2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 17 - Education › §17:3047.2. Initial eligibility

RS 17:3047.2 - Initial eligibility
A. To be eligible for the award, an applicant shall meet the following requirements:
(1) Be at least twenty-one years old.
(2) Have earned a high school diploma or its equivalent or shall co-enroll in a qualified program and a program to earn a high school credential that is recognized by the state of Louisiana.
(3) Be a citizen of the United States as defined by the administering agency.
(4)(a) Be a resident of Louisiana during the twenty-four months preceding the date of the application for the award or be a veteran of the United States Armed Forces who received an honorable discharge or general discharge under honorable conditions within the twenty-four months preceding the date of application and who has become a resident of Louisiana since separation from the United States Armed Forces.
(b) Notwithstanding Subparagraph (a) of this Paragraph or any other provision of law to the contrary, an award recipient does not have to be a resident of Louisiana, if the award recipient is:
(i) The spouse or dependent child of a resident of Louisiana on active duty with the United States Armed Forces who is stationed outside Louisiana but who claims Louisiana as the state of legal residence and who has filed a Louisiana state income tax return for the most recent two years.
(ii) The spouse or dependent child of a nonresident of Louisiana on active duty with the United States Armed Forces who is stationed in Louisiana under permanent change of station orders and who, not later than one hundred eighty days after reporting, changes his military personnel records to establish Louisiana as the official state of legal residence and complies with Louisiana income tax laws and regulations for the time period while stationed in Louisiana.
(5) Have not previously earned an undergraduate degree at the associate level or above.
(6) Meet any admission requirements of the postsecondary education institution and the qualified program.
(7) Have received an honorable discharge or general discharge under honorable conditions if the applicant served in the United States Armed Forces and separated from service.
(8)(a) Not be incarcerated.
(b) Have no conviction for any crime of violence as defined in R.S. 14:2(B).
(9) Have applied for federal student aid, unless the qualified program chosen by the applicant does not qualify for federal student aid or if the applicant demonstrates ineligibility for federal student aid to the administering agency. The administering agency may provide by rule alternative methods to determine financial need for students who are unable to complete an application for federal student aid due to extenuating circumstances as defined by the administering agency. If the applicant meets all eligibility requirements except filing the application for federal student aid, the applicant shall be eligible to receive one award payment prior to completion of the federal student aid application.
(10) Provide the administering agency permission to collect and verify information relative to the success of the program provided pursuant to this Chapter including information regarding the applicant's employment before and after receiving the award.
(11) Agree to reside and work full-time in Louisiana for at least one year after the completion of the last semester that an award is provided.
(12) Repealed by Acts 2023, No. 287, §2, eff. June 12, 2023.
(13) Have a family income that does not exceed three hundred percent of the applicable federal poverty guideline as published in the Federal Register by the United States Department of Health and Human Services or certify unemployment or underemployment for at least six months prior to receiving the award.
B. Proof of meeting each requirement shall be demonstrated and certified as required by rule of the administering agency.
Acts 2021, No. 457, §1, eff. June 23, 2021; Acts 2023, No. 287, §§1, 2, eff. June 12, 2023.