have
20    attained an associate degree, and students who receive a
21    grant under paragraph (1) for the academic year 1997 and
22    whose grants are being renewed for the academic year 1998.
23        (3) Beginning with the academic year 1999, to all
24    eligible students.
25(Source: P.A. 95-917, eff. 8-26-08.)
 

 

 

09800SB3306sam003- 6 -LRB098 19694 NHT 58240 a

1    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
2becoming law.".