SB 1322 - Currently, any Missouri National Guard member may be awarded an educational assistance grant to an approved public or private higher education institution. This act provides that any Missouri National Guard member may be awarded, upon application before each semester, either a tuition and fee waiver for undergraduate courses at a postsecondary institution of higher education located in this state that directly receives funds appropriated by the General Assembly or a grant to certain eligible institutions as defined in the act. The educational assistance shall not exceed the lesser of the actual tuition charged at an institution where the member is enrolled or accepted for enrollment or the total of the number of credit hours taken multiplied by the average tuition cost per credit hour charged to a Missouri resident at the University of Missouri for attendance, with the average cost determined by the Missouri National Guard.

This act additionally allows members of the Missouri National Guard to make a one-time transfer of the educational assistance to a dependent spouse. The total educational assistance shall not exceed a cumulative total equal to 150 credit hours multiplied by the average tuition cost per credit hour charged to a Missouri resident at the University of Missouri. Spouses seeking to receive educational assistance shall provide a certificate of satisfactory service of the member's National Guard duties along with proof of a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale while attending the approved institution.

This act is substantially similar to a provision in HB 2166 (2024) and is similar to provisions in the truly agreed to and finally passed HCS/SS/SCS/SB 912 (2024) and in SCS/HCS/HB 1569 (2024).

KATIE O'BRIEN