ENROLLED
Senate Bill No. 667
(By Senator Sprouse, Foster, McCabe, Wells, Jenkins, Hunter, Oliverio and
Plymale)
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[Passed March 10, 2007; to take effect July 1, 2007.]
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AN ACT to amend and reenact §15-1B-21 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a
new section, designated §18B-10-10, all relating to providing
certain student financial aid for certain military service;
providing for the payment of tuition and certain fees for
members of the West Virginia Army National Guard and West
Virginia Air National Guard enrolled in certain graduate
study; and providing tuition and certain fee waivers to
certain military recipients of the Medal of Honor or a Purple
Heart Medal.
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; and that said code be amended by adding
thereto a new section, designated §18B-10-10, all to read as
follows:
CHAPTER 15. PUBLIC SAFETY.
ARTICLE 1B. NATIONAL GUARD.
§15-1B-21. Tuition and fees for guard members at institutions of
higher education.
(a) Any member of the Army National Guard or Air National
Guard who is enrolled in a course of undergraduate study or a
master's degree program 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. 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.
The payment is contingent upon appropriations being made by the
Legislature for this express purpose. A member may receive payment
for only one master's degree pursuant to this section.
(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 any
event may not exceed the highest amounts payable at any
state-supported school.
(c) Any member of the Army National Guard or Air National Guard who is enrolled in a course of undergraduate study or a
master's degree program and is attending any accredited college or
university located in West Virginia and is receiving payments under
a federally funded 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 Army National Guard or Air
National Guard:
Provided, That the sum of payments received under
this subsection and a federally funded 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 Army National Guard or West Virginia Air 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 Army National Guard or West
Virginia Air 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.
(f) 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.
CHAPTER 18B. HIGHER EDUCATION.
ARTICLE 10. FEES AND OTHER MONEY COLLECTED AT STATE INSTITUTIONS
OF HIGHER EDUCATION.
§18B-10-10. The Medal of Honor and Andrew J. Trail Purple Heart
Recipient Tuition Waiver.
(a) This section is known as The Medal of Honor and Andrew J.
Trail Purple Heart Recipient Tuition Waiver.
(b) A state institution of higher education shall waive
undergraduate tuition and mandatory fee charges for a state
resident that has been honorably discharged from any branch of the
United States armed forces if that resident:
(1) Has received the Medal of Honor or a Purple Heart Medal.
The waiver pursuant to this subdivision is for the amount of
tuition and mandatory fee charges that exceeds the total amount of
any state and federal education benefits, grants or scholarships
received by the resident;
(2) Has received the Medal of Honor or a Purple Heart Medal
and sustained wounds during military combat that resulted in either
a permanent disability or a loss of limb. The waiver pursuant to
this subdivision is for the amount of tuition and mandatory fee
charges that exceeds state and federal education benefits, grants or scholarships received by the resident that are designated solely
for tuition and mandatory fees.
(c) Tuition and mandatory fee waivers provided pursuant to
this section are not counted when determining the maximum number of
waivers permitted at an institution by section five of this
article.
(d) A tuition and mandatory fee waiver is available pursuant
to this section for a maximum of eight semesters.
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