Full Text of SB1255 101st General Assembly
SB1255sam003 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY | Sen. Michael E. Hastings Filed: 4/3/2019
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| 1 | | AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 1255
| 2 | | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 1255, AS AMENDED, | 3 | | by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the | 4 | | following:
| 5 | | "Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section | 6 | | 30-14.2 as follows:
| 7 | | (105 ILCS 5/30-14.2) (from Ch. 122, par. 30-14.2)
| 8 | | Sec. 30-14.2. MIA/POW scholarships.
| 9 | | (a) Any spouse, natural child, legally adopted child, or
| 10 | | step-child of an eligible veteran or serviceperson who | 11 | | possesses all necessary
entrance requirements shall, upon | 12 | | application and proper proof, be awarded
a MIA/POW Scholarship | 13 | | consisting of the equivalent of 4 calendar years of
full-time | 14 | | enrollment including summer terms, to the state supported
| 15 | | Illinois institution of higher learning of his choice, subject | 16 | | to the
restrictions listed below.
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| 1 | | "Eligible veteran or serviceperson" means any veteran or | 2 | | serviceperson, including an Illinois National Guard member who | 3 | | is on active duty or is active on a training assignment,
who | 4 | | has been declared by the U.S. Department of Defense or the
U.S. | 5 | | Department of Veterans Affairs to be a prisoner of war, be | 6 | | missing
in action, have died as the result of a | 7 | | service-connected disability or have become a person with a | 8 | | permanent disability from service-connected causes with 100% | 9 | | disability and
who (i) at the time of entering service was an | 10 | | Illinois resident, (ii) was an
Illinois resident within 6 | 11 | | months after entering such service, or (iii) is a resident of | 12 | | Illinois at the time of application for the Scholarship and, at | 13 | | some point after leaving such service, was a resident of | 14 | | Illinois for at least 15 consecutive years until July 1, 2014, | 15 | | became an Illinois resident within 6 months after leaving the | 16 | | service and can establish at least 30 years of continuous | 17 | | residency in the State of Illinois .
| 18 | | Full-time enrollment means 12 or more semester hours of | 19 | | courses per semester,
or 12 or more quarter hours of courses | 20 | | per quarter, or the equivalent thereof
per term. Scholarships | 21 | | utilized by dependents enrolled in less than full-time
study | 22 | | shall be computed in the proportion which the number of hours | 23 | | so carried
bears to full-time enrollment.
| 24 | | Scholarships awarded under this Section may be used by a | 25 | | spouse or child
without regard to his or her age. The holder of | 26 | | a Scholarship
awarded under this Section shall be subject to |
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| 1 | | all examinations and academic
standards, including the | 2 | | maintenance of minimum grade levels, that are
applicable | 3 | | generally to other enrolled students at the Illinois | 4 | | institution of
higher learning where the Scholarship is being | 5 | | used.
If the surviving spouse
remarries or if there is a | 6 | | divorce between the veteran or serviceperson and
his or her | 7 | | spouse while the dependent is pursuing his or her course of
| 8 | | study, Scholarship benefits will be terminated at the end of | 9 | | the term for
which he or she is presently enrolled. Such | 10 | | dependents shall also be
entitled, upon proper proof and | 11 | | application, to enroll in any extension
course offered by a | 12 | | State supported Illinois institution of higher learning
| 13 | | without payment of tuition and approved fees.
| 14 | | The holder of a MIA/POW Scholarship authorized under this | 15 | | Section shall
not be required to pay any matriculation or | 16 | | application fees, tuition,
activities fees, graduation fees or | 17 | | other fees, except multipurpose
building fees or similar fees | 18 | | for supplies and materials.
| 19 | | Any dependent who has been or shall be awarded a MIA/POW | 20 | | Scholarship shall
be reimbursed by the appropriate institution | 21 | | of higher learning for any
fees which he or she has paid and | 22 | | for which exemption is granted under this
Section if | 23 | | application for reimbursement is made within 2 months following
| 24 | | the end of the school term for which the fees were paid.
| 25 | | (b) In lieu of the benefit provided in subsection (a), any | 26 | | spouse,
natural child, legally adopted child, or step-child of |
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| 1 | | an eligible veteran
or serviceperson, which spouse or child has | 2 | | a physical, mental or
developmental disability, shall be | 3 | | entitled to receive, upon application and
proper proof, a | 4 | | benefit to be used for the purpose of defraying the cost of
the | 5 | | attendance or treatment of such spouse or child at one or more
| 6 | | appropriate therapeutic, rehabilitative or educational | 7 | | facilities. The
application and proof may be made by the parent | 8 | | or legal guardian of the
spouse or child on his or her behalf.
| 9 | | The total benefit provided to any beneficiary under this | 10 | | subsection shall
not exceed the cost equivalent of 4 calendar | 11 | | years of full-time enrollment,
including summer terms, at the | 12 | | University of Illinois. Whenever
practicable in the opinion of | 13 | | the Department of Veterans' Affairs, payment
of benefits under | 14 | | this subsection shall be made directly to the facility,
the | 15 | | cost of attendance or treatment at which is being defrayed, as | 16 | | such
costs accrue.
| 17 | | (c) The benefits of this Section shall be administered by | 18 | | and paid for out
of funds made available to the Illinois | 19 | | Department of Veterans' Affairs.
The amounts that become due to | 20 | | any state supported Illinois institution of
higher learning | 21 | | shall be payable by the Comptroller to such institution on
| 22 | | vouchers approved by the Illinois Department of Veterans' | 23 | | Affairs. The
amounts that become due under subsection (b) of | 24 | | this Section shall be
payable by warrant upon vouchers issued | 25 | | by the Illinois Department of
Veterans' Affairs and approved by | 26 | | the Comptroller. The Illinois Department
of Veterans' Affairs |
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| 1 | | shall determine the eligibility of the persons
who make | 2 | | application for the benefits provided for in this Section.
| 3 | | (d) A spouse, natural child, legally adopted child, or | 4 | | step-child of an eligible veteran or serviceperson is not | 5 | | eligible to receive any benefits under this Section if he or | 6 | | she is receiving grant assistance under Section 40 of the | 7 | | Higher Education Student Assistance Act. | 8 | | (Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15; 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; | 9 | | 100-201, eff. 8-18-17.)
| 10 | | Section 10. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is | 11 | | amended by changing Section 40 as follows:
| 12 | | (110 ILCS 947/40)
| 13 | | Sec. 40. Illinois Veteran grant program. | 14 | | (a) As used in this Section: | 15 | | "Qualified applicant" means a person who served in the | 16 | | Armed Forces of the United States, a Reserve component of the | 17 | | Armed Forces, or the Illinois National Guard, excluding members | 18 | | of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps and those whose only | 19 | | service has been attendance at a service academy, and who meets | 20 | | all of the following qualifications of either paragraphs (1) | 21 | | through (4) or paragraphs (2), (3), and (5) : | 22 | | (1) At the time of entering federal active duty service | 23 | | the person was one of the following: | 24 | | (A) An Illinois resident. |
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| 1 | | (B) An Illinois resident within 6 months of | 2 | | entering such service. | 3 | | (C) Enrolled at a State-controlled university or | 4 | | public community college in this State. | 5 | | (2) The person meets one of the following requirements: | 6 | | (A) He or she served at least one year of federal | 7 | | active duty. | 8 | | (B) He or she served less than one year of federal | 9 | | active duty and received an honorable discharge for | 10 | | medical reasons directly connected with such service. | 11 | | (C) He or she served less than one year of federal | 12 | | active duty and was discharged prior to August 11, | 13 | | 1967. | 14 | | (D) He or she served less than one year of federal | 15 | | active duty in a foreign country during a time of | 16 | | hostilities in that foreign country. | 17 | | (3) The person received an honorable discharge after | 18 | | leaving each period of federal active duty service. | 19 | | (4) The person returned to this State within 6 months | 20 | | after leaving federal active duty service, or, if married | 21 | | to a person in continued military service stationed outside | 22 | | this State, returned to this State within 6 months after | 23 | | his or her spouse left service or was stationed within this | 24 | | State. | 25 | | (5) The person does not meet the requirements of | 26 | | paragraph (1), but (i) is a resident of Illinois at the |
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| 1 | | time of application to the Commission and (ii) at some | 2 | | point after leaving federal active duty service, was a | 3 | | resident of Illinois for at least 15 consecutive years. | 4 | | "Qualified dependent" means any spouse or natural born or | 5 | | legally adopted child of a veteran of the United States Armed | 6 | | Forces who meets all of the following qualifications: | 7 | | (1) Has earned a high school diploma or high school | 8 | | equivalency certificate or is at least 18 years of age and, | 9 | | for a natural born or legally adopted child of a veteran, | 10 | | less than 26 years of age, unless granted an extension by | 11 | | the Commission due to a qualifying illness or debilitating | 12 | | condition. | 13 | | (2) Meets the cumulative grade point average | 14 | | requirements of the postsecondary institution. | 15 | | (3) Is a resident of Illinois for the term in which the | 16 | | grant under subsection (i) is transferred. | 17 | | "Time of hostilities" means any action by the Armed Forces | 18 | | of the United States that is recognized by the issuance of a | 19 | | Presidential proclamation or a Presidential executive order | 20 | | and in which the Armed Forces expeditionary medal or other | 21 | | campaign service medals are awarded according to Presidential | 22 | | executive order. | 23 | | (b) A person who otherwise qualifies under the definition | 24 | | of "qualified applicant" under subsection (a) of this Section | 25 | | but has not left federal active duty service and has served at | 26 | | least one year of federal active duty or has served for less |
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| 1 | | than one year of federal active duty in a foreign country | 2 | | during a time of hostilities in that foreign country and who | 3 | | can provide documentation demonstrating an honorable service | 4 | | record is eligible to receive assistance under this Section. | 5 | | (c) A grant recipient qualified applicant is not required | 6 | | to pay any tuition or mandatory fees while attending a | 7 | | State-controlled university or public community college in | 8 | | this State for a period that is based on the length of the | 9 | | qualified applicant's federal active duty service, as verified | 10 | | on his or her U.S. Department of Defense form DD-214, | 11 | | calculated as follows: | 12 | | (1) 72 credit hours (or 60% of the maximum payable | 13 | | benefit) for 12 or more months but less than 18 months of | 14 | | active duty service; | 15 | | (2) 84 credit hours (or 70% of the maximum payable | 16 | | benefit) for 18 or more months but less than 24 months of | 17 | | active duty service; | 18 | | (3) 96 credit hours (or 80% of the maximum payable | 19 | | benefit) for 24 or more months but less than 30 months of | 20 | | service; | 21 | | (4) 108 credit hours (or 90% of the maximum payable | 22 | | benefit) for 30 or more months but less than 36 months of | 23 | | service; or | 24 | | (5) 120 credit hours (or 100% of the maximum payable | 25 | | benefit) for 36 or more months of service. equivalent to 4 | 26 | | years of full-time enrollment, including summer terms. |
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| 1 | | A qualified applicant who has previously received benefits | 2 | | under this Section for a non-mandatory fee shall continue to | 3 | | receive benefits covering such fees while he or she is enrolled | 4 | | in a continuous program of study. The qualified applicant shall | 5 | | no longer receive a grant covering non-mandatory fees if he or | 6 | | she fails to enroll during an academic term, unless he or she | 7 | | is serving federal active duty service.
| 8 | | (d) A person qualified applicant who has been or is to be | 9 | | awarded assistance under this Section shall receive that | 10 | | assistance if the person qualified applicant notifies his or | 11 | | her postsecondary institution of that fact by the end of the | 12 | | school term for which assistance is requested. | 13 | | (e) Assistance under this Section is considered an | 14 | | entitlement that the State-controlled college or public | 15 | | community college in which the person qualified applicant is | 16 | | enrolled shall honor without any condition other than the | 17 | | person's qualified applicant's maintenance of minimum grade | 18 | | levels and a satisfactory student loan repayment record | 19 | | pursuant to subsection (c) of Section 20 of this Act. | 20 | | (f) The Commission shall administer the grant program | 21 | | established by this Section and shall make all necessary and | 22 | | proper rules not inconsistent with this Section for its | 23 | | effective implementation. | 24 | | (g) All applications for assistance under this Section must | 25 | | be made to the Commission on forms that the Commission shall | 26 | | provide. The Commission shall determine the form of application |
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| 1 | | and the information required to be set forth in the | 2 | | application, and the Commission shall require qualified | 3 | | applicants to submit with their applications any supporting | 4 | | documents that the Commission deems necessary. Upon request, | 5 | | the Department of Veterans' Affairs shall assist the Commission | 6 | | in determining the eligibility of applicants for assistance | 7 | | under this Section. | 8 | | (h) Assistance under this Section is available as long as | 9 | | the federal government provides educational benefits to | 10 | | veterans. Assistance must not be paid under this Section after | 11 | | 6 months following the termination of educational benefits to | 12 | | veterans by the federal government, except for persons who | 13 | | already have begun their education with assistance under this | 14 | | Section. If the federal government terminates educational | 15 | | benefits to veterans and at a later time resumes those | 16 | | benefits, assistance under this Section shall resume. | 17 | | (i) Beginning with the 2020-2021 academic year, a grant | 18 | | awarded under this Section may be transferred to a qualified | 19 | | dependent if the qualified dependent's spouse or parent meets | 20 | | all of the following qualifications: | 21 | | (1) He or she is a qualified applicant under subsection | 22 | | (a) or (b). | 23 | | (2) He or she has served at least 6 years of federal | 24 | | active duty service and at least 2 years of Reserve or | 25 | | Individual Ready Reserve service. | 26 | | (3) He or she has no federal veterans' educational |
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| 1 | | benefits or no federal veterans' educational benefits | 2 | | dedicated only to the payment of tuition and fees, such as | 3 | | Chapter 31 or 33 benefits, for an enrolled term or semester | 4 | | that exceed the value of a grant under this Section. | 5 | | (4) He or she is a resident of Illinois during the term | 6 | | of the qualified dependent's enrollment unless the veteran | 7 | | has been recalled to active duty outside the State or has | 8 | | rejoined the military and is outside the State pursuant to | 9 | | military orders. However, a veteran who has a | 10 | | service-connected disability rating, as determined by the | 11 | | U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, of 90% to 100% or is | 12 | | unemployable based on a total disability, as determined by | 13 | | the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, is not required to | 14 | | maintain Illinois residency while his or her qualified | 15 | | dependent receives benefits under this subsection. | 16 | | A qualified dependent of a person who was killed in the | 17 | | line of duty, was a prisoner of war, was missing in action, had | 18 | | a service-connected disability rating, as determined by the | 19 | | U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, of 90% to 100%, was | 20 | | unemployable based on a total disability, as determined by the | 21 | | U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, or died as a result of | 22 | | injury or illness directly related to his or her military | 23 | | service is eligible for a grant transfer of no less than 120 | 24 | | credit hours under this subsection if the spouse or parent | 25 | | would have otherwise met the qualifications under this | 26 | | subsection. A dependent who is a natural born or legally |
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| 1 | | adopted child of a veteran may still qualify for a grant under | 2 | | this subsection if he or she marries or if his or her parents | 3 | | divorce. | 4 | | Benefits under this Section may not be used simultaneously | 5 | | by both the veteran and his or her qualified dependent. A | 6 | | veteran may revoke or otherwise change the transfer of his or | 7 | | her benefits to a qualified dependent under this subsection at | 8 | | any time but may not transfer his or her benefits to the same | 9 | | qualified dependent again once those benefits have been revoked | 10 | | for that qualified dependent. Benefits under this Section may | 11 | | not be transferred to a qualified dependent if he or she is | 12 | | receiving grant assistance under Section 30-14.2 of the School | 13 | | Code. | 14 | | A veteran may transfer benefits under this subsection to | 15 | | multiple qualified dependents; however, the total number of | 16 | | credit hours of assistance transferred may not exceed 120 | 17 | | credit hours, and a veteran may transfer benefits to only one | 18 | | qualified dependent at a time.
| 19 | | (Source: P.A. 94-583, eff. 8-15-05.)
| 20 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, | 21 | | 2019.".
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