Bill Text: MO HB1473 | 2010 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Revises the grade required for renewing an Access Missouri Scholarship, combines the award categories, revises the award amounts, and specifies that the program will not be terminated
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2010-05-14 - Placed on Informal Calendar [HB1473 Detail]
Download: Missouri-2010-HB1473-Introduced.html
SECOND REGULAR SESSION
95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE THOMSON.
3339L.01I D. ADAM CRUMBLISS, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
To repeal section 173.1104, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof one new section relating to the Access Missouri Scholarship, with an emergency clause.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 173.1104, RSMo, is repealed and one new section enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as section 173.1104, to read as follows:
173.1104. 1. An applicant shall be eligible for initial or renewed financial assistance only if, at the time of application and throughout the period during which the applicant is receiving such assistance, the applicant:
(1) Is a citizen or a permanent resident of the United States;
(2) Is a resident of the state of Missouri, as determined by reference to standards promulgated by the coordinating board;
(3) Is enrolled, or has been accepted for enrollment, as a full-time undergraduate student in an approved private or public institution; and
(4) Is not enrolled or does not intend to use the award to enroll in a course of study leading to a degree in theology or divinity.
2. If an applicant is found guilty of or pleads guilty to any criminal offense during the period of time in which the applicant is receiving financial assistance, such applicant shall not be eligible for renewal of such assistance, provided such offense would disqualify the applicant from receiving federal student aid under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.
3. Financial assistance shall be allotted for one academic year, but a recipient shall be eligible for renewed assistance until he or she has obtained a baccalaureate degree, provided such financial assistance shall not exceed a total of ten semesters or fifteen quarters or their equivalent. Standards of eligibility for renewed assistance shall be the same as for an initial award of financial assistance, except that for renewal[ , an applicant shall demonstrate a grade-point average of two and five-tenths on a four-point scale, or the equivalent on another scale] for the program established under sections 173.1101 to 173.1107, beginning with the 2010-2011 academic year an applicant with less than sixty semester hours shall maintain satisfactory academic progress as defined by the institution of attendance but no less than two on a four-point scale; and an applicant with sixty or more semester hours shall demonstrate a grade-point average of at least two and five-tenths on a four-point scale, or the equivalent on another scale.
4. This subsection shall be construed as the successor to section 173.215 for purposes of eligibility requirements of other financial assistance programs that refer to section 173.215. Standards of eligibility for renewed assistance for programs other than that established under sections 173.1101 to 173.1107 shall be the same as for an initial award of financial assistance, except that for renewal an applicant shall demonstrate a grade-point average of at least two and five-tenths on a four-point scale, or the equivalent on another scale.
Section B. Because immediate action is necessary to synchronize the requirements of section A of this act with the school calendar and state fiscal year, section A of this act is deemed necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health, welfare, peace, and safety, and is hereby declared to be an emergency act within the meaning of the constitution, and section A of this act shall be in full force and effect upon its passage and approval.
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