Florida Senate - 2021 SENATOR AMENDMENT
Bill No. CS/HB 1261, 2nd Eng.
Ì214326ÊÎ214326
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
.
.
.
Floor: 1/AD/2R . Floor: C
04/26/2021 04:47 PM . 04/28/2021 07:09 PM
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Senator Gruters moved the following:
1 Senate Amendment (with directory and title amendments)
2
3 Between lines 253 and 254
4 insert:
5 (19) The State University Free Seat Program is created to
6 encourage veterans, active duty members of the United States
7 Armed Forces, active drilling members of the Florida National
8 Guard, and nontraditional students to enroll in an online
9 baccalaureate degree program at a state university. Fee waivers
10 granted pursuant to this subsection may not exceed 1,000
11 students systemwide each academic year.
12 (a) A state university shall waive the tuition and fees for
13 one online course for a student who is a resident for tuition
14 purposes under s. 1009.21, has not previously earned a
15 bachelor’s degree, and is enrolled in an online baccalaureate
16 degree program, provided the student meets one of the following
17 eligibility requirements:
18 1. Is a veteran as defined in s. 1.01(14);
19 2. Is an active duty member of the United States Armed
20 Forces;
21 3. Is an active drilling member of the Florida National
22 Guard; or
23 4. Has not been enrolled in a postsecondary institution for
24 more than 5 years.
25 (b) For all other courses in the program, a state
26 university may not charge a student described in paragraph (a)
27 more than 75 percent of the tuition rate as specified in s.
28 1009.24(4) and 75 percent of the tuition differential pursuant
29 to s. 1009.24(16), if the student remains enrolled at least
30 part-time in the program during each academic year.
31 (c) A student who qualifies for the tuition discount under
32 paragraph (b) is eligible to receive the discount for up to 110
33 percent of the number of required credit hours of the degree
34 program for which the student is enrolled.
35 (d) Each state university shall report annually to the
36 Board of Governors the number and value of all fee waivers
37 granted under this subsection during the previous 12-month
38 period.
39 (e) The Board of Governors shall adopt regulations to
40 administer this subsection.
41 (20)(a) Beginning with the 2022-2023 academic year, a state
42 university shall waive the out-of-state fee for a student who:
43 1. Has a grandparent who is a legal resident as defined in
44 s. 1009.21(1). For purposes of this subsection, the term
45 “grandparent” means a person who has a legal relationship to a
46 student’s parent as the natural or adoptive parent or legal
47 guardian of the student’s parent.
48 2. Earns a high school diploma comparable to a Florida
49 standard high school diploma, or its equivalent, or completes a
50 home education program.
51 3.a. Achieves an SAT combined score no lower than the 89th
52 national percentile on the SAT;
53 b. Achieves an ACT score concordant to the required SAT
54 score in sub-subparagraph a., using the latest published
55 national concordance table developed jointly by the College
56 Board and ACT, Inc.; or
57 c. If a state university accepts the Classic Learning Test
58 (CLT) for admission purposes, achieves a CLT score concordant to
59 the required SAT score specified in sub-subparagraph a., using
60 the latest published scoring comparison developed by Classic
61 Learning Initiatives.
62 4. Beginning with students who initially enroll in the 2022
63 fall academic term and thereafter, enrolls as a full-time
64 undergraduate student at a state university in the fall academic
65 term immediately following high school graduation.
66 (b) The waiver under this subsection is applicable for up
67 to 110 percent of the number of required credit hours of the
68 degree program for which the student is enrolled.
69 (c) Before waiving the out-of-state fee, the state
70 university shall require the student or the student’s parent, if
71 the student is a dependent child, to provide a written
72 declaration pursuant to s. 92.525(2) attesting to the student’s
73 familial relationship to a grandparent who is a legal resident
74 and any other corroborating documentation required by regulation
75 of the Board of Governors. A state university is not required to
76 independently verify the statements contained in each
77 declaration if the signatory declares it to be true under the
78 penalties of perjury as required by s. 92.525(2). However, the
79 state university may refer any signed declaration suspected of
80 containing fraudulent representations to law enforcement.
81 (d) Each state university annually shall report to the
82 Board of Governors the number and value of all fee waivers
83 granted under this subsection during the previous 12-month
84 period.
85 (e) Beginning with students who initially enroll for the
86 2022-2023 academic year or thereafter, a state university shall,
87 within the nonresident student enrollment systemwide, prioritize
88 the enrollment of a student who is granted a fee waiver under
89 this subsection over an out-of-state student who is not eligible
90 for an out-of-state fee waiver if the students have
91 substantially similar academic and other credentials used in
92 determining admission to the state university.
93 (f) Fee waivers granted pursuant to this subsection may not
94 exceed 350 students systemwide each academic year.
95 (g) The Board of Governors shall adopt regulations to
96 administer this subsection.
97
98 ====== D I R E C T O R Y C L A U S E A M E N D M E N T ======
99 And the directory clause is amended as follows:
100 Delete line 216
101 and insert:
102 Section 4. Subsections (18), (19), and (20) are added to
103 section 1009.26,
104
105 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
106 And the title is amended as follows:
107 Delete line 42
108 and insert:
109 regulations; creating the State University Free Seat
110 Program; providing a purpose; providing a limitation
111 on fee waivers under the program; providing an
112 exemption from tuition and fees for one online course
113 at a state university for certain resident students;
114 prohibiting a state university from charging such
115 students more than a specified percentage of the
116 tuition rate and the tuition differential under
117 certain circumstances; providing a limitation on the
118 application of such tuition discount; requiring each
119 state university to annually report to the Board of
120 Governors certain information regarding waivers under
121 the program; requiring the board to adopt regulations;
122 requiring a state university to waive the out-of-state
123 fee for a nonresident student who meets certain
124 requirements; defining the term “grandparent”;
125 providing applicability; requiring a student or his or
126 her parent to provide specified documentation before a
127 state university waives the out-of-state fee;
128 providing that a state university is not required to
129 independently verify certain statements; authorizing
130 the state university to refer specified documentation
131 to law enforcement under certain circumstances;
132 requiring each state university to annually report to
133 the Board of Governors specified information regarding
134 such out-of-state fee waivers; requiring a state
135 university, within the nonresident student enrollment
136 systemwide, to prioritize the enrollment of a student
137 granted such fee waiver over a certain out-of-state
138 student under certain conditions; providing a
139 limitation on the number of fee waivers granted per
140 academic year; requiring the Board of Governors to
141 adopt regulations; amending s. 1009.40, F.S.;
142 conforming