Senate Bill No. 713
(By Senator Sprouse)
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[Introduced February 20, 2006; referred to the Committee
on Education; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §15-1B-21 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to providing that members of the
West Virginia National Guard who are eligible to receive
payments for tuition and fees to attend an institution of
higher learning in West Virginia, but who are unable to take
advantage of this benefit while they are deployed overseas,
are eligible to receive payments for tuition and fees after
discharge from military service as if they were still members
of the West Virginia National Guard for a period of time equal
to the amount of time they served on overseas deployment.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §15-1B-21 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1B. NATIONAL GUARD.
§15-1B-21. Tuition and fees for guard members at institutions of higher education.
(a) Any member of the National Guard who is enrolled in a
course of undergraduate study and is attending any accredited
college, university, business or trade school located in West
Virginia or is attending any aviation school located in West
Virginia for the purpose of taking college-credit courses, may be
entitled to payment of tuitions and fees at that college,
university, business or trade school or aviation school during the
period of his or her service in the National Guard: Provided, That
the Adjutant General may prescribe criteria of eligibility for
payment of tuition and fees at the college, university, business or
trade school or aviation school: Provided, however, That the
payment is contingent upon appropriations being made by the
Legislature for this express purpose.
(b) The amount of the payment for members attending a
state-supported school shall be determined by the Adjutant General
and may not exceed the actual amount of tuition and fees at the
school. The amount of the payment for members attending a private
school shall be determined by the Adjutant General, but in no event
may it exceed the highest amounts payable at any state-supported
school.
(c) Any member of the National Guard who is enrolled in a
course of postgraduate study and is attending any accredited
college or university located in West Virginia, and is receiving payments under the Army continuing education system, may be
entitled to payment of tuition and fees at that college or
university during his or her period of service in the National
Guard: Provided, That the sum of payments received under this
subsection and the Army continuing education system may not exceed
the actual amount of tuition and fees at the school and in no event
may exceed the highest amounts payable at any state-supported
school. The payments are contingent upon appropriations being made
by the Legislature for this express purpose.
(d) The Adjutant General may, in lieu of the tuition payment
authorized by this section, pay an amount equal to the amount of
tuition which otherwise would have been paid, directly to members
of the West Virginia National Guard who are participating in the
PROMISE scholarship program provided in article seven, chapter
eighteen-c of this code.
(e) A member of the West Virginia National Guard who is
receiving payments for tuition and fees under this section, and is
discharged from the military service due to wounds or injuries
received in the line of duty, may continue to receive payments for
tuition and fees under this section as if he or she were still a
member of the West Virginia National Guard.
(f) A member of the West Virginia National Guard who is
eligible to receive payments for tuition and fees under this
section, but who is unable to take advantage of this benefit because he or she is deployed overseas, is eligible to receive
payments for tuition and fees after discharge from military service
as if he or she were still a member of the West Virginia National
Guard for a period of time equal to the amount of time served on
overseas deployment.
(f) (g) The Adjutant General shall administer the tuition and
fee payments authorized under this section and shall propose
policies to implement the provisions of this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is provide that members of the
West Virginia National Guard who are eligible to receive payments
for tuition and fees to attend an institution of higher learning in
West Virginia, but who are unable to take advantage of this benefit
while they are deployed overseas in service of our country, are
eligible to receive payments for tuition and fees after discharge
from military service as if they were still members of the West
Virginia National Guard for a period of time equal to the amount of
time they served on overseas deployment.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
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