Florida Senate - 2014                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. PCS (264136) for SB 1148
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì894688kÎ894688                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  03/28/2014           .                                
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       following:
       
    1         Senate Substitute for Amendment (411884) (with title
    2  amendment)
    3  
    4         Between lines 524 and 525
    5  insert:
    6         Section 9. Subsection (1) and paragraph (a) of subsection
    7  (2) of section 1009.55, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
    8         1009.55 Rosewood Family Scholarship Program.—
    9         (1) There is created a Rosewood Family Scholarship Program
   10  for the direct descendants of the Rosewood families, not to
   11  exceed 50 25 scholarships per year.
   12         (2) The Rosewood Family Scholarship Program shall be
   13  administered by the Department of Education. The State Board of
   14  Education shall adopt rules for administering this program which
   15  shall at a minimum provide for the following:
   16         (a) The annual award to a student shall be up to $6,100
   17  $4,000 but should not exceed an amount in excess of tuition and
   18  registration fees.
   19         Section 10. Section 1009.893, Florida Statutes, is created
   20  to read:
   21         1009.893 Florida National Merit Scholar Incentive Program.—
   22         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   23         (a) “Department” means the Department of Education.
   24         (b) “Incentive program” means the Florida National Merit
   25  Scholar Incentive Program.
   26         (2) The Florida National Merit Scholar Incentive Program is
   27  created to reward any Florida high school graduate who receives
   28  recognition as a National Merit Scholar or National Achievement
   29  Scholar and who initially enrolls in the 2014-2015 academic
   30  year, or later, in a degree program, certificate program, or
   31  applied technology program at an eligible Florida public or
   32  independent postsecondary educational institution.
   33         (3) The department shall administer the incentive program
   34  according to rules and procedures established by the State Board
   35  of Education. The department shall advertise the availability of
   36  the incentive program and notify students, teachers, parents,
   37  certified school counselors, and principals or other relevant
   38  school administrators of the criteria and application
   39  procedures.
   40         (4) In order to be eligible for an award under the
   41  incentive program, a student must:
   42         (a) Be a state resident as defined in s. 1009.40 and rules
   43  of the State Board of Education.
   44         (b)Earn a standard Florida high school diploma or its
   45  equivalent pursuant to s. 1003.428, s. 1003.4281, s. 1003.4282,
   46  or s. 1003.435 unless:
   47         1.The student completes a home education program according
   48  to s. 1002.41; or
   49         2.The student earns a high school diploma from a non
   50  Florida school while living with a parent or guardian who is on
   51  military or public service assignment away from this state.
   52         (c)Be accepted by and enroll in a Florida public or
   53  independent postsecondary educational institution that meets the
   54  eligibility requirements specified in s. 1009.533.
   55         (d)Be enrolled for at least 6 semester credit hours or the
   56  equivalent in quarter hours or clock hours.
   57         (5)(a) An eligible student who is a National Merit Scholar
   58  or National Achievement Scholar and who attends a public
   59  postsecondary educational institution must receive an incentive
   60  award equal to the institutional cost of attendance minus the
   61  sum of the student’s Florida Bright Futures Scholarship and
   62  National Merit Scholarship or National Achievement Scholarship.
   63         (b) An eligible student who is a National Merit Scholar or
   64  National Achievement Scholar and who attends an independent
   65  postsecondary educational institution must receive an incentive
   66  award equal to the highest cost of attendance at a Florida
   67  public university, as reported by the Board of Governors of the
   68  State University System, minus the sum of the student’s Florida
   69  Bright Futures Scholarship and National Merit Scholarship or
   70  National Achievement Scholarship.
   71         (6)(a) To be eligible for a renewal award, a student must
   72  meet the renewal requirements for the Florida Bright Futures
   73  Scholarship Program set forth in s. 1009.532(1)(a) and for the
   74  Florida Academic Scholars award set forth in s. 1009.534(3).
   75         (b) A student may receive the incentive award for a maximum
   76  of 100 percent of the number of credit hours required to
   77  complete an associate degree program or a baccalaureate degree
   78  program or receive an award for a maximum of 100 percent of the
   79  credit hours or clock hours required to complete up to 90 credit
   80  hours of a program that terminates in a career certificate.
   81         (7) The department shall annually issue awards from the
   82  incentive program. Before the registration period each semester,
   83  the department shall transmit payment for each award to the
   84  president or director of the postsecondary educational
   85  institution, or his or her representative, except that the
   86  department may withhold payment if the receiving institution
   87  fails to report or to make refunds to the department as required
   88  in this section.
   89         (a) Each institution shall certify to the department the
   90  eligibility status of each student to receive a disbursement
   91  within 30 days before the end of its regular registration
   92  period, inclusive of a drop and add period. An institution is
   93  not required to reevaluate the student eligibility after the end
   94  of the drop and add period.
   95         (b) An institution that receives funds from the incentive
   96  program must certify to the department the amount of funds
   97  disbursed to each student and remit to the department any
   98  undisbursed advances within 60 days after the end of regular
   99  registration.
  100         (c) If funds appropriated are not adequate to provide the
  101  maximum allowable award to each eligible student, awards must be
  102  prorated using the same percentage reduction.
  103         (8) Funds from any award within the incentive program may
  104  not be used to pay for remedial coursework or developmental
  105  education.
  106         (9) A student may use an award for a summer term if funds
  107  are available and appropriated by the Legislature.
  108         (10) Funds appropriated by the Legislature for the
  109  incentive program awards may be deposited into the State Student
  110  Financial Assistance Trust Fund. Notwithstanding s. 216.301 and
  111  pursuant to s. 216.351, any balance in the trust fund at the end
  112  of any fiscal year which has been allocated to the incentive
  113  program must remain in the incentive program and shall be
  114  available for carrying out the purposes of this section. The
  115  department shall allocate funds to the appropriate institutions
  116  and collect and maintain data regarding the incentive program
  117  within the student financial assistance database as specified in
  118  s. 1009.94.
  119         (11) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules
  120  necessary to administer this section.
  121         (12) Subsection (4) of s. 1009.40 does not apply to awards
  122  issued under this section.
  123  
  124  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  125  And the title is amended as follows:
  126         Delete line 72
  127  and insert:
  128         at state universities; amending s. 1009.55, F.S.;
  129         increasing the annual maximum number of scholarships
  130         that may be awarded in the Rosewood Family Scholarship
  131         Program; increasing the annual maximum award amount
  132         per student; creating s. 1009.893, F.S.; creating the
  133         Florida National Merit Scholar Incentive Program;
  134         defining terms; providing the purpose of the incentive
  135         program; requiring the Department of Education to
  136         administer the incentive program, advertise the
  137         availability of the incentive program, and notify
  138         students, teachers, parents, and school administrators
  139         about the incentive program’s criteria and application
  140         procedures; providing eligibility requirements for the
  141         incentive program; requiring certain students who are
  142         National Merit Scholars or National Achievement
  143         Scholars to receive certain incentive awards;
  144         providing eligibility requirements to renew an award;
  145         authorizing a student to receive an incentive award
  146         for certain maximum percentage amounts of the number
  147         of credit hours required to complete an associate
  148         degree, a baccalaureate degree, or a career
  149         certificate; requiring the department to issue awards
  150         from the incentive program and to transmit payment for
  151         each award; authorizing the department to withhold
  152         payment under certain circumstances; requiring
  153         institutions to certify to the department the
  154         eligibility status of each student to receive a
  155         disbursement of an award during a specified time;
  156         requiring the institution to certify to the department
  157         the disbursement amounts to each student and remit to
  158         the department undisbursed funds; providing for
  159         proration of funds; prohibiting use of funds for
  160         remedial coursework or developmental education;
  161         authorizing a student to use funds during the summer
  162         term under certain circumstances; authorizing
  163         incentive program funds appropriated by the
  164         Legislature to be deposited in the State Student
  165         Financial Assistance Trust Fund; providing for use of
  166         any remaining balance of appropriated funds in the
  167         trust fund; requiring the department to allocate funds
  168         to appropriate institutions and collect and maintain
  169         certain data regarding the incentive program;
  170         requiring the State Board of Education to adopt rules;
  171         providing for retroactive