Senate Bill sb1538e1
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SB 1538 First Engrossed
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Florida Public Student
3 Assistance Grant Program; amending s. 1009.50,
4 F.S.; amending criteria for receiving a grant;
5 amending criteria for determining the minimum
6 and maximum amounts that may be awarded;
7 creating s. 1009.892, F.S.; creating the
8 Innovation Florida Scholarships for Developing
9 High-Tech Jobs Program; authorizing need-based
10 scholarships for students enrolled in certified
11 degree programs in targeted employment areas at
12 Florida postsecondary educational institutions;
13 providing for administration and funding of the
14 program; providing student eligibility
15 requirements for initial and renewal awards;
16 providing for the adoption of rules; providing
17 an effective date.
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19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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21 Section 1. Subsections (2) and (3) of section 1009.50,
22 Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
23 1009.50 Florida Public Student Assistance Grant
24 Program; eligibility for grants.--
25 (2)(a) State student assistance grants through the
26 program may be made only to degree-seeking students who enroll
27 in at least 3 6 semester hours, or the equivalent per term,
28 and who meet the general requirements for student eligibility
29 as provided in s. 1009.40, except as otherwise provided in
30 this section. The grants shall be awarded annually for the
31 amount of demonstrated unmet need for the cost of education
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1 and may not exceed an amount equal to the average prior
2 academic year cost of tuition fees, and other registration
3 fees, and assigned books and supplies for 40 30 credit hours
4 at state universities or such other amount as specified in the
5 General Appropriations Act, to any recipient. A demonstrated
6 unmet need of less than $100 $200 shall render the applicant
7 ineligible for a state student assistance grant. Recipients of
8 the grants must have been accepted at a state university or
9 community college authorized by Florida law. A student is
10 eligible for the award for 125 110 percent of the number of
11 credit hours required to complete the program in which
12 enrolled, except as otherwise provided in s. 1009.40(3).
13 (b) A student applying for a Florida public student
14 assistance grant shall be required to apply for the Pell
15 Grant. The Pell Grant entitlement shall be considered when
16 conducting an assessment of the financial resources available
17 to each student.
18 (c) Priority in the distribution of grant moneys shall
19 be given to students with the lowest total family resources,
20 in accordance with a nationally recognized system of need
21 analysis. Using the system of need analysis, the department
22 shall establish a maximum expected family contribution. An
23 institution may not make a grant from this program to a
24 student whose expected family contribution exceeds the level
25 established by the department. An institution may not impose
26 additional criteria to determine a student's eligibility to
27 receive a grant award.
28 (d) Each participating institution shall report, to
29 the department by the established date, the eligible students
30 to whom grant moneys are disbursed each academic term. Each
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1 institution shall also report to the department necessary
2 demographic and eligibility data for such students.
3 (3) Based on the unmet financial need of an eligible
4 applicant, the amount of a Florida public student assistance
5 grant must be between $100 $200 and the weighted average of
6 the cost of tuition and other registration fees for 40 30
7 credit hours at state universities per academic year or the
8 amount specified in the General Appropriations Act.
9 Section 2. Section 1009.892, Florida Statutes, is
10 created to read:
11 1009.892 Innovation Florida Scholarships for
12 Developing High-Tech Jobs Program.--
13 (1) This section may be cited as the "Innovation
14 Florida Scholarships for Developing High-Tech Jobs Act."
15 (2) The Innovation Florida Scholarships for Developing
16 High-Tech Jobs Program is created to provide need-based
17 financial assistance to any Florida high school graduate who
18 merits recognition of high academic achievement and who
19 enrolls in a certified degree program at an eligible Florida
20 postsecondary educational institution within 3 years after
21 graduation from high school.
22 (3) As used in this section, the term:
23 (a) "Certified degree program" means a degree program
24 that:
25 1. Is certified by the Department of Education.
26 2. Addresses the need for support of degree programs
27 in targeted employment areas.
28 3. Includes an internship component as described in
29 this section.
30 (b) "Targeted employment" means employment in any of
31 the following business areas:
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1 1. Advanced manufacturing, including the following:
2 a. Automotive and electronics.
3 b. Aerospace technology.
4 c. Robotics.
5 d. Engineering design technology.
6 2. Life sciences, including the following:
7 a. Orthopedics or medical devices.
8 b. Biomedical research or development.
9 c. Pharmaceutical manufacturing.
10 d. Agribusiness.
11 e. Nanotechnology or molecular manufacturing.
12 3. Information technology, including the following:
13 a. Informatics.
14 b. Certified network administration.
15 c. Software development.
16 d. Fiber optics.
17 4. High-technology logistics, including the following:
18 a. High-technology distribution.
19 b. Efficient and effective flow and storage of goods,
20 services, or information.
21 c. Intermodal ports.
22 (4) The Department of Education shall administer the
23 Innovation Florida Scholarships for Developing High-Tech Jobs
24 Program according to rules and procedures established by the
25 State Board of Education. The department must advertise the
26 availability of the scholarship program and must notify
27 students, teachers, parents, guidance counselors, and
28 principals or other relevant school administrators of the
29 criteria and application procedures. The department must begin
30 this process of notification no later than January 1 of each
31 year.
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1 (5) Funds for the Innovation Florida Scholarships for
2 Developing High-Tech Jobs Program shall be contingent upon
3 appropriations in the General Appropriations Act.
4 (a) If funds appropriated are not adequate to provide
5 the maximum allowable award to each eligible applicant, awards
6 must be prorated to each eligible applicant using the same
7 percentage reduction.
8 (b) Notwithstanding s. 216.301, if all funds allocated
9 to the Innovative Florida Scholarships for Developing
10 High-Tech Jobs Program are not used in any fiscal year, up to
11 20 percent of the total allocation may be carried forward and
12 used for awards in the following year.
13 (6) The department shall issue awards from the
14 scholarship program annually. Annual awards may be for up to
15 45 semester credit hours or the equivalent for the amount of
16 demonstrated unmet need for the cost of education, not to
17 exceed an amount equal to the average prior academic year cost
18 of tuition, fees, and assigned books and supplies at state
19 universities or such other amount as specified in the General
20 Appropriations Act. A demonstrated unmet need of less than
21 $100 shall render the applicant ineligible for a scholarship.
22 Before the registration period each semester, the department
23 shall transmit payment for each award to the president or
24 director of the postsecondary educational institution, or his
25 or her representative, except that the department may withhold
26 payment if the receiving institution fails to report or to
27 make refunds to the department as required in this section.
28 (a) Within 30 days after the end of regular
29 registration each semester, the educational institution shall
30 certify to the department the eligibility status of each
31 student who receives an award. After the end of the drop and
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1 add period, an institution is not required to reevaluate or
2 revise a student's eligibility status, but must make a refund
3 to the department if a student who receives an award
4 disbursement terminates enrollment for any reason during an
5 academic term and a refund is permitted by the institution's
6 refund policy.
7 (b) An institution that receives funds from the
8 program shall certify to the department the amount of funds
9 disbursed to each student and shall remit to the department
10 any undisbursed advances within 60 days after the end of
11 regular registration.
12 (c) Each institution that receives moneys through this
13 program shall prepare an annual report that includes an annual
14 financial audit conducted by an independent certified public
15 accountant or the Auditor General. The report shall include an
16 audit of the institution's administration of the program and a
17 complete accounting of the moneys for the program. This report
18 must be submitted to the department annually by March 1. The
19 department may conduct its own annual audit of an
20 institution's administration of the program. The department
21 may request a refund of any moneys overpaid to the institution
22 for the program. The department may suspend or revoke an
23 institution's eligibility to receive future moneys for the
24 program if the department finds that an institution has not
25 complied with this section. The institution must remit within
26 60 days any refund requested in accordance with this
27 subsection.
28 (7)(a) A student enrolled in 6 to 8 semester credit
29 hours may receive up to one-half of the maximum award; a
30 student enrolled in 9 to 11 credit hours may receive up to
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1 three-fourths of the maximum award; and a student enrolled in
2 12 or more credit hours may receive up to the full award.
3 (b) If a recipient transfers from one eligible
4 institution to another and continues to meet eligibility
5 requirements, the award must be transferred with the student.
6 (c) A student may use an award for summer term
7 enrollment if funds are available.
8 (d) Funds from a scholarship may not be used to pay
9 for remedial or college-preparatory coursework.
10 (8) To be eligible for an initial award, a student
11 must:
12 (a) Be a Florida resident as defined in s. 1009.40 and
13 rules of the State Board of Education.
14 (b) Earn a standard Florida high school diploma or its
15 equivalent as described in s. 1003.43 or s. 1003.45 unless:
16 1. The student is enrolled full-time in the early
17 admission program of an eligible postsecondary educational
18 institution or completes a home education program according to
19 s. 1002.41; or
20 2. The student earns a high school diploma from a
21 non-Florida school while living with a parent who is on
22 military or public service assignment away from Florida.
23 (c) Have achieved a cumulative grade point average of
24 at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale or its equivalent in high school
25 courses designated by the Department of Education, unless the
26 student has attended a home education program according to s.
27 1002.41 during grades 11 and 12, in which case the student
28 must have attained at least the score identified by rules of
29 the Department of Education on the combined verbal and
30 quantitative parts of the Scholastic Aptitude Test, the
31 Scholastic Assessment Test, or the recentered Scholastic
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1 Assessment Test of the College Entrance Examination, or an
2 equivalent score on the ACT Assessment Program.
3 (d) Be accepted by and enroll in a Florida public or
4 independent postsecondary educational institution identified
5 by the Department of Education.
6 (e) Be enrolled for at least 6 semester credit hours
7 or the equivalent in quarter hours or clock hours.
8 (f) Have not been convicted of a felony offense,
9 unless the student's civil rights have been restored by the
10 Governor and Cabinet sitting as the Board of Executive
11 Clemency. This paragraph does not apply to an offense for
12 which adjudication of guilt is withheld.
13 (g) Apply for a scholarship from the program by high
14 school graduation.
15 (9) A student is eligible to accept an initial award
16 for 3 years following high school graduation and to accept a
17 renewal award for 7 years following high school graduation. A
18 student who applies for an award by high school graduation and
19 who meets all other eligibility requirements, but who does not
20 accept his or her award, may reapply during subsequent
21 application periods up to 3 years after high school
22 graduation.
23 (10) Eligibility for renewal awards shall be based on
24 continued academic achievement of a cumulative grade point
25 average of at least 2.75 on a 4.0 scale or its equivalent by
26 the student at the eligible institution, continued eligibility
27 for financial assistance pursuant to this section, and
28 participation of the student for at least one summer during
29 the course of the student's postsecondary education in an
30 internship program that is relevant to at least one of the
31 targeted employment areas as defined in this section. A
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1 student must work a minimum of 160 hours during the summer
2 internship.
3 (11) A postsecondary educational institution with a
4 certified degree program may provide a grant to an employer in
5 targeted employment that hires a student in the certified
6 degree program as part of a summer internship program approved
7 by the institution for wages paid to the student, not to
8 exceed $500 per student per summer. An employer that receives
9 a grant under this subsection must pay each student in the
10 internship program wages at a rate that is at least 120
11 percent of the federal minimum wage.
12 (12) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules
13 under ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to administer this section.
14 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2003.
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