Bill Text: IL SB1315 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Amends the Nursing Education Scholarship Law. Creates the Nurse Educator Scholarship Fund as a special fund in the State treasury to be used by the Department of Public Health to provide scholarships to nurse educators. Provides that each fiscal year, beginning July 1, 2023, the Comptroller shall transfer $1,500,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Nurse Educator Scholarship Fund to implement these provisions. Makes a conforming change in the State Finance Act. Amends the Nurse Practice Act. Provides that $6,000,000 (instead of $4,000,000) of the moneys deposited in the Nursing Dedicated and Professional Fund each year shall be set aside and appropriated to the Illinois Student Assistance Commission for nursing scholarships awarded pursuant to the Nursing Education Scholarship Law. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-03-10 - Rule 3-9(a) / Re-referred to Assignments [SB1315 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-SB1315-Introduced.html


103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB1315

Introduced 2/6/2023, by Sen. Sara Feigenholtz

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
30 ILCS 105/5.990 new
110 ILCS 975/6.5
225 ILCS 65/70-50 was 225 ILCS 65/20-40

Amends the Nursing Education Scholarship Law. Creates the Nurse Educator Scholarship Fund as a special fund in the State treasury to be used by the Department of Public Health to provide scholarships to nurse educators. Provides that each fiscal year, beginning July 1, 2023, the Comptroller shall transfer $1,500,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Nurse Educator Scholarship Fund to implement these provisions. Makes a conforming change in the State Finance Act. Amends the Nurse Practice Act. Provides that $6,000,000 (instead of $4,000,000) of the moneys deposited in the Nursing Dedicated and Professional Fund each year shall be set aside and appropriated to the Illinois Student Assistance Commission for nursing scholarships awarded pursuant to the Nursing Education Scholarship Law. Effective immediately.
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A BILL FOR

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1 AN ACT concerning education.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
5Section 5.990 as follows:
6 (30 ILCS 105/5.990 new)
7 Sec. 5.990. The Nurse Educator Scholarship Fund.
8 Section 10. The Nursing Education Scholarship Law is
9amended by changing Section 6.5 as follows:
10 (110 ILCS 975/6.5)
11 Sec. 6.5. Nurse educator scholarships.
12 (a) The Nurse Educator Scholarship Fund is created as a
13special fund in the State treasury to be used by the Department
14to provide scholarships under this Law. Each fiscal year
15beginning July 1, 2023, the Comptroller shall transfer
16$1,500,000 from the General Revenue Fund to the Nurse Educator
17Scholarship Fund to implement this Section of this Law. The
18Beginning with the fall term of the 2009-2010 academic year,
19the Department shall provide scholarships to individuals
20selected from among those applicants who qualify for
21consideration by showing the following:

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1 (1) that he or she has been a resident of this State
2 for at least one year prior to application and is a citizen
3 or a lawful permanent resident of the United States;
4 (2) that he or she is enrolled in or accepted for
5 admission to a graduate degree in nursing program at an
6 approved institution; and
7 (3) that he or she agrees to meet the nurse educator
8 employment obligation.
9 (b) If in any year the number of qualified applicants
10exceeds the number of scholarships to be awarded under this
11Section, the Department shall, in consultation with the
12Illinois Nursing Workforce Center Advisory Board, consider the
13following factors in granting priority in awarding
14scholarships:
15 (1) Financial need, as shown on a standardized
16 financial needs assessment form used by an approved
17 institution, of students who will pursue their education
18 on a full-time or close to full-time basis and who already
19 have a diploma in nursing and are pursuing a higher
20 degree.
21 (2) A student's status as a registered nurse who is
22 pursuing a graduate degree in nursing to pursue employment
23 in an approved institution that educates licensed
24 practical nurses and that educates registered nurses in
25 undergraduate and graduate nursing programs.
26 (3) A student's merit, as shown through his or her

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1 grade point average, class rank, experience as a nurse,
2 including supervisory experience, experience as a nurse in
3 the United States military, and other academic and
4 extracurricular activities.
5 (c) Unless otherwise indicated, scholarships under this
6Section shall be awarded to recipients at approved
7institutions for a period of up to 3 years.
8 (d) Within 12 months after graduation from a graduate
9degree in nursing program for nurse educators, any recipient
10who accepted a scholarship under this Section shall begin
11meeting the required nurse educator employment obligation. In
12order to defer his or her continuous employment obligation, a
13recipient must request the deferment in writing from the
14Department. A recipient shall receive a deferment if he or she
15notifies the Department, within 30 days after enlisting, that
16he or she is spending up to 4 years in military service. A
17recipient shall receive a deferment if he or she notifies the
18Department, within 30 days after enrolling, that he or she is
19enrolled in an academic program leading to a graduate degree
20in nursing. The recipient must begin meeting the required
21nurse educator employment obligation no later than 6 months
22after the end of the deferment or deferments.
23 Any person who fails to fulfill the nurse educator
24employment obligation shall pay to the Department an amount
25equal to the amount of scholarship funds received per year for
26each unfulfilled year of the nurse educator employment

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1obligation, together with interest at 7% per year on the
2unpaid balance. Payment must begin within 6 months following
3the date of the occurrence initiating the repayment. All
4repayments must be completed within 6 years from the date of
5the occurrence initiating the repayment. However, this
6repayment obligation may be deferred and re-evaluated every 6
7months when the failure to fulfill the nurse educator
8employment obligation results from involuntarily leaving the
9profession due to a decrease in the number of nurses employed
10in this State or when the failure to fulfill the nurse educator
11employment obligation results from total and permanent
12disability. The repayment obligation shall be excused if the
13failure to fulfill the nurse educator employment obligation
14results from the death or adjudication as incompetent of the
15person holding the scholarship. No claim for repayment may be
16filed against the estate of such a decedent or incompetent.
17 The Department may allow a nurse educator employment
18obligation fulfillment alternative if the nurse educator
19scholarship recipient is unsuccessful in finding work as a
20nurse educator. The Department shall maintain a database of
21all available nurse educator positions in this State.
22 (e) Each person applying for a scholarship under this
23Section must be provided with a copy of this Section at the
24time of application for the benefits of this scholarship.
25 (f) Rulemaking authority to implement this Law Act is
26conditioned on the rules being adopted in accordance with all

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1provisions of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act and
2all rules and procedures of the Joint Committee on
3Administrative Rules; any purported rule not so adopted, for
4whatever reason, is unauthorized.
5(Source: P.A. 102-699, eff. 4-19-22; 102-1030, eff. 5-27-22;
6revised 8-12-22.)
7 Section 15. The Nurse Practice Act is amended by changing
8Section 70-50 as follows:
9 (225 ILCS 65/70-50) (was 225 ILCS 65/20-40)
10 (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2028)
11 Sec. 70-50. Fund.
12 (a) There is hereby created within the State Treasury the
13Nursing Dedicated and Professional Fund. The monies in the
14Fund may be used by and at the direction of the Department for
15the administration and enforcement of this Act, including, but
16not limited to:
17 (1) Distribution and publication of this Act and
18 rules.
19 (2) Employment of secretarial, nursing,
20 administrative, enforcement, and other staff for the
21 administration of this Act.
22 (b) Disposition of fees:
23 (1) $5 of every licensure fee shall be placed in a fund
24 for assistance to nurses enrolled in a diversionary

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1 program as approved by the Department.
2 (2) All of the fees, fines, and penalties collected
3 pursuant to this Act shall be deposited in the Nursing
4 Dedicated and Professional Fund.
5 (3) Each fiscal year, the moneys deposited in the
6 Nursing Dedicated and Professional Fund shall be
7 appropriated to the Department for expenses of the
8 Department and the Board in the administration of this
9 Act. All earnings received from investment of moneys in
10 the Nursing Dedicated and Professional Fund shall be
11 deposited in the Nursing Dedicated and Professional Fund
12 and shall be used for the same purposes as fees deposited
13 in the Fund.
14 (4) For fiscal years 2010 through 2022, $2,000,000 of
15 the moneys deposited in the Nursing Dedicated and
16 Professional Fund each year shall be set aside and
17 appropriated to the Department of Public Health for
18 nursing scholarships awarded pursuant to the Nursing
19 Education Scholarship Law. For fiscal year 2023 and for
20 each fiscal year thereafter, $6,000,000 $4,000,000 of the
21 moneys deposited in the Nursing Dedicated and Professional
22 Fund each year shall be set aside and appropriated to the
23 Illinois Student Assistance Commission for nursing
24 scholarships awarded pursuant to the Nursing Education
25 Scholarship Law.
26 (5) Moneys in the Fund may be transferred to the

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1 Professions Indirect Cost Fund as authorized under Section
2 2105-300 of the Department of Professional Regulation Law
3 (20 ILCS 2105/2105-300).
4 (c) Moneys set aside for nursing scholarships awarded
5pursuant to the Nursing Education Scholarship Law as provided
6in item (4) of subsection (b) of this Section may not be
7transferred under Section 8h of the State Finance Act.
8(Source: P.A. 102-699, eff. 4-19-22.)
9 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
10becoming law.
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