CS for SB 1728 First Engrossed
20211728e1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to an out-of-state fee waiver for
3 nonresident students; amending s. 1009.26, F.S.;
4 requiring a state university to waive the out-of-state
5 fee for a nonresident student who meets certain
6 requirements; providing applicability; requiring each
7 state university to report specified information
8 regarding such out-of-state fee waivers to the Board
9 of Governors annually; requiring that a student who is
10 granted such out-of-state fee waiver be excluded from
11 the limitation on the systemwide total enrollment of
12 nonresident students; requiring the Board of Governors
13 to adopt regulations; creating s. 1009.261, F.S.;
14 enacting the Grandchild Out-of-State Fees Waiver
15 Compact; providing the purposes of the compact;
16 defining terms; requiring postsecondary educational
17 institutions located within member states to waive
18 out-of-state fees for students who meet specified
19 criteria; providing that the waiver is applicable for
20 up to a specified amount of credits; requiring member
21 state postsecondary educational institutions to
22 require a student, or the student’s parent if the
23 student is a dependent child, to provide a written
24 declaration verifying eligibility; requiring the
25 eligible grandparent to provide proof of residency and
26 honorable discharge; requiring the executive,
27 legislative, and judicial branches of member state
28 governments to enforce the compact; providing that the
29 provisions of the compact have standing as statutory
30 law; providing for the implementation, withdrawal, and
31 amendment of the compact; providing construction;
32 providing an effective date.
33
34 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
35
36 Section 1. Subsection (18) is added to section 1009.26,
37 Florida Statutes, to read:
38 1009.26 Fee waivers.—
39 (18)(a) A state university shall waive the out-of-state fee
40 for a nonresident student from a state in compliance with s.
41 1009.261 and who:
42 1. Is a United States citizen.
43 2. Has a grandparent who is a legal resident as defined in
44 s. 1009.21(1)(d); has been residing in Florida for at least five
45 years; and is an honorably discharged veteran of the United
46 States Armed Forces, the United States Reserve Forces, or the
47 National Guard.
48 3. Earns a high school diploma comparable to a standard
49 Florida high school diploma, or its equivalent, or completes a
50 home education program.
51 4.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 in sub-subparagraph a., using the latest
60 published scoring comparison developed by Classic Learning
61 Initiatives.
62 5. Enrolls as a full-time undergraduate student at a state
63 university in the fall academic term immediately following high
64 school graduation.
65 (b) The waiver under this subsection is applicable for up
66 to 110 percent of the number of required credit hours of the
67 degree program for which the student is enrolled.
68 (c) Prior to waiving the out-of-state fee, the state
69 university shall require:
70 1. The student, or the student’s parent if the student is a
71 dependent child, to provide a written declaration pursuant to s.
72 92.525(2) verifying the student’s familial relationship to a
73 grandparent who is a legal resident; and
74 2. The eligible grandparent to provide proof of Florida
75 residency and proof of honorable discharge.
76 (d) Each state university shall report to the Board of
77 Governors the number and value of all fee waivers granted
78 annually under this subsection.
79 (e) A nonresident student granted an out-of-state fee
80 waiver under this subsection shall be excluded from the
81 limitation on systemwide total enrollment of nonresident
82 students established by regulation of the Board of Governors.
83 (f) The Board of Governors shall adopt regulations to
84 administer this subsection.
85 Section 2. Section 1009.261, Florida Statutes, is created
86 to read:
87 1009.261 Grandchild Out-of-State Fees Waiver Compact.—The
88 Grandchild Out-of-State Fees Waiver Compact is enacted into law
89 and entered into by this state with all other jurisdictions
90 legally joining therein in the form substantially as follows:
91
92 GRANDCHILD OUT-OF-STATE
93 FEES WAIVER COMPACT
94
95 ARTICLE I
96 DECLARATION OF PURPOSE
97
98 The general purposes of this compact are to:
99 (1) Increase access to postsecondary education to students
100 whose families are split between two or more states by reducing
101 costs associated with out-of-state fees.
102 (2) Encourage students to exercise their rights to travel
103 and to choose the postsecondary education that best suits their
104 needs.
105 (3) Increase postsecondary educational choices.
106 (4) Decrease the economic burden posed by postsecondary
107 out-of-state fees.
108
109 ARTICLE II
110 DEFINITIONS
111
112 As used in this compact, the term:
113 (1) “Grandparent” means a person who has a legal
114 relationship to a student’s parent as the natural or adopted
115 parent or legal guardian of the student’s parent.
116 (2) “Member state” means a state that has enacted this
117 compact.
118 (3) “Out-of-state fees” means any additional fee for
119 instruction, which is charged to a student who does not qualify
120 for the in-state tuition rate pursuant to the laws of a member
121 state, imposed by a public postsecondary educational institution
122 located within the member state. A charge for any other purpose
123 may not be included within this fee.
124 (4) “Postsecondary educational institution” means a public
125 university or college located within a member state.
126 (5) “State” includes the District of Columbia and any
127 state, territory, or possession of the United States which
128 oversees one or more public postsecondary educational
129 institutions.
130 (6) “Student’s parent” means a person who has a legal
131 relationship to a student as the natural or adopted parent or
132 legal guardian of the student.
133
134 ARTICLE III
135 OUT-OF-STATE FEES WAIVER
136
137 (1) Postsecondary educational institutions located within
138 each member state shall waive out-of-state fees for a
139 nonresident student who:
140 (a) Is a United States citizen.
141 (b) Has a grandparent who is a legal resident under the
142 applicable laws of the member state; has been residing in that
143 state for at least five years; and is an honorably discharged
144 veteran of the United States Armed Forces, the United States
145 Reserve Forces, or the National Guard.
146 (c)1. Achieves an SAT combined score no lower than the 89th
147 national percentile on the SAT;
148 2. Achieves an ACT score concordant to the SAT score
149 required in subparagraph 1., as designated in the latest
150 published national concordance table developed jointly by the
151 College Board and ACT, Inc.; or
152 3. Achieves a Classic Learning Test (CLT) score concordant
153 to the required SAT score in subparagraph 1., as designated in
154 the latest published scoring comparison developed by Classic
155 Learning Initiatives, but only if the member state postsecondary
156 educational institution accepts the CLT for admission purposes.
157 (d) Enrolls as a full-time undergraduate student at a
158 member state postsecondary educational institution in the fall
159 academic term immediately following high school graduation.
160 (2) The waiver under this compact is applicable for up to
161 110 percent of the number of required credit hours of the degree
162 program in which the student is enrolled.
163 (3) Prior to waiving any out-of-state fees, a member state
164 postsecondary educational institution shall require:
165 (a) The student, or the student’s parent if the student is
166 a dependent child, to provide a written declaration verifying
167 the student’s familial relationship to a grandparent who is a
168 legal resident of the member state; and
169 (b) The eligible grandparent to provide proof of residency
170 and proof of honorable discharge.
171
172 ARTICLE IV
173 OVERSIGHT
174
175 The executive, legislative, and judicial branches of state
176 government in each member state shall enforce this compact and
177 take all actions necessary and appropriate to effectuate the
178 compact’s purposes and intent. The provisions of this compact
179 have standing as statutory law.
180
181 ARTICLE V
182 DATE OF IMPLEMENTATION, WITHDRAWAL, AND AMENDMENT
183
184 (1) The compact shall take effect on the date on which it
185 is enacted into law by two states. Thereafter it is effective as
186 to any state upon its enactment by that state.
187 (2) A member state may withdraw from this compact by
188 repealing the statute in which it is enacted. A member state’s
189 withdrawal may not take effect until 6 months after enactment of
190 the repeal.
191 (3) This compact may not be construed to invalidate or
192 prohibit any law of a member state that does not conflict with
193 the provisions of this compact.
194 (4) This compact may be amended by the member states. An
195 amendment to this compact is effective and binding after it is
196 enacted into the laws of all member states.
197
198 ARTICLE VI
199 CONSTRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY
200
201 This compact shall be liberally construed so as to
202 effectuate its purposes. The provisions of this compact are
203 severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence, or provision
204 thereof is declared to be contrary to the constitution of any
205 state or to the Constitution of the United States, or the
206 application thereof to any government, agency, person, or
207 circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of
208 this compact and the applicability thereof to any government,
209 agency, person, or circumstance is not affected thereby. If this
210 compact is held to be contrary to the constitution of any state
211 participating therein, it remains in full force and effect as to
212 the state affected as to all severable provisions.
213 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.