Senate Bill 1850
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Florida Senate - 1998 SB 1850
By Senator Kirkpatrick
5-1089-98
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Florida Bright Futures
3 Scholarship Program; amending s. 240.40201,
4 F.S.; allowing certain institutions of higher
5 education which are located out of this country
6 or state to qualify as eligible institutions;
7 requiring the Department of Eduction to make a
8 reasonable effort to notify certain military
9 personnel about the program; amending s.
10 240.40204, F.S.; providing requirements for
11 institutional eligibility for institutions that
12 are located outside this country or state;
13 amending s. 240.404, F.S.; specifying
14 requirements for student eligibility; providing
15 an effective date.
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17 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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19 Section 1. Subsections (1) and (3) of section
20 240.40201, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
21 240.40201 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship
22 Program.--
23 (1) The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program is
24 created to establish a lottery-funded scholarship program to
25 reward any Florida high school graduate who merits recognition
26 of high academic achievement and who enrolls in an eligible
27 Florida public or private postsecondary education institution
28 within 3 years of graduation from high school. To qualify as
29 eligible, an institution must be located in this state, except
30 that an educational institution located in a state or country
31 in which a Florida resident is stationed as a member of the
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Florida Senate - 1998 SB 1850
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1 military is eligible, with respect to an otherwise eligible
2 child of that armed-forces member, as long as the institution
3 conforms to the other requirements for eligibility which are
4 set forth in s. 240.40204(6).
5 (3) The Department of Education shall administer the
6 Bright Futures Scholarship Program according to rules and
7 procedures established by the Commissioner of Education. A
8 single application must be sufficient for a student to apply
9 for any of the three types of awards. The department must
10 advertise the availability of the scholarship program and must
11 notify students, teachers, parents, guidance counselors, and
12 principals or other relevant school administrators of the
13 criteria and application procedures. In addition to notifying
14 specified residents of this state, the department must make a
15 reasonable effort to notify military personnel who are Florida
16 residents but are residing out of state or out of the United
17 States about the scholarship program, so that the children of
18 such military personnel may apply for scholarships under the
19 program. The department must begin this process of
20 notification no later than January 1 of each year.
21 Section 2. Subsection (6) is added to section
22 240.40204, Florida Statutes, to read:
23 240.40204 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program;
24 eligible postsecondary education institutions.--A student is
25 eligible for an award or the renewal of an award from the
26 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program if the student
27 meets the requirements for the program as described in this
28 act and is enrolled in a postsecondary education institution
29 that meets the description in any one of the following
30 subsections:
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1 (6) A public university, community college, or
2 technical center located in another state, or in a country
3 other than the United States, in which is stationed a member
4 of the United States armed forces who is the parent of a child
5 who is eligible for the scholarship program and is enrolled in
6 that university, community college, or technical school. In
7 order to be a qualified institution under this subsection, an
8 educational institution must be accredited by an accrediting
9 agency approved by the department, must show evidence of sound
10 financial condition, and must have operated in that state or
11 country for at least the 3 years preceding the enrollment of
12 such an eligible scholar without having its approval,
13 accreditation, or license placed on probation.
14 Section 3. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
15 240.404, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
16 240.404 General requirements for student eligibility
17 for state financial aid.--
18 (1)(a) The general requirements for eligibility of
19 students for state financial aid awards consist of the
20 following:
21 1. Achievement of the academic requirements of and
22 acceptance at a state university or community college; a
23 nursing diploma school approved by the Florida Board of
24 Nursing; a Florida college, university, or community college
25 which is accredited by a member of the Commission on
26 Recognition of Postsecondary Accreditation; any Florida
27 institution the credits of which are acceptable for transfer
28 to state universities; any area technical center; or any
29 private vocational-technical institution accredited by a
30 member of the Commission on Recognition of Postsecondary
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1 Accreditation; or any out-of-state institution that meets the
2 requirements of s. 240.40204(6).
3 2. Residency in this state for no less than 1 year
4 preceding the award of aid for a program established pursuant
5 to s. 240.409, s. 240.4095, s. 240.4097, s. 240.412, s.
6 240.4125, s. 240.413, s. 240.4987, s. 240.605, or s. 240.606.
7 Residency in this state must be for purposes other than to
8 obtain an education. Resident status for purposes of receiving
9 state financial aid awards shall be determined in the same
10 manner as resident status for tuition purposes pursuant to s.
11 240.1201 and rules of the State Board of Education.
12 3. Submission of certification attesting to the
13 accuracy, completeness, and correctness of information
14 provided to demonstrate a student's eligibility to receive
15 state financial aid awards. Falsification of such information
16 shall result in the denial of any pending application and
17 revocation of any award currently held to the extent that no
18 further payments shall be made. Additionally, students who
19 knowingly make false statements in order to receive state
20 financial aid awards shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the
21 second degree subject to the provisions of s. 837.06 and shall
22 be required to return all state financial aid awards
23 wrongfully obtained.
24 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 1998.
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2 SENATE SUMMARY
3 Amends provisions of the Florida Bright Futures
Scholarship Program. Allows children of military
4 personnel who are Florida residents but are stationed
outside this country or state to qualify for the
5 scholarship program and to attend out-of-state
institutions located in the state or country where the
6 parent is stationed. Requires the Department of Education
to make a reasonable effort to notify military personnel
7 who are stationed out of state about this program.
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