Full Text of HB2838 103rd General Assembly
HB2838ham002 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY | Rep. Lindsey LaPointe Filed: 4/16/2024 | | 10300HB2838ham002 | | LRB103 04770 RJT 72483 a |
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| 1 | | AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 2838
| 2 | | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 2838 by replacing | 3 | | everything after the enacting clause with the following: | 4 | | "Section 5. The State Finance Act is amended by adding | 5 | | Section 5.1015 as follows: | 6 | | (30 ILCS 105/5.1015 new) | 7 | | Sec. 5.1015. The Behavioral Health Education Fund. | 8 | | Section 10. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is | 9 | | amended by adding Section 65.125 as follows: | 10 | | (110 ILCS 947/65.125 new) | 11 | | Sec. 65.125. Behavioral Health Scholarship Program. | 12 | | (a) As used in this Section: | 13 | | "Behavioral health discipline" means: | 14 | | (1) undergraduate behavioral health disciplines that |
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| 1 | | may be offered through institutions of higher education, | 2 | | including, but not limited to, psychology, counseling, | 3 | | social work, behavioral analysis and therapy, child and | 4 | | adolescent development, and rehabilitation counseling; | 5 | | (2) graduate behavioral health disciplines, including, | 6 | | but not limited to, clinical or counseling psychology, | 7 | | counseling, social work, behavioral analysis and therapy, | 8 | | child and adolescent development, rehabilitation | 9 | | counseling, and marriage and family therapy; and | 10 | | (3) certified behavioral health disciplines, including | 11 | | but not limited to certified recovery support specialists, | 12 | | certified peer recovery specialists, certified alcohol and | 13 | | other drug counseling, and community health worker. | 14 | | "Eligible applicant" means a student who is enrolled in a | 15 | | program of study at a participating college, community | 16 | | college, or university and who meets all of the qualifications | 17 | | and requirements under this Section. | 18 | | "Federally qualified health center" means a health center | 19 | | funded under Section 330 of the federal Public Health Service | 20 | | Act. | 21 | | "FQHC Look-Alike" means a health center that meets the | 22 | | requirements for receiving a grant under Section 330 of the | 23 | | federal Public Health Service Act but does not receive funding | 24 | | under that Act. | 25 | | "Part-time employment" means working at least 20 hours a | 26 | | week. |
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| 1 | | "Participating college, community college, or university" | 2 | | means a public institution of higher education that is a party | 3 | | to an intergovernmental agreement entered into with the | 4 | | Commission in order to participate in the program established | 5 | | under this Section. | 6 | | (b) Subject to appropriation, beginning with the 2025-2026 | 7 | | academic year, the Commission shall establish and administer | 8 | | the Behavioral Health Scholarship Program for the purpose of | 9 | | incentivizing students to pursue degrees in a behavioral | 10 | | health discipline. The Commission shall enter into agreements | 11 | | with institutions of higher education to participate in the | 12 | | Program. Under the Program, the Commission shall provide | 13 | | financial assistance to an eligible applicant. | 14 | | (c) For purposes of this subsection, "racial minority" | 15 | | means a person who is a citizen of the United States or a | 16 | | lawful permanent resident alien of the United States and who | 17 | | is: | 18 | | (1) Black (a person having origins in any of the black | 19 | | racial groups in Africa); | 20 | | (2) Hispanic (a person of Spanish or Portuguese | 21 | | culture with origins in Mexico, South or Central America, | 22 | | or the Caribbean Islands, regardless of race); | 23 | | (3) Asian American (a person having origins in any of | 24 | | the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the | 25 | | Indian subcontinent, or the Pacific Islands); | 26 | | (4) American Indian or Alaskan Native (a person having |
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| 1 | | origins in any of the original peoples of North America); | 2 | | or | 3 | | (5) Middle Eastern or Northern African (a person of a | 4 | | culture originating in the Middle East or Northern Africa, | 5 | | regardless of race). | 6 | | Subject to appropriation, the Commission shall award | 7 | | financial assistance in the form of a scholarship to an | 8 | | eligible applicant up to the applicant's total cost of | 9 | | attendance, not to exceed $10,000 each year for a maximum of 4 | 10 | | years at a participating college, community college, or | 11 | | university if the applicant meets all of the following | 12 | | criteria: | 13 | | (1) The applicant is a resident of this State or a | 14 | | child of a noncitizen of the United States. | 15 | | (2) The applicant has committed to work in a community | 16 | | not-for-profit behavioral health agency, federally | 17 | | qualified health center, or FQHC Look-Alike located in | 18 | | this State for at least 4 years. The requirements of this | 19 | | paragraph shall be suspended if an applicant enrolls in a | 20 | | program of study at a participating college, community | 21 | | college, or university and who meets all other | 22 | | qualifications and requirements under this subsection. | 23 | | (3) The applicant is enrolled on at least a half-time | 24 | | basis at a qualified institution. | 25 | | Each scholarship awarded under this Section shall be in an | 26 | | amount determined by the Commission, up to the recipient's |
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| 1 | | total cost of attendance, except that the total scholarship | 2 | | amount may not exceed $10,000 annually. The total amount of | 3 | | scholarship assistance awarded by the Commission under this | 4 | | Section to an applicant in any given fiscal year, when added to | 5 | | other financial assistance awarded to that individual for that | 6 | | year, may not exceed the cost of attendance at the institution | 7 | | at which the applicant is enrolled. If the amount of financial | 8 | | assistance to be awarded to an applicant exceeds the cost of | 9 | | attendance at the institution at which the applicant is | 10 | | enrolled, the scholarship awarded under this Section shall be | 11 | | reduced by an amount equal to the amount by which the combined | 12 | | financial assistance available to the applicant exceeds the | 13 | | total cost of attendance. | 14 | | In awarding scholarships, the Commission shall give | 15 | | priority to those applicants who are members of a racial | 16 | | minority. | 17 | | (d) Each participating college, community college, or | 18 | | university shall post on its website the criteria and | 19 | | eligibility requirements to receive financial assistance under | 20 | | this Section and must identify that the financial assistance | 21 | | is for a maximum of 4 academic years or the equivalent to 4 | 22 | | academic years, with the maximum amount of financial | 23 | | assistance awarded to an eligible applicant not to the amount | 24 | | specified in subsection (c). This information must also be | 25 | | reported to the Commission and the Board of Higher Education, | 26 | | and the Commission and the Board shall post the information on |
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| 1 | | the Commission's and Board's respective websites. | 2 | | (e) Nothing in this Section precludes a scholarship | 3 | | recipient from applying and being awarded financial assistance | 4 | | for a degree after previously receiving financial assistance | 5 | | under this Section. | 6 | | (f) Prior to receiving financial assistance for any | 7 | | academic year, an eligible applicant under this Section shall | 8 | | be required by the participating college, community college, | 9 | | or university to sign an agreement with the Commission under | 10 | | which the eligible applicant pledges that, within 6 months | 11 | | from the date of the eligible applicant's graduation or | 12 | | certificate completion from the participating college, | 13 | | community college, or university, the eligible applicant must | 14 | | search for, apply for, and accept full-time or part-time | 15 | | employment at a community not-for-profit behavioral health | 16 | | agency, federally qualified health center, or FQHC Look-Alike. | 17 | | The recipient of financial assistance must, for at least 4 | 18 | | years, maintain this employment. | 19 | | (g) A scholarship recipient shall not be considered in | 20 | | violation of the agreement entered into under subsection (f) | 21 | | if the recipient (i) enrolls on at least a half-time basis as a | 22 | | student in a course of study in a behavioral health discipline | 23 | | participating college, community college, or university, (ii) | 24 | | is serving, not in excess of 3 years, as a member of the armed | 25 | | services of the United States, (iii) is a person with a | 26 | | temporary total disability for a period of time not to exceed 3 |
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| 1 | | years as established by sworn affidavit of a qualified | 2 | | physician, (iv) is seeking and unable to find full-time | 3 | | employment in a behavioral health discipline at a community | 4 | | not-for-profit behavioral health agency, federally qualified | 5 | | health center, or FQHC Look-Alike and is able to provide | 6 | | evidence of that fact, or (v) becomes a person with a permanent | 7 | | total disability as established by sworn affidavit of a | 8 | | qualified physician. | 9 | | A scholarship recipient under this Section who withdraws | 10 | | from a program in a behavioral health discipline but remains | 11 | | enrolled in an institution of higher education to continue the | 12 | | recipient's postsecondary studies in another academic | 13 | | discipline may not be required to commence repayment of any | 14 | | financial assistance received under this Section if the | 15 | | recipient remains enrolled on a full-time basis or if the | 16 | | recipient can document for the Commission special | 17 | | circumstances that warrant extension of repayment. | 18 | | (h) The Commission shall develop rules related to | 19 | | scholarship repayment for recipients who (i) fail to search | 20 | | for, apply for, and accept full-time or part-time employment | 21 | | within a defined time frame, (ii) have changes to their school | 22 | | enrollment status, (iii) have a terminated employment status | 23 | | for any reason, including for cause, prior to the program's | 24 | | 4-year employment requirement, or (iv) enroll in a degree | 25 | | program to pursue a degree in a behavioral health field. | 26 | | (i) The Commission shall use moneys appropriated to the |
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| 1 | | Behavioral Health Education Fund to fund the Program as | 2 | | described under this Section. | 3 | | (j) The Commission shall adopt rules to implement this | 4 | | Section and may adopt rules relating to its collection | 5 | | activities for the repayment of any financial assistance | 6 | | provided under this Section. | 7 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 8 | | becoming law.". |
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