Bill Text: IA HF613 | 2013-2014 | 85th General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to the war orphans educational assistance fund by transferring the moneys in the fund to the veterans trust fund and transferring duties for providing educational assistance to orphaned children of veterans to the commission on veterans affairs. (Formerly HSB 93) (Formerly HF 280) Effective 7-1-13.

Sponsorship: Committee Bill

Status: (Passed) 2013-12-31 - END OF 2013 ACTIONS [HF613 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2013-HF613-Introduced.html
House File 613 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 613 BY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS (SUCCESSOR TO HF 280) (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 93) A BILL FOR An Act relating to the war orphans educational assistance fund 1 by transferring the moneys in the fund to the veterans trust 2 fund and transferring duties for providing educational 3 assistance to orphaned children of veterans to the 4 commission on veterans affairs. 5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 6 TLSB 1466HZ (3) 85 aw/sc
H.F. 613 Section 1. Section 35A.13, subsection 4, Code 2013, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 4. a. The minimum balance of the trust fund required prior 3 to expenditure of moneys from the trust fund is five million 4 dollars. Once the minimum balance is reached, the interest 5 and earnings on the fund and the first three hundred thousand 6 dollars transferred each fiscal year pursuant to section 99G.9A 7 from the lottery fund to the trust fund are appropriated to the 8 commission to be used to achieve the purposes of subsection 6 9 of this section . Moneys appropriated to the commission that 10 remain unobligated or unexpended at the end of each fiscal year 11 shall revert to the trust fund. It is the intent of the general 12 assembly that the balance in the trust fund reach fifty million 13 dollars. 14 b. Notwithstanding paragraph “a” , moneys credited to the 15 war orphans educational assistance account shall be expended 16 as provided in subsection 6A. 17 Sec. 2. Section 35A.13, Code 2013, is amended by adding the 18 following new subsection: 19 NEW SUBSECTION . 6A. a. A war orphans educational 20 assistance account shall be created as a separate account in 21 the veterans trust fund and moneys in the account shall not 22 be commingled with any other moneys within the fund. Moneys 23 credited to the war orphans educational assistance account 24 shall only be expended for the purposes of assisting in the 25 education of orphaned children of veterans as provided in this 26 subsection. Interest or earnings on moneys deposited in the 27 account shall be credited to the account. 28 b. (1) The commission may provide educational assistance 29 funds to any child who has lived in the state of Iowa 30 for two years preceding application for state educational 31 assistance, and who is the child of a person who died prior 32 to September 11, 2001, during active federal military service 33 while serving in the armed forces or during active federal 34 military service in the Iowa national guard or other military 35 -1- LSB 1466HZ (3) 85 aw/sc 1/ 5
H.F. 613 component of the United States, to defray the expenses of 1 tuition, matriculation, laboratory and similar fees, books and 2 supplies, board, lodging, and any other reasonably necessary 3 expense for the child or children incident to attendance in 4 this state at an educational or training institution of college 5 grade, or in a business or vocational training school with 6 standards approved by the department. The commission shall not 7 expend more than six hundred dollars per year for educational 8 assistance for any one child under this paragraph. 9 (2) A child eligible to receive funds under this subsection 10 shall not receive more than three thousand dollars under this 11 paragraph “b” during the child’s lifetime. 12 c. (1) Upon application by a child who is less than 13 thirty-one years of age, and who is the child of a person who 14 died on or after September 11, 2001, during active federal 15 military service while serving in the armed forces or during 16 active federal military service in the Iowa national guard 17 or other military component of the United States, and who 18 at the time of entering into active military service had 19 maintained the person’s residence in the state for a period 20 of at least six months immediately before entering into 21 active military service, the commission shall provide state 22 educational assistance in an amount of no more than the highest 23 resident undergraduate tuition rate established per year for 24 an institution of higher learning under the control of the 25 state board of regents less the amount of any state and federal 26 education benefits, grants, or scholarships received by the 27 child, or the amount of the child’s established financial need, 28 whichever is less, to defray the expenses of tuition at any 29 postsecondary educational institution in this state. 30 (2) A child eligible to receive state educational 31 assistance under this paragraph “c” shall begin postsecondary 32 education prior to reaching age twenty-six, shall not receive 33 more than an amount equal to five times the highest resident 34 undergraduate tuition rate established per year for an 35 -2- LSB 1466HZ (3) 85 aw/sc 2/ 5
H.F. 613 institution of higher learning under the control of the state 1 board of regents during the child’s lifetime, and shall, to 2 remain eligible for assistance, meet the academic progress 3 standards of the postsecondary educational institution. 4 Payments for state educational assistance for a child under 5 this paragraph “c” shall be made to the applicable postsecondary 6 educational institution. The college student aid commission 7 may, if requested, assist the commission in administering this 8 paragraph “c” . 9 d. Eligibility for assistance pursuant to this subsection 10 shall be determined upon application to the commission, whose 11 decision is final. The eligibility of applicants shall be 12 certified by the commission to the director of the department 13 of administrative services in a timely manner, and all amounts 14 that are or become due an individual or a training institution 15 under this subsection shall be paid to the individual or 16 institution by the director of the department of administrative 17 services upon receipt by the director of certification 18 by the president or governing board of the educational or 19 training institution as to accuracy of charges made, and 20 as to the attendance of the individual at the educational 21 or training institution. The commission may pay over the 22 annual sum set forth in this subsection to the educational or 23 training institution in a lump sum, or in installments as the 24 circumstances warrant, upon receiving from the institution such 25 written undertaking as the department may require to assure the 26 use of funds for the child for the authorized purposes and for 27 no other purpose. A person is not eligible for the benefits 28 of this subsection until the person has graduated from a high 29 school or educational institution offering a course of training 30 equivalent to high school training. 31 e. Any expense incurred in carrying out the provisions of 32 this subsection shall be chargeable to the trust fund. 33 Sec. 3. Section 35A.13, Code 2013, is amended by adding the 34 following new subsection: 35 -3- LSB 1466HZ (3) 85 aw/sc 3/ 5
H.F. 613 NEW SUBSECTION . 10. It is the intent of the general 1 assembly that beginning with the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2 2013, appropriations be made as necessary to the war orphans 3 educational assistance account of the veterans trust fund to 4 pay all claims made pursuant to subsection 6A. Prior to any 5 additional appropriations to this account, the department shall 6 provide the general assembly with information identifying 7 immediate and long-term war orphans educational needs 8 throughout the state and a plan for meeting those needs. 9 Sec. 4. REPEAL. Sections 35A.19, 35A.20, 35A.21, and 10 35A.22, Code 2013, are repealed. 11 Sec. 5. TRANSFER OF FUNDS. All unencumbered and unobligated 12 moneys remaining in the war orphans educational assistance 13 fund on July 1, 2013, shall be transferred to the war orphans 14 educational assistance account of the veterans trust fund 15 created in section 35A.13. 16 Sec. 6. ADMINISTRATIVE RULES —— TRANSITION PROVISIONS. 17 1. Any rule, regulation, form, order, or directive 18 promulgated by the department of veterans affairs as required 19 to administer and enforce the provisions for the operation 20 of the war orphans educational assistance fund, created in 21 section 35A.19, shall continue in full force and effect until 22 amended, repealed, or supplemented by affirmative action of the 23 commission of veterans affairs. 24 2. Any award issued by the department of veterans affairs, 25 under section 35A.21, and in effect on the effective date 26 of this Act, shall continue in full force and effect until 27 expiration or renewal. 28 EXPLANATION 29 This bill eliminates the war orphans educational assistance 30 fund under the control of the department of veterans affairs. 31 The bill transfers all unencumbered and unobligated moneys 32 in the war orphans educational assistance fund to a separate 33 account of the veterans trust fund under the control of the 34 commission of veterans affairs. Interest or earnings on moneys 35 -4- LSB 1466HZ (3) 85 aw/sc 4/ 5
H.F. 613 deposited in the war orphans educational assistance account 1 shall be credited to the account. The bill also transfers 2 to the commission of veterans affairs current Code duties 3 regarding educational assistance to orphaned children of 4 veterans. The bill further provides that it is the intent of 5 the general assembly that appropriations be made as necessary 6 to the war orphans educational assistance account to pay all 7 claims beginning with FY 2013-2014. 8 -5- LSB 1466HZ (3) 85 aw/sc 5/ 5
feedback