House Bill hb0459c1

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2002              CS/HB 459

        By the Council for Lifelong Learning and Representatives
    Kilmer, Waters and Harrington





  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the Florida Bright Futures

  3         Scholarship Program; amending ss. 240.40201 and

  4         240.40202, F.S.; revising eligibility

  5         requirements; providing eligibility

  6         requirements for students who enter the

  7         military service; providing for reinstatement

  8         of awards; creating s. 240.40215, F.S.;

  9         providing for Florida Bright Futures

10         Scholarship awards for students attending

11         United States military service academies;

12         providing for the issuance of warrants;

13         providing an effective date.

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15  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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17         Section 1.  Subsection (1) of section 240.40201,

18  Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

19         240.40201  Florida Bright Futures Scholarship

20  Program.--

21         (1)  The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program is

22  created to establish a lottery-funded scholarship program to

23  reward any Florida high school graduate who merits recognition

24  of high academic achievement and who enrolls in an eligible

25  Florida public or private postsecondary education institution

26  within 7 3 years of graduation from high school. Regardless of

27  the year in which the student first receives scholarship

28  funding, all eligibility shall end 7 years after high school

29  graduation; however, students who enter the military service

30  within 7 years following high school graduation shall have

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2002              CS/HB 459

    400-115-02






  1  their Bright Futures Scholarship eligibility extended for 7

  2  years after the student ends active military duty.

  3         Section 2.  Subsection (2) of section 240.40202,

  4  Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

  5         240.40202  Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program;

  6  student eligibility requirements for initial awards.--

  7         (2)  A student is eligible to accept an initial award

  8  for 3 years following high school graduation and to accept a

  9  renewal award for 7 years following high school graduation. A

10  student who applies for an award by April 1 and who meets all

11  other eligibility requirements, but who does not accept his or

12  her award, may apply for reinstatement of the award.

13  Reinstatement applications must be received by the deadline

14  established by the Department of Education reapply during

15  subsequent application periods up to 3 years after high school

16  graduation.

17         Section 3.  Section 240.40215, Florida Statutes, is

18  created to read:

19         240.40215  Florida Bright Futures Scholarship

20  recipients attending United States military service

21  academies.--

22         (1)  Notwithstanding the provisions of ss.

23  240.40201-240.40209 relating to postsecondary education

24  institutions, a student who is otherwise eligible to receive

25  an award under the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program

26  and who is accepted and enrolls as a student in the U.S. Air

27  Force Academy, the U.S. Military Academy, the U.S. Naval

28  Academy, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, or the U.S. Merchant

29  Marine Academy shall receive a fixed award calculated by using

30  the average matriculation and fee calculation for full-time

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2002              CS/HB 459

    400-115-02






  1  attendance at a public postsecondary education institution at

  2  the comparable level.

  3         (2)  Upon verification by the Department of Education

  4  that the student is enrolled in a United States military

  5  service academy and meets the eligibility requirements for

  6  receipt of an award, the Comptroller shall issue an individual

  7  warrant made payable to the student and mailed by the

  8  Department of Education to the United States military service

  9  academy in which the student is enrolled.

10         Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

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