Bill Text: IL SB1311 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Beginning with the 2024-2025 academic year and subject to appropriation, provides that the Illinois Student Assistance Commission shall, each year, receive and consider applications for grant assistance under a pilot program to be known as the Growing Regional Opportunities for Work (GROW) Illinois Grant Pilot Program. Provides that the Commission may award grants under the program to applicants who are enrolled or plan to enroll at a public community college participating in the program in a certificate, license, or degree program to work in a high-demand industry, among other qualifications. Sets forth provisions concerning grant renewal, posting requirements, the allocation of funding, the application process, matching and unclaimed funds, the grant amount, reporting requirements, and rulemaking. Repeals the provisions on October 1, 2029. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-03-10 - Rule 3-9(a) / Re-referred to Assignments [SB1311 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-SB1311-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB1311 Introduced 2/6/2023, by Sen. Chapin Rose SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
110 ILCS 947/65.120 new
Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Beginning with the 2024-2025 academic year and subject to appropriation, provides that the Illinois Student Assistance Commission shall, each year, receive and consider applications for grant assistance under a pilot program to be known as the Growing Regional Opportunities for Work (GROW) Illinois Grant Pilot Program. Provides that the Commission may award grants under the program to applicants who are enrolled or plan to enroll at a public community college participating in the program in a certificate, license, or degree program to work in a high-demand industry, among other qualifications. Sets forth provisions concerning grant renewal, posting requirements, the allocation of funding, the application process, matching and unclaimed funds, the grant amount, reporting requirements, and rulemaking. Repeals the provisions on October 1, 2029. Effective immediately.
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A BILL FOR
SB1311 LRB103 24908 RJT 51242 b
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 adding Section 65.120 as follows:
(110 ILCS 947/65.120 new)
Sec. 65.120. GROW Illinois Grant Pilot Program.
(a) In this Section:
"Eligible applicant" means a student or prospective
student enrolled at a participating public community college
in this State who has yet to receive a certificate, license, or
degree to work in a high-demand industry.
"High-demand industry" means an industry identified by a
public community college, in coordination with local
employers, that is growing and where job placement is high.
"Tuition and other necessary fees" includes the customary
charge for instruction and use of facilities in general and
the additional fixed fees charged for specified purposes that
are required generally of non-grant recipients for each
academic period for which the grant applicant actually
enrolls, but does not include fees payable only once or
breakage fees and other contingent deposits that are
refundable in whole or in part.

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(b) Beginning with the 2024-2025 academic year, subject to
a separate appropriation made for such purpose, the Commission
shall, each year, receive and consider applications for grant
assistance under a pilot program to be known as the Growing
Regional Opportunities for Work (GROW) Illinois Grant Pilot
Program. The Commission may award a grant under this Section
to an eligible applicant if the Commission finds that the
applicant meets all of the following qualifications:
(1) The applicant is a resident of this State and a
citizen or eligible noncitizen of the United States.
(2) The applicant has not yet received a certificate,
license, or degree to work in a high-demand industry.
(3) The applicant is not incarcerated.
(4) The applicant is not in default on any student
loan.
(5) The applicant is enrolled or plans to enroll at a
public community college participating in the program in a
certificate, license, or degree program to work in a
high-demand industry.
(6) Any other reasonable criteria, as determined by
the participating public community college.
(c) Each community college participating in the program
shall determine grant renewal criteria consistent with this
Section.
(d) Each participating community college shall post on its
Internet website the criteria and eligibility requirements to

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receive an award of grant assistance under this Section. The
information posted on the website must include the range of
the amount of grant assistance that may be awarded to a
qualified student. The criteria, eligibility requirements, and
the amounts of the grant assistance available to students also
must be reported to the Commission and the Illinois Community
College Board. The Commission and the Illinois Community
College Board shall post this information on their respective
Internet websites.
(e) Subject to appropriation, the Commission shall
determine the allocation of funds available to each
participating community college. The Commission shall allocate
to the community college an amount proportional to the number
of students who (i) are residents of this State, (ii) are
citizens or eligible noncitizens of the United States, and
(iii) were enrolled at the community college in the previous
academic year.
(f) Applications must be made to the Commission on or
before a date determined by the Commission and on forms that
the Commission shall provide to each participating community
college. The form of the application and the information
required shall be determined by the Commission. The
information shall include, without limitation:
(1) the total public community college funds used to
match funds received in the previous academic year from
the Commission under this Section;

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(2) the total number of students enrolled in the
previous academic year who are residents of this State;
and
(3) any supporting documents that the Commission deems
necessary.
(g) Each participating community college shall match the
amount of funds received from the Commission with financial
assistance for qualified students. The community college is
not required to claim its entire allocation.
(h) On a date determined by the Commission, the Commission
shall make available to all participating community colleges
the amount of unclaimed funds, if any. The unclaimed funds
must be made available to those participating community
colleges in the proportion determined under subsection (e),
but must exclude from the calculation those participating
community colleges that are not claiming their full
allocations.
(i) Each participating community college may determine the
award amounts for qualified students on a per-student or
collective basis. Subject to renewal eligibility, each renewal
grant award may not be less than the amount awarded to the
qualified student in the student's prior attendance at the
participating community college under this Section.
Notwithstanding this limitation, a renewal grant award may be
reduced due to changes in the student's cost of attendance,
including, but not limited to, if the student (i) reduces the

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number of credit hours, (ii) changes the course of study in
which the student is enrolled, or (iii) switches to a course of
study with a lower tuition and fee rate. If an eligible
applicant awarded grant assistance under this Section is
eligible to receive other financial aid, the total grant aid
to the student from all sources may not exceed the total cost
of the course of study attendance at the participating
community college in which the student is enrolled.
(j) All money allocated to a public community college
under this Section may be used only for financial assistance
purposes for students attending the public community college.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary,
any funds received by a public community college under this
Section that are not awarded to students in the academic year
for which the funds are received may be retained by the public
community college for expenditure on students participating in
the program or students eligible to participate in the
program.
(k) Each participating community college must annually
report to the Commission, on or before a date determined by the
Commission, the number of students enrolled at that college
who are residents of this State.
(l) Nothing in this Section prohibits a public community
college from using funds raised to be used as matching funds.
(m) On or before a date determined by the Commission, each
participating community college shall annually submit a report

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to the Commission with all of the following information:
(1) The program's impact on tuition revenue and
enrollment goals and access and affordability at the
community college.
(2) Total funds received by the community college
under the program.
(3) Total amount of funds matched by the community
college.
(4) Total amount of claimed and unexpended funds
retained by the community college.
(5) The total number of students receiving grants from
the community college under the program, the students'
program of study, race, gender, income level, family size,
and zip code of residence, and the amount of each grant
award. This information shall include unit record data on
those students regarding variables associated with the
parameters of the program.
(n) On or before October 1, 2025 and annually thereafter,
the Commission shall submit a report with the information
under subsection (m) and any other information regarding the
program to the Governor, the Speaker of the House of
Representatives, the Minority Leader of the House of
Representatives, the President of the Senate, and the Minority
Leader of the Senate. The Commission's report may not
disaggregate data to a level that may disclose personally
identifying information of individual students.

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(o) The sharing and reporting of student data under this
Section must be in accordance with the requirements of the
federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974. All
parties must preserve the confidentiality of the information
as required by law. The names of the grant recipients under
this Section are not subject to disclosure under the Freedom
of Information Act. Public community colleges that fail to
submit a report under subsection (m) or that fail to adhere to
any other requirements under this Section may not be eligible
for distribution of funds under the program for the next
academic year, but may be eligible for distribution of funds
for each academic year thereafter.
(p) The Commission may adopt any rules necessary to
implement this Section, including rules concerning the
computation of tuition and other necessary fees.
(q) This Section is repealed on October 1, 2029.
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.