Source: http://www.wvlegislature.gov/legisdocs/chamber/2019/RS/floor_amends/SB1%20HFA%20SPONAUGLE%203-5%20REVISED.htm
Timestamp: 2020-05-29 13:54:49
Document Index: 654037233

Matched Legal Cases: ['§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§29', '§18', '§12', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§18', '§29', '§18', '§29', '§18']

SB1 HFA Sponaugle 3-5 revised
Delegate Sponaugle moves to amend the HFIN AM, on page on page 13, following the period on line 87, by inserting the following section 1, to read as follows:
“ARTICLE 7. WEST VIRGINIA PROVIDING REAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR MAXIMIZING IN-STATE STUDENT EXCELLENCE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM.
§18C-7-1. Title; provision to expire.
This article shall be known and may be cited as the “West Virginia providing real opportunities for maximizing in-state student excellence (PROMISE) Scholarship Program”. Except as provided in §18C-8-1 et seq. of this code, the provisions of this article expire and are no longer in force or effect beginning January 1, 2020.”
On page 19, line 74, following the period, by inserting the following:
“Article 10. West virginia educate, Employ and Retain Scholarship Program.
§18C-10-1. Legislative findings and purpose.
(1) West Virginia must have an educated workforce in order to retain and attract high-wage, high-skill jobs;
(2) The population decline of this state in the last several decades has included many West Virginia residents who grew up and were educated in and by the educational system of our state;
(3) West Virginia will continue to lose a large percentage of West Virginia residents who graduate from the state’s colleges and universities and do not remain in West Virginia, and new incentives must be created to encourage these graduates to stay and work in West Virginia;
(4) The Promise Scholarship has helped many West Virginians’ receive college educations but has not resulted in sufficient retention of these students in-state after graduation;
(5) The Promise Scholarship with its high academic standards for eligibility, has assisted students most inclined to attend college and has done nothing to incentivize all other students to attend state colleges and universities, and these students are in the greatest need of assistance and encouragement to pursue a higher education; and
(6) That a new approach is needed to stop the brain drain of our state, and rewarding all resident college students who remain in West Virginia after graduation by establishing a new program that provides scholarships for residents who agree to stay and work in West Virginia after graduation is a better solution for West Virginia.
(b) It is the purpose of this article to redirect existing PROMISE scholarship funding to the Promise for All Scholarship, established pursuant to this article. These scholarships will be available to all residents who enroll in a state institution and maintain a 2.0 grade-point average during their collegiate career. The scholarships may not exceed $10,000 each scholastic year and shall provide for no longer than four years for an undergraduate degree and two years for an associate degree, and will be annually proportionally released from repayment for each year the resident remains and works in West Virginia following graduation.
§18C-10-2. Definitions.
(a) General. -- For the purposes of this article, terms have the meaning ascribed to them in §18C-1-2 of this code, unless the context in which the term is used clearly requires a different meaning or a specific definition is provided in this section.
(b) Definitions – (1) “Enrolled” means either currently enrolled or in the process of enrolling in an eligible institution.
(A) A state institution of higher education as defined in §18B-1-2 of this code;
(B) Alderson-Broaddus College, Appalachian Bible College, Bethany College, Davis and Elkins College, Ohio Valley University, the University of Charleston, West Virginia Wesleyan College and Wheeling Jesuit University, all in West Virginia. Any institution listed in this subdivision ceases to be an eligible institution if it meets either of the following conditions:
(3) “Room and Board” means the annual cost, as established by the accredited institution as the cost of housing and food while attending as a full-time student.
(4) “Tuition” means the quarter, semester or term charges imposed by an eligible state institution of higher education and, additionally, all mandatory fees required as a condition of enrollment by all students. For the purposes of this article, the following conditions apply:
§18C-10-3. Powers and duties of the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission regarding the West Virginia Educate, Employ and Retain Scholarship Program.
(a) Powers of commission. — In addition to the powers granted by any other provision of this code, the commission has the powers necessary or convenient to carry out the purposes and provisions of this article including, but not limited to, the following:
(1) To promulgate legislative rules in accordance with the provisions of §29A-3A-1 et seq. of this code to effectuate the purposes of this article;
(2) To invest any of the funds of the Promise for All Scholarship Fund established pursuant to §18C-9-6 of this code with the West Virginia Investment Management Board in accordance with the provisions of §12-6-1 et seq. of this code. Any investments made pursuant to this article shall be made with the care, skill, prudence and diligence under the circumstances then prevailing that a prudent person acting in a like capacity and familiar with such matters would use in conducting an enterprise of a like character and with like aims. Fiduciaries shall diversify plan investments to the extent permitted by law to minimize the risk of large losses, unless under the circumstances it is clearly prudent not to do so;
(4) To impose reasonable requirements for residency for students applying for the Promise for All scholarship. Except as provided in §18C-1-4 of this code, a student shall have met the following requirements to be eligible:
(7) To define the terms and conditions under which scholarships are awarded with the minimum requirements being set forth in §18C-9-6 of this code; and
(2) To maintain contact with students and graduates who have received Promise for All scholarships and to provide a written statement of intent notifying them that acceptance of the scholarship entails a responsibility to comply with the following:
(ii) Obtain employment in West Virginia after graduation;
(iii) To repay the scholarship as a loan if the graduate leaves West Virginia or fails to graduate within required time periods;
(iv) For Promise for All recipients who enroll in post-graduate education programs, the name of the state in which each post-graduate institution is located; and
(v) Any other relevant information the commission reasonably requests to implement the provisions of this subdivision.
§18C-10-4. Promise for All program requirements.
(a) A Promise for All award recipients shall meet the following conditions:
(1) For a student enrolled in a state institution of higher education or other eligible institution, the annual award shall only be given to eligible students enrolled in a state institution of higher education and shall not exceed the annual estimated cost of tuition, room and board except that a student who was awarded and used a PROMISE scholarship annual award prior to January 1, 2019, shall continue to receive the annual award calculated under the same terms and conditions that applied on the day before the effective date of this article: Provided, That eligible students attending less than full time shall only be eligible for awards for tuition and any other qualifications, conditions or limitations as established by commission rules;
(2) The annual award shall be used by an eligible institution to supplement, but may not supplant, a tuition and fee waiver for which the individual is eligible pursuant to §18B-10-5 of this code and §18B-10-6a, §18B-10-7 and §18B-10 7b of this code.
(b) The total cost of all awards granted by the commission in any year may not exceed the amount of funds available to the commission during the fiscal year, but in no case may be more than $10,000 in one scholastic year.
(c) In order to be eligible to receive a Promise for All award an individual shall:
(1) Submit an award application to the commission:
(A) Within two years of graduating from high school or within two years of acquiring a general equivalency degree if provided instruction in the home or other approved place pursuant to §18-9-1(c) of this code; or
(3) Maintain appropriate academic progress toward the completion of a degree at the undergraduate education level as determined by the commission if the individual has completed more than one semester or term at an institution of higher education, excluding credits earned in advanced placement, international baccalaureate, dual credit and comparable courses while the student is enrolled in high school and graduate;
(4) Be a United States citizen or legal immigrant to the United States;
(5) Meet additional objective standards the commission considers necessary to promote academic excellence and to maintain the financial stability of the fund; and
(6) Enroll in an eligible institution. A student enrolled at an eligible institution who receives a Promise for All award may retain and renew the scholarship to complete his or her undergraduate education at that institution or any other eligible institution under the following circumstances:
(A) The institution at which the student is enrolled loses its status as an eligible institution as defined in §18C-9-2 of this code; and
(d) Upon the withdrawal of the student from an eligible institution before completing program requirements and failure to timely enroll in another eligible institution, or upon graduation, failure to remain in the state or gain full-time employment within a reasonable period of time as established by the commission, the recipient shall be required to repay the state the amount of the scholarship, and the scholarship shall be treated as, and administered pursuant to the Guaranteed Student Loan Program, as established in §18C-2-1 et seq. of this code.
(e) It is the intent of the Legislature that the commission shall strongly encourage prospective candidates for the Promise for All award to perform at least 20 hours of unpaid community service while in high school to help prepare them for success in post-secondary education. The community service may include, but is not limited to, participation with nonprofit, governmental or community-based organizations designed with any or all of the following purposes:
§18C-10-5. Legislative rules.
(a) The commission shall promulgate legislative rules in accordance with the provisions of §29A-3A-1 et seq. of this code, which shall include:
(1) The amount of a Promise for All award in combination with aid from all other sources may not exceed the cost of education at the institution the recipient is attending. This provision does not apply to members of the West Virginia National Guard, recipients of an Underwood-Smith teacher scholarship and recipients of a West Virginia engineering, science and technology scholarship;
(2) Additional objective standards the commission considers necessary:
(A) To promote academic excellence;
(B) To maintain the financial stability of the fund; and
(C) To operate the program within the limits of available funds.
(3) Provisions for making the highest and best use of the Promise for All Program in conjunction with the West Virginia College Prepaid Tuition and Savings Program Act set forth in §18-30-1 et seq. of this code;
(4) A provision defining the relationship of Promise for All scholarships to all other sources of student financial aid to ensure maximum coordination. The provision shall include the following:
(A) Methods to maximize student eligibility for federal student financial aid;
(B) A requirement that Promise for All Awards not supplant tuition and fee waivers; and
(C) Clarifications as needed of the relationship between the Promise for All Program, tuition savings plans and other state-funded student financial aid programs.
(5) A method for making Promise for All awards within the limits of available appropriations, including circumstances when program funds are not sufficient to provide awards to all eligible applicants. The commission may not use any of the following methods:
(A) Providing for an annual Promise for All award that is less than the amounts provided in this section; or
(B) Eliminating any current recipient from eligibility; and
(C) A method for applicants to appeal determinations of eligibility and renewal.
(b) The rule may provide for or require the following at the commission's discretion:
(1) Requiring repayment of the amount of the scholarship, in whole or in part, if a scholarship recipient chooses to work outside the state after graduation or fails within a reasonable period to obtain full-time employment in the state. The rule may not require a recipient to repay an award, in whole or in part, unless the prospective recipient has been informed of this requirement in writing before initial acceptance of the award. The commission may grant extensions or make other exceptions regarding scholarship repayment by persons who did not graduate or otherwise failed to fulfill the requirements for discharge or repayment of scholarship funds when undue hardship to the recipient will occur;
(2) Targeting a portion of the scholarship funds to be used for applicants enrolled in an engineering, science, technology or other designated program;
(3) Determining what other sources of funding for higher education are to be deducted from the Promise for All award; and
(4) Providing additional criteria as determined by the commission.
(c) The Legislature finds that an emergency exists and, therefore, the commission shall file any rule to implement the provisions of this section as an emergency rule pursuant to the provisions of §29A-3A-1 et seq. of this code necessary to have the program fully operational for the 2019 school year.
§18C-10-6. Promise for All Award Fund created.
(a) The special revenue fund in the State Treasury designated and known as the Promise for All Award Fund is created. The fund consists of moneys from the following sources:
(1) All appropriations to the fund from the West Virginia Lottery, video lottery and taxes on amusement devices previously dedicated to the PROMISE scholarship program;
(2) All remaining appropriations by the Legislature for the PROMISE Scholarship Fund not needed to fulfill current Promise Scholarship awards as provided pursuant to this article;
(3) All appropriations by the Legislature for the Promise for All Award Fund;
(4) Any gifts, grants or contributions received for the Promise for All Award Program; and
(5) All interest or other income earned from investment of the fund.
(c) The commission may expend the moneys in the fund to implement the provisions of this article.”