H. B. 4033
(By Mr. Speaker, (Mr. Thompson) and Delegate Armstead)
[By Request of the Executive]
[Introduced January 11, 2008; referred to the
Committee on Education then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §18C-7-6 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to authorizing the West Virginia
PROMISE Scholarship Board to recommend a legislative rule to
the Higher Education Policy Commission for promulgation
requiring repayment of the PROMISE scholarship award under
certain circumstances.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18C-7-6 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 7. WEST VIRGINIA PROVIDING REAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR
MAXIMIZING IN-STATE STUDENT EXCELLENCE SCHOLARSHIP
PROGRAM.
§18C-7-6. PROMISE scholarship program requirements; legislative
rule.
(a) A PROMISE scholarship annual award meets the following conditions:(1) Equals but does not exceed the cost of tuition for a
student enrolled in a state institution of higher education;
(2) Equals an amount determined by the board, but not to exceed
the cost of tuition at state institutions of higher education, for
a student enrolled in an eligible institution that is not a state
institution of higher education; and
(3) Is used by an eligible institution to supplement, but not
to supplant, a tuition and fee waiver for which the individual is
eligible pursuant to sections five, six-a or seven, article ten,
chapter eighteen-b of this code.
(b) The total cost of all scholarships awarded by the board in
any year may not exceed the amount of funds available to the board
during that fiscal year.
(c) An individual shall meet the following conditions in order
to be eligible to receive a PROMISE scholarship award:
(1) Submit a scholarship award application to the board:
(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
exemption B, section one, article eight, chapter eighteen of this
code; or
(B) Within seven years of initially entering military service,
and within one year of discharge from such military service, if the
individual has entered the United States armed services within two years after graduating from high school;
(2) Apply for and submit to the board a free application for
Federal Student Aid;
(3) Maintain a grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0
grading scale in the required core and elective course work
necessary to prepare students for success in post-secondary
education at the associate and baccalaureate degree levels as
determined by the board, if the individual has completed not 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;
(4) Maintain appropriate academic progress toward the
completion of a degree at the undergraduate education level as
determined by the board 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;
(5) Meet additional objective standards as the board considers
necessary to promote academic excellence and to maintain the
financial stability of the fund;
(6) Enroll in an eligible institution. Any student enrolled at
an eligible institution who receives a PROMISE scholarship award may retain and renew the scholarship to complete his or her
undergraduate education at that institution, or any other eligible
institution:
(A) If the institution at which the student is enrolled loses
its status as an eligible institution pursuant to the provisions of
subdivision (2), subsection (a), section three of this article; and
(B) If the student meets all other renewal requirements of this
code and of board rules.
(7) It is the intent of the Legislature that the board shall
strongly encourage prospective candidates for the PROMISE
scholarship to perform at least twenty hours of unpaid community
service while in high school to help prepare them for success in
post-graduate education. The community service may include, but is
not limited to, participation with nonprofit, governmental or
community-based organizations designed to:
(A) Improve the quality of life for community residents;
(B) Meet the needs of community residents; or
(C) Foster civic responsibility.
(d)
Upon the amendment and reenactment of this section during
the regular session of the Legislature in two thousand eight, the
board shall recommend a legislative rule to the commission to
implement the provisions of this article. The commission shall
promulgate a legislative rule in accordance with the provisions of
article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code.(1) The rule shall include at least the following provisions:
(A) The amount of a PROMISE scholarship award may not exceed
the cost of tuition at state institutions of higher education;
(B) The amount of a PROMISE scholarship 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;
(C) Requiring repayment of the amount of the scholarship, in
whole or in part, if a scholarship recipient chooses to work outside
of the state after graduation: Provided, That the rule may not
require a recipient to repay a scholarship, in whole or in part,
unless the prospective recipient has been informed of this
requirement in writing before initial acceptance of the PROMISE
scholarship award.
(C) (D) Additional objective standards as the board considers
necessary:
(i) To promote academic excellence;
(ii) To maintain the financial stability of the fund; and
(iii) To operate the program within the limits of available funds.
(D) (E) Provisions for making the highest and best use of the
PROMISE scholarship program in conjunction with the West Virginia
Prepaid Tuition Trust Act set forth in article thirty, chapter eighteen of this code;
(E) (F) A provision defining the relationship of PROMISE
scholarship awards to all other sources of student financial aid to
ensure maximum coordination. The provision shall include the following:
(i) Methods to maximize student eligibility for federal student
financial aid;
(ii) A requirement that PROMISE scholarship awards not supplant
tuition and fee waivers; and
(iii) Clarification of the relationship between the PROMISE
scholarship program, tuition savings plans and other state funded
student financial aid programs.
(F) (G) A method for awarding scholarships within the limits
of available appropriations, including circumstances when program
funds are not sufficient to provide awards to all eligible
applicants. The board may not utilize any of the following methods:
(i) Making a scholarship award for an amount less than the cost
of full tuition for a student enrolled in a state institution of
higher education; or
(ii) Eliminating any current recipient from eligibility.
(G) (H) A method for applicants to appeal determinations of
eligibility,
and renewal
and repayment.
(2) The rule may provide for or require the following at the
board's discretion:
(A) 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: Provided, That rule may not require a
recipient to repay a scholarship, in whole or in part, unless the
prospective recipient has been informed of this requirement in
writing before initial acceptance of the PROMISE scholarship award.
(B) (A) Targeting a portion of the scholarship funds to be used
for applicants enrolled in an engineering, science, technology or
other designated program;
(C) (B) Determining what other sources of funding for higher
education are to be deducted from the PROMISE scholarship award; and
(D) (C) Providing additional criteria as determined by the
board.
(3) The Legislature finds that an emergency exists and,
therefore, the board shall file a rule to implement the provisions
of this section as an emergency rule pursuant to the provisions of
article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code.
The rule is
subject to the prior approval of the Legislative Oversight
Commission on Education Accountability.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide for a legislative
rule requiring repayment, in whole or in part, of a PROMISE
scholarship award if the recipient chooses to work outside of West
Virginia following graduation.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be striken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.