Bill Text: IL HB4337 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. In provisions concerning the Illinois Veteran Grant Program, provides that a person is a qualified applicant if, among other qualifications, the person returned to this State within one year (instead of 6 months) after leaving federal active duty service or, if married to a person in continued military service stationed outside this State, returned to this State within one year (instead of 6 months) after his or her spouse left service or was stationed within this State.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-16 - Referred to Rules Committee [HB4337 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB4337-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB4337 Introduced , by Rep. Kevin Schmidt SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
110 ILCS 947/40
Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. In provisions concerning the Illinois Veteran Grant Program, provides that a person is a qualified applicant if, among other qualifications, the person returned to this State within one year (instead of 6 months) after leaving federal active duty service or, if married to a person in continued military service stationed outside this State, returned to this State within one year (instead of 6 months) after his or her spouse left service or was stationed within this State.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning education.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is
amended by changing Section 40 as follows:
(110 ILCS 947/40)
Sec. 40. Illinois Veteran grant program.
(a) As used in this Section:
"Qualified applicant" means a person who served in the
Armed Forces of the United States, a Reserve component of the
Armed Forces, or the Illinois National Guard, excluding
members of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps and those
whose only service has been attendance at a service academy,
and who meets all of the qualifications of either paragraphs
(1) through (4) or paragraphs (2), (3), and (5):
(1) At the time of entering federal active duty
service the person was one of the following:
(A) An Illinois resident.
(B) An Illinois resident within 6 months of
entering such service.
(C) Enrolled at a State-controlled university or
public community college in this State.
(2) The person meets one of the following

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requirements:
(A) He or she served at least one year of federal
active duty.
(B) He or she served less than one year of federal
active duty and received an honorable discharge for
medical reasons directly connected with such service.
(C) He or she served less than one year of federal
active duty and was discharged prior to August 11,
1967.
(D) He or she served less than one year of federal
active duty in a foreign country during a time of
hostilities in that foreign country.
(3) The person received an honorable discharge after
leaving federal active duty service.
(4) The person returned to this State within one year
6 months after leaving federal active duty service, or, if
married to a person in continued military service
stationed outside this State, returned to this State
within one year 6 months after his or her spouse left
service or was stationed within this State.
(5) The person does not meet the requirements of
paragraph (1), but (i) is a resident of Illinois at the
time of application to the Commission and (ii) at some
point after leaving federal active duty service, was a
resident of Illinois for at least 15 consecutive years.
"Time of hostilities" means any action by the Armed Forces

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of the United States that is recognized by the issuance of a
Presidential proclamation or a Presidential executive order
and in which the Armed Forces expeditionary medal or other
campaign service medals are awarded according to Presidential
executive order.
(b) A person who otherwise qualifies under subsection (a)
of this Section but has not left federal active duty service
and has served at least one year of federal active duty or has
served for less than one year of federal active duty in a
foreign country during a time of hostilities in that foreign
country and who can provide documentation demonstrating an
honorable service record is eligible to receive assistance
under this Section.
(c) A qualified applicant is not required to pay any
tuition or mandatory fees while attending a State-controlled
university or public community college in this State for a
period that is equivalent to 4 years of full-time enrollment,
including summer terms.
A qualified applicant who has previously received benefits
under this Section for a non-mandatory fee shall continue to
receive benefits covering such fees while he or she is
enrolled in a continuous program of study. The qualified
applicant shall no longer receive a grant covering
non-mandatory fees if he or she fails to enroll during an
academic term, unless he or she is serving federal active duty
service.

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(d) A qualified applicant who has been or is to be awarded
assistance under this Section shall receive that assistance if
the qualified applicant notifies his or her postsecondary
institution of that fact by the end of the school term for
which assistance is requested.
(e) Assistance under this Section is considered an
entitlement that the State-controlled college or public
community college in which the qualified applicant is enrolled
shall honor without any condition other than the qualified
applicant's maintenance of minimum grade levels and a
satisfactory student loan repayment record pursuant to
subsection (c) of Section 20 of this Act.
(f) The Commission shall administer the grant program
established by this Section and shall make all necessary and
proper rules not inconsistent with this Section for its
effective implementation.
(g) All applications for assistance under this Section
must be made to the Commission on forms that the Commission
shall provide. The Commission shall determine the form of
application and the information required to be set forth in
the application, and the Commission shall require qualified
applicants to submit with their applications any supporting
documents that the Commission deems necessary. Upon request,
the Department of Veterans' Affairs shall assist the
Commission in determining the eligibility of applicants for
assistance under this Section.

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