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House Bill 0543c1

Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 By the Committee on Education Innovation and Representatives K. Pruitt, Chestnut, Fasano and Minton 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to education; establishing the 3 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program; 4 providing levels of award; providing for 5 administration and funding; providing student 6 eligibility and program requirements; providing 7 for awards; providing requirements for 8 qualification for a Florida Academic Scholars 9 award, a Florida Merit Scholarship award, and a 10 Florida Gold Seal Vocational Endorsement 11 Scholarship award; providing a transition in 12 eligibility for scholarship awards; amending s. 13 24.121, F.S.; providing for funding of the 14 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program from 15 the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund; 16 repealing ss. 232.2465, 239.217, 240.402, 17 240.4021, and 240.4024, F.S., relating to the 18 Florida Academic Scholars' Certificate Program, 19 the Florida Gold Seal Vocational Endorsement 20 Program, the Florida Undergraduate Scholars' 21 Program, the Vocational Gold Seal Endorsement 22 Scholarship Program, and the Florida 23 Postsecondary Tuition Program; amending ss. 24 240.233, 232.246, 240.404, and 240.40242, F.S.; 25 correcting cross references; and conforming 26 language; providing an effective date. 27 28 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 29 30 Section 1. The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship 31 Program.-- 1 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 (1) It is the intent of the Legislature that a 2 lottery-funded scholarship program be established for students 3 who have demonstrated high academic achievement in high school 4 and are ready for postsecondary education. Such a scholarship 5 program shall be available to any student who meets high 6 academic standards and who subsequently enrolls in a public or 7 private Florida community college, university, college, or 8 postsecondary vocational or technical program leading to a 9 degree or skill certification. 10 (2) The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program is 11 established and shall consist of two levels of award. The 12 first level of award, which is the highest award, shall be for 13 students who meet the most rigorous academic standards and 14 qualify as Florida Academic Scholars. The second level of 15 award shall be for students who graduate from high school with 16 a 3.0 grade point average in courses required for graduation 17 and who demonstrate readiness for a community college, 18 university, or postsecondary vocational or technical program. 19 Students at this level shall qualify either for a Florida 20 Merit Scholarship award or a Florida Gold Seal Vocational 21 Endorsement Scholarship award. These two awards shall be 22 equivalent. 23 (3) The program shall be administered by the 24 Department of Education according to rules and procedures 25 established by the Commissioner of Education. Advertising or 26 notification to students, teachers, parents, guidance 27 counselors, and principals, or other relevant school 28 administrators, of the criteria and application procedures for 29 the award shall be the responsibility of the department. Such 30 advertising or notification shall begin no later than January 31 of each year. 2 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 (4) Funds allocated to the program shall be from the 2 Educational Enhancement Trust Fund and shall be allocated 3 prior to disbursement to public schools, community colleges, 4 and state universities. 5 (a) If funds appropriated by the Legislature are not 6 sufficient to provide awards as authorized in law, awards in 7 all three components of the program shall be prorated using 8 the same percentage reduction. 9 (b) If all funds allocated to the program are not 10 fully utilized in a fiscal year, up to 5 percent of the total 11 allocation may be carried over to fund potential shortages in 12 future years. 13 (5) The following shall apply to recipients of either 14 level of award under the program: 15 (a) Students may use awards for enrollment in any 16 Florida public university, community college, or technical 17 institute or any eligible Florida independent college, 18 university, or vocational-technical school. An independent 19 college, university, or vocational-technical school shall be 20 eligible to participate if the following criteria are met: 21 1. It is an independent postsecondary institution that 22 offers a nursing diploma approved by the Board of Nursing or a 23 Florida college, university, or community college which is 24 accredited by a member of the Commission on Recognition of 25 Postsecondary Accreditation, the credits of which are 26 acceptable for transfer to state universities; or 27 2. It is a nonpublic postsecondary educational 28 institution licensed by the State Board of Independent 29 Postsecondary Vocational, Technical, Trade, and Business 30 Schools that: 31 a. Is located in and licensed to operate by the state. 3 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 b. Has a program completion and placement rate at the 2 minimum rate established under the Florida Administrative Code 3 or current Florida Statutes which govern the institution or as 4 established by the department. 5 c. Shows evidence of sound financial condition. 6 d.(I) Is accredited at the institutional level by an 7 accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department 8 of Education and has operated in the state for 3 years under 9 the same ownership and there have been no complaints for which 10 probable cause has been found during this period; or 11 (II) Is licensed by the state and has operated in the 12 state for 5 years under the same ownership and there have been 13 no complaints for which probable cause has been found during 14 this period. 15 (b) An award recipient shall be a full-time or 16 part-time student enrolled in a minimum of 6 semester credit 17 hours or the equivalent. To qualify for renewal, students must 18 have completed at least 12 semester hours or the equivalent in 19 an academic year. Students may be eligible for renewal awards 20 for up to 7 years after high school graduation. Awards shall 21 be disbursed each academic term. Students enrolled in 6 to 8 22 credit hours may receive up to one-half of the maximum award; 23 students enrolled in 9 to 11 credit hours may receive up to 24 three-fourths of the maximum award; and students enrolled in 25 12 or more credit hours may receive up to the full award. 26 (c) An award recipient shall be allowed a one-time 27 reinstatement upon raising his or her cumulative grade point 28 average to the required level. 29 (d) Students shall apply for a Florida Bright Futures 30 Scholarship Program award by April 1 of the last semester 31 before high school graduation. Eligibility shall be determined 4 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 based on the cumulative grade point average in courses 2 required for graduation as of application. Students who apply 3 for awards no later than April 1 and who meet all other 4 eligibility requirements to receive awards may later reapply 5 to receive awards during subsequent application periods when 6 they do not accept their initial awards. Similarly, students 7 who receive initial awards and who later do not accept renewal 8 awards may reapply to receive awards during subsequent 9 application periods. Students who apply under this paragraph 10 must submit reinstatement applications within 3 years after 11 filing their initial applications. 12 (e) Initial and subsequent renewal awards shall be 13 limited to 132 credit hours if attending a 4-year program and 14 165 credit hours if attending an approved 5-year program. 15 Awards may be used for summer-term enrollment if the 16 Department of Education is notified by June 1 of the year 17 preceding the summer term in which the student plans to 18 enroll. No scholarship funds shall be applied to matriculation 19 and fees for postsecondary remedial courses. 20 (f) To be eligible, a student must not have been found 21 guilty of a felony, or pled nolo contendere to a felony 22 charge, unless granted clemency by the Governor and the 23 Cabinet sitting as the Executive Office of Clemency. 24 (g) To be eligible, a student must be a Florida 25 resident. 26 (h) Recipients must have met the requirements of a 27 standard Florida high school diploma or its equivalent as 28 described in s. 229.814, Florida Statutes. Any student who is 29 enrolled on a full-time basis in the early admission program 30 of an eligible postsecondary institution or completes a home 31 education program according to the provisions of s. 232.02(4), 5 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 Florida Statutes, shall be exempt from this requirement. Also 2 exempt shall be the dependents of Florida residents who are on 3 military or public service assignments away from Florida when 4 such dependents live with such Florida residents and receive 5 high school diplomas from non-Florida schools. 6 (i) The award may be renewed annually upon 7 documentation by the recipient that he or she meets the 8 necessary qualifications. If any recipient transfers from one 9 eligible institution to another eligible institution, the 10 award shall be transferable if the student is otherwise 11 eligible for the award. 12 (j) Program awards shall be awarded annually. Annual 13 awards may be for up to 45 credit hours or the equivalent. 14 Students wishing to renew an award shall notify the 15 institution on forms approved by the Department of Education. 16 The institution shall provide all required information to the 17 department by June 1 of the academic year preceding the 18 renewal year. Students whose grade point average is too low to 19 qualify for a renewal shall receive a renewal if, by the end 20 of the summer session, the cumulative grade point average 21 meets the requirement. In such cases, the institution shall 22 notify the department whether the grade point average may be 23 increased sufficiently during the summer term. If not, the 24 student shall be notified of nonrenewal for the next academic 25 year. If it is possible for the student to raise the grade 26 point average to the required level, an award shall be 27 reserved for the student. The renewal, however, shall be 28 granted only upon meeting the required grade point average. 29 The institution may release the award upon verification of the 30 acceptable grade point average. 31 6 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 (k) If a student does not meet the requirements of 2 this subsection as a result of inaccurate or incomplete 3 information provided by a high school guidance counselor, 4 teacher, or school district personnel, the student may, 5 nevertheless, be eligible for the award if the principal of 6 the school or the district superintendent verifies that such 7 inaccuracies or misinformation caused the deficiencies. The 8 school district must provide a means for the student to 9 correct deficiencies resulting from such misinformation. The 10 student must correct the deficiencies no later than December 11 31 immediately following high school graduation, either by 12 completing comparable work at the postsecondary institution or 13 by completing a directed individualized study program that is 14 developed and administered by the school district. If the 15 student does not complete the requirements necessary to 16 correct the deficiencies by December 31 immediately following 17 high school graduation, the student is ineligible to 18 participate in the program. 19 (6) Payment of an award shall be transmitted in 20 advance of the registration period each semester on behalf of 21 the student to the president of the university or community 22 college, or the director of the area vocational-technical 23 school, or his or her representative, except that the 24 department may withhold payment if the receiving institution 25 fails to report or to make refunds to the department as 26 required in this subsection. 27 (a) Within 30 days after the end of regular 28 registration each semester, institutions shall certify to the 29 department the eligibility status of each student who receives 30 an award. The eligibility status of each student to receive a 31 disbursement shall be determined by each institution as of 7 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 this date. Institutions are not required to reevaluate a 2 student's eligibility status after this date for the purpose 3 of revising an eligibility determination previously made. 4 However, an institution must make refunds to the department 5 for students who receive award disbursements and terminate 6 enrollment for any reason during the academic term when the 7 institution's refund policy permits a student to receive a 8 refund. 9 (b) An institution that receives funds from the 10 program shall certify to the department the amount of funds 11 disbursed to each student and shall remit to the department 12 any undisbursed advances within 60 days after the end of 13 regular registration. 14 (7) A student is eligible for only one annual award 15 from the program. However, a student may, upon meeting 16 provisions of this section, move from one program to another. 17 (a) A student receiving a Florida Academic Scholars 18 award may become eligible for a Florida Merit Scholarship 19 award upon failing to meet the renewal grade point average 20 requirement for the Florida Academic Scholars award if he or 21 she meets the renewal criteria for the Florida Merit 22 Scholarship award. 23 (b) A student may transfer from a Florida Gold Seal 24 Vocational Endorsement Scholarship award to a Florida Merit 25 Scholarship award upon meeting the renewal grade point average 26 requirement and being accepted in an upper-division program or 27 college in a public or private university or college. 28 (8) A program award shall be awarded prior to the 29 certification or award of a federal family education loan or 30 federal direct loan and shall be considered in the 31 8 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 certification or calculation of the student's loan 2 eligibility. 3 (9) Each institution that receives moneys through this 4 program shall cause to be prepared an annual report that 5 includes an independent external audit or an audit prepared by 6 the Office of the Auditor General. The report shall include an 7 audit of the institution's administration of the program and a 8 complete accounting of the moneys for the program. This report 9 must be submitted to the Department of Education annually on 10 or before March 1. The department may conduct its own annual 11 audit of an institution's administration of the program. The 12 department may request a refund of any moneys overpaid to the 13 institution for the program. The department may suspend or 14 revoke an institution's eligibility to receive future moneys 15 for the program if the department finds that an institution 16 has not complied with this section. The institution must remit 17 within 60 days any refund requested in accordance with this 18 subsection. 19 Section 2. Florida Academic Scholars award.-- 20 (1) In addition to criteria specified in section 1 of 21 this act, a student may qualify for a Florida Academic 22 Scholars award if the following requirements are met: 23 (a) The student has a 3.5 unweighted grade point 24 average on a 4.0 scale, or the equivalent, in high school 25 subjects for credit acceptable for a college preparatory 26 curriculum as approved by the Board of Regents and State Board 27 of Community Colleges and the student has attained at least 28 the minimum score as determined by rules of the Department of 29 Education on the combined verbal and quantitative parts of the 30 Scholastic Aptitude Test, the Scholastic Assessment Test, or 31 the recentered Scholastic Assessment Test of the College 9 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 Entrance Examination or an equivalent score on the American 2 College Testing Program; 3 (b) The student has attended a home education program 4 during grade levels 9 through 12 according to the provisions 5 of s. 232.02(4), Florida Statutes, and has attained at least 6 the minimum score as determined by rules of the Department of 7 Education on the combined verbal and quantitative parts of the 8 Scholastic Aptitude Test, the Scholastic Assessment Test, or 9 the recentered Scholastic Assessment Test of the College 10 Entrance Examination or an equivalent score on the American 11 College Testing Program; 12 (c) The student has been awarded an International 13 Baccalaureate Diploma from the International Baccalaureate 14 Office; or 15 (d) The student is recognized by the merit or 16 achievement programs of the National Merit Scholarship 17 Corporation as a scholar or finalist. 18 19 Effective with the 1998-1999 school year, a student must 20 complete a program of community service work, as approved by 21 the district school board or the administrators of a nonpublic 22 school, which shall include a minimum of 75 hours of service 23 work and require the student to identify a social problem that 24 interests him or her, develop a plan for his or her personal 25 involvement in addressing the problem, and, through papers or 26 other presentations, evaluate and reflect upon his or her 27 experience. 28 (2) A renewal award shall be made to students who have 29 maintained the equivalent of a 3.0 cumulative grade point 30 average on a 4.0 scale for all college work attempted. The 31 Department of Education shall not make awards to reinstatement 10 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 applicants who submit applications that are postmarked after 2 June 1. 3 (3) Florida Academic Scholars shall be eligible for an 4 award equal to that required to pay matriculation, mandatory 5 fees, and $600 for college-related expenses annually. Awards 6 for students attending nonpublic institutions shall be limited 7 to the average matriculation and fees of a comparable Florida 8 public institution. 9 (4) In each school district, the Florida Academic 10 Scholar with the highest grade point average shall receive an 11 additional award of $1,500 for college-related expenses. This 12 award shall be funded from the Florida Bright Futures 13 Scholarship Program. 14 Section 3. Florida Merit Scholarship award.-- 15 (1) In addition to criteria specified in section 1 of 16 this act, a student may qualify for a Florida Merit 17 Scholarship award if the following requirements are met: 18 (a)1. The student has a 3.0 unweighted grade point 19 average on a 4.0 scale, or the equivalent, in high school 20 subjects for credit acceptable for a college preparatory 21 curriculum as approved by the Board of Regents and State Board 22 of Community Colleges; and 23 2. The student has attained at least the minimum score 24 as determined by rules of the Department of Education on the 25 combined verbal and quantitative parts of the Scholastic 26 Aptitude Test, the Scholastic Assessment Test, or the 27 recentered Scholastic Assessment Test of the College Entrance 28 Examination or an equivalent score on the American College 29 Testing Program; or 30 (b) The student has attended a home education program 31 during grade levels 9 through 12 according to the provisions 11 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 of s. 232.02(4), Florida Statutes, and has attained at least 2 the minimum score as determined by rules of the Department of 3 Education on the combined verbal and quantitative parts of the 4 Scholastic Aptitude Test, the Scholastic Assessment Test, or 5 the recentered Scholastic Assessment Test of the College 6 Entrance Examination or an equivalent score on the American 7 College Testing Program. 8 (2) A Florida Merit Scholarship award shall be an 9 amount equal to 75 percent of the matriculation and mandatory 10 fees of the institution being attended. Awards for nonpublic 11 institutions shall be limited to that of the average 12 matriculation and fees of a comparable Florida public 13 institution. 14 (3) A renewal award shall be made to students who have 15 maintained the equivalent of a 2.75 cumulative grade point 16 average on a 4.0 scale for all college work attempted. The 17 Department of Education shall not make awards to reinstatement 18 applicants who submit applications that are postmarked after 19 June 1 preceding the renewal academic year. 20 Section 4. Florida Gold Seal Vocational Endorsement 21 Scholarship award.-- 22 (1) There is created the Florida Gold Seal Vocational 23 Endorsement Scholarship award within the Florida Bright 24 Futures Scholarship Program in order to recognize and reward 25 academic achievement and vocational preparation by high school 26 students and to inform potential employers of the quality of a 27 student's academic and vocational preparation. 28 (2) Each school district may award the Florida Gold 29 Seal Vocational Endorsement to a high school student who meets 30 the requirements of this section. To be eligible for award of 31 the Florida Gold Seal Vocational Endorsement, a student must: 12 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 (a) Meet all requirements for graduation as specified 2 in s. 232.246, Florida Statutes, including number of credits, 3 courses, grade point average, and mastery of minimum 4 performance standards and basic skills. 5 (b) Complete three vocational credits over a period of 6 at least 2 years in a sequential program of studies in a 7 vocational job-preparatory or technology-education program. 8 On-the-job training credit may not be substituted for the 9 three vocational credits. A student must complete the 10 secondary school portion of a sequential program of studies 11 which requires at least three secondary school vocational 12 credits taken over at least 2 academic years, and is continued 13 in a planned, related postsecondary education program. If the 14 student's school does not offer such a two-plus-two program, 15 the student is eligible for a vocational endorsement if the 16 student completes a job-preparatory vocational education 17 program selected by the Occupational Forecasting Conference or 18 the Jobs and Education Partnership of Enterprise Florida for 19 its ability to provide high-wage employment in an occupation 20 with high potential for employment opportunities. 21 (c) Demonstrate readiness for postsecondary education 22 by earning a passing score on the Florida College Placement 23 Test. 24 (d) Earn a minimum cumulative unweighted grade point 25 average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale on all subjects required for a 26 standard high school diploma. 27 (e) Earn a minimum unweighted grade point average of 28 3.5 on a 4.0 scale for secondary vocational courses comprising 29 the vocational program. 30 (3) The Florida Gold Seal Vocational Endorsement 31 Scholarship award shall be an amount equal to 75 percent of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 the matriculation and mandatory fees of the institution being 2 attended. Awards for nonpublic institutions shall be limited 3 to that of the average costs of a comparable Florida public 4 institution. 5 (4) A renewal award shall be made to students who have 6 maintained the equivalent of a 2.75 cumulative grade point 7 average on a 4.0 scale for all college work attempted. The 8 Department of Education shall not make awards to reinstatement 9 applicants who submit applications after June 1 preceding the 10 renewal academic year. 11 (5) The Florida Gold Seal Vocational Endorsement 12 Scholarship award shall be limited to 80 credit hours or the 13 equivalent. After completion of 80 credit hours or the 14 equivalent, a student who is accepted into an upper division 15 or college within a public or private college or university, 16 and who has a cumulative grade point average of 2.75 in all 17 postsecondary work, may apply for and be granted a Florida 18 Merit Scholarship award. All other provisions for the Florida 19 Merit Scholarship award shall apply, and the limitations shall 20 be calculated as if the student had used the first 2 years of 21 the Florida Merit Scholarship award. 22 Section 5. Eligibility for scholarship awards; 23 transition.-- 24 (1) Students who graduate from high school in 1997 or 25 earlier and who are eligible for the Florida Undergraduate 26 Scholar's Program pursuant to s. 240.402, Florida Statutes, 27 shall be eligible for the Florida Academic Scholars award 28 under section 2 of this act. 29 (2) Students who graduate from high school in 1997 or 30 earlier and who are eligible for the Vocational Gold Seal 31 Endorsement Scholarship award pursuant to s. 240.4021, Florida 14 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 Statutes, shall be eligible for the Florida Gold Seal 2 Vocational Endorsement Scholarship award under section 3 of 3 this act. 4 Section 6. Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) of section 5 24.121, Florida Statutes, 1996 Supplement, is amended, 6 paragraph (e) is redesignated as paragraph (f), and a new 7 paragraph (e) is added to said subsection, to read: 8 24.121 Allocation of revenues and expenditure of funds 9 for public education.-- 10 (5) 11 (b) Except as provided in paragraphs (c), and (d) and 12 (e), the Legislature shall equitably apportion moneys in the 13 trust fund among public schools, community colleges, and 14 universities. 15 (e) All components of the Florida Bright Futures 16 Scholarship Program shall be funded annually from the 17 Educational Enhancement Trust Fund. Funds shall be allocated 18 to this program prior to application of the formula for 19 equitable distribution to public schools, community colleges, 20 and state universities. If shortages require reductions in 21 estimated distributions from the Educational Enhancement Trust 22 Fund, funds for the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program 23 shall be reduced only after reductions in all other 24 distributions are made. 25 Section 7. Sections 232.2465, 239.217, 240.402, and 26 240.4021, Florida Statutes, and section 240.4024, Florida 27 Statutes, as created by section 2 of chapter 96-341, Laws of 28 Florida, are hereby repealed. 29 Section 8. Paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of section 30 240.233, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 31 15 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 240.233 Universities; admissions of students.--Each 2 university shall govern admissions of students, subject to 3 this section and rules of the Board of Regents. 4 (3) 5 (b) Within the admission standards provided for in 6 subsection (1), the Board of Regents shall develop procedures 7 for weighting courses which are necessary to meet the 8 requirements of a college preparatory curriculum s. 232.2465 9 at a higher value than less rigorous courses. Credits 10 received in such courses shall be given greater value in 11 determining admission by universities than cumulative grade 12 point averages in high school. 13 Section 9. Subsection (9) of section 232.246, Florida 14 Statutes, is amended to read: 15 232.246 General requirements for high school 16 graduation.-- 17 (9) A student who meets all requirements prescribed in 18 subsections (1), (5), and (6) shall be awarded a standard 19 diploma in a form prescribed by the state board. A school 20 board may attach the Florida gold seal vocational endorsement 21 to a standard diploma pursuant to s. 239.217 or, in lieu of 22 the standard diploma, award differentiated diplomas to those 23 exceeding the prescribed minimums. A student who completes the 24 minimum number of credits and other requirements prescribed by 25 subsections (1) and (5), but who is unable to meet the 26 standards of paragraph (6)(a), paragraph (6)(b), or paragraph 27 (6)(d), shall be awarded a certificate of completion in a form 28 prescribed by the state board. However, any student who is 29 otherwise entitled to a certificate of completion may elect to 30 remain in the secondary school either as a full-time student 31 or a part-time student for up to 1 additional year and receive 16 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 special instruction designed to remedy his or her identified 2 deficiencies. This special instruction shall be funded from 3 the state compensatory education funds of the district. 4 Section 10. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 5 240.404, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 6 240.404 General requirements for student eligibility 7 for state financial aid.-- 8 (1)(a) The general requirements for eligibility of 9 students for state financial aid awards consist of the 10 following: 11 1. Acceptance at a state university or community 12 college; a nursing diploma school approved by the Florida 13 Board of Nursing; a Florida college, university, or community 14 college which is accredited by a member of the Commission on 15 Recognition of Postsecondary Accreditation; any Florida 16 institution the credits of which are acceptable for transfer 17 to state universities; any area technical center; or any 18 private vocational-technical institution accredited by a 19 member of the Commission on Recognition of Postsecondary 20 Accreditation. 21 2. Participation in the college-level communication 22 and computation skills testing program. This requirement is 23 limited to students seeking associate's or bachelor's degrees. 24 3. Residency in this state for no less than 1 year 25 preceding the award of aid for a program established pursuant 26 to s. 240.402, s. 240.4021, s. 240.4085, s. 240.409, s. 27 240.4093, s. 240.4095, s. 240.4097, s. 240.412, s. 240.4125, 28 s. 240.413, s. 240.4987, s. 240.605, or s. 240.606. Residency 29 in this state must be for purposes other than to obtain an 30 education. Resident status for purposes of receiving state 31 financial aid awards shall be determined in the same manner as 17 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. Florida House of Representatives - 1997 CS/HBs 543 & 607 603-102B-97 1 resident status for tuition purposes pursuant to s. 240.1201 2 and rules of the State Board of Education. 3 4. Compliance with Selective Service System 4 registration requirements pursuant to s. 240.4045. 5 5. Submission of certification attesting to the 6 accuracy, completeness, and correctness of information 7 provided to demonstrate a student's eligibility to receive 8 state financial aid awards. Falsification of such information 9 shall result in the denial of any pending application and 10 revocation of any award currently held to the extent that no 11 further payments shall be made. Additionally, students who 12 knowingly make false statements in order to receive state 13 financial aid awards shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the 14 second degree subject to the provisions of s. 837.06 and shall 15 be required to return all state financial aid awards 16 wrongfully obtained. 17 Section 11. Section 240.40242, Florida Statutes, 1996 18 Supplement, is amended to read: 19 240.40242 Use of certain scholarship funds by children 20 of deceased or disabled veterans.--The criteria for the use of 21 scholarship funds which apply to students under the Florida 22 Bright Futures Scholarship Postsecondary Tuition Program shall 23 also apply to the children of deceased or disabled veterans 24 who receive scholarships under chapter 295. 25 Section 12. This act shall take effect upon becoming a 26 law. 27 28 29 30 31 18