SB1710 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB099 08608 NHT 28771 b

99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2015 and 2016
SB1710

Introduced 2/20/2015, by Sen. Chapin Rose

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

110 ILCS 947/35
110 ILCS 947/38

Amends the monetary award program provisions of the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Provides that if a recipient of a monetary award program grant is not permitted to continue attending a higher education institution because he or she is not earning the minimum grades needed to continue to attend the institution, then that person may not receive a grant during the following academic year; provides for rulemaking. Requires the Illinois Student Assistance Commission to request that the Illinois Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators or a committee designated by this association from among its membership make recommendations on possible changes to how the Commission determines the number of grants to be offered and to whom they are offered. Requires institutions to provide specified information concerning grant recipients to the Commission, if requested, to demonstrate the value of the program and determine where improvements could be made; makes related changes.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning education.

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 35 and 38 as follows:

(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.

However, if a recipient of a grant under this Section is not permitted to continue attending an institution because he or she is not earning the minimum grades needed to continue to attend the institution, then that person may not receive a grant under this Section during the following academic year. The Commission may adopt any rules necessary for the enforcement of this prohibition.

(c) All grants shall be applicable only to tuition and necessary fee costs. The Commission shall determine the grant amount for each student, which shall not exceed the smallest of the following amounts:

(1) subject to appropriation, $5,468 for fiscal year 2009, $5,968 for fiscal year 2010, and $6,468 for fiscal year 2011 and each fiscal year thereafter, or such lesser amount as the Commission finds to be available, during an academic year;

(2) the amount which equals 2 semesters or 3 quarters tuition and other necessary fees required generally by the institution of all full-time undergraduate students; or

(3) such amount as the Commission finds to be appropriate in view of the applicant's financial resources.

Subject to appropriation, the maximum grant amount for students not subject to subdivision (1) of this subsection (c) must be increased by the same percentage as any increase made by law to the maximum grant amount under subdivision (1) of this subsection (c).

"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 135 semester credit hours of award payments.

(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.

The Commission shall request that the Illinois Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, or a committee designated by this association from among its membership, make recommendations on possible changes to how the Commission determines the number of grants to be offered and to whom they are offered.

(e-5) The General Assembly finds and declares that it is an important purpose of the Monetary Award Program to facilitate access to college both for students who pursue postsecondary education immediately following high school and for those who pursue postsecondary education later in life, particularly Illinoisans who are dislocated workers with financial need and who are seeking to improve their economic position through education. For the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 academic years, the Commission shall give additional and specific consideration to the needs of dislocated workers with the intent of allowing applicants who are dislocated workers an opportunity to secure financial assistance even if applying later than the general pool of applicants. The Commission's consideration shall include, in determining the number of grants to be offered, an estimate of the resources needed to serve dislocated workers who apply after the Commission initially suspends award announcements for the upcoming regular academic year, but prior to the beginning of that academic year. For the purposes of this subsection (e-5), a dislocated worker is defined as in the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998.

(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. 98-967, eff. 8-15-14.)

(110 ILCS 947/38)

Sec. 38. Monetary award program accountability.

(a) The Illinois Student Assistance Commission is directed to assess the educational persistence of monetary award program recipients. An assessment under this Section shall include an analysis of such factors as undergraduate educational goals, chosen field of study, retention rates, and expected time to complete a degree. The assessment also shall include an analysis of the academic success of monetary award program recipients through a review of measures that are typically associated with academic success, such as grade point average, satisfactory academic progress, and credit hours earned. Each analysis should take into consideration student class level, dependency types, and the type of higher education institution at which each monetary award program recipient is enrolled. The Commission shall report its findings to the General Assembly and the Board of Higher Education by February 1, 1999 and at least every 2 years thereafter.

(b) To demonstrate the value of the monetary award program and determine where improvements could be made, institutions shall provide information concerning grant recipients to the Commission if requested, including without limitation the following:

(1) Completion and graduation rates.

(2) Courses attempted versus courses completed.

(3) The number of remedial courses undertaken, the names of these courses, and the success rate of these courses.

(4) Chosen fields of study.

(5) The receipt of institutional financial aid, how much of that aid is merit-only aid, how much is need-based aid, and how this aid dovetails with State and federal financial aid.

The Commission may consult with the Illinois Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators to develop guidelines for the information to be provided under this subsection (b).

Each year, the Commission shall compile the information provided under this subsection (b) in a report to be submitted to the General Assembly and the Governor.

(Source: P.A. 90-486, eff. 8-17-97; 90-488, eff. 8-17-97.)