103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB1378 Introduced , by Rep. Janet Yang Rohr SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act30 ILCS 105/5.990 new Creates the Graduate and Retain Our Workforce Act. Establishes the GROW Illinois Program, in which public institutions of higher education award incentive loans to applicants. Provides that, subject to appropriation, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission may, each year, administer applications for assistance under the GROW Illinois Program. Sets forth qualifications for recipients, degrees, and jobs. Provides for loan repayment and rulemaking. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Graduate and Retain Our Workforce (GROW) Illinois Fund as a special fund in the State treasury. LRB103 04756 RJT 49765 b A BILL FOR 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB1378 Introduced , by Rep. Janet Yang Rohr SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: New Act30 ILCS 105/5.990 new New Act 30 ILCS 105/5.990 new Creates the Graduate and Retain Our Workforce Act. Establishes the GROW Illinois Program, in which public institutions of higher education award incentive loans to applicants. Provides that, subject to appropriation, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission may, each year, administer applications for assistance under the GROW Illinois Program. Sets forth qualifications for recipients, degrees, and jobs. Provides for loan repayment and rulemaking. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Graduate and Retain Our Workforce (GROW) Illinois Fund as a special fund in the State treasury. LRB103 04756 RJT 49765 b LRB103 04756 RJT 49765 b A BILL FOR
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB1378 Introduced , by Rep. Janet Yang Rohr SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
New Act30 ILCS 105/5.990 new New Act 30 ILCS 105/5.990 new
New Act
30 ILCS 105/5.990 new
Creates the Graduate and Retain Our Workforce Act. Establishes the GROW Illinois Program, in which public institutions of higher education award incentive loans to applicants. Provides that, subject to appropriation, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission may, each year, administer applications for assistance under the GROW Illinois Program. Sets forth qualifications for recipients, degrees, and jobs. Provides for loan repayment and rulemaking. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Graduate and Retain Our Workforce (GROW) Illinois Fund as a special fund in the State treasury.
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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,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Graduate and Retain Our Workforce Act.
6 Section 5. Purpose. In order to encourage academically
7 talented students who are residents of this State to enter the
8 workforce in this State upon graduating from degree programs
9 in high-demand fields of study, while also combating this
10 State's ever worsening problem of outbound migration of high
11 school students, this Act establishes the Graduate and Retain
12 Our Workforce (GROW) Illinois Program.
13 Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
14 "Commission" means the Illinois Student Assistance
15 Commission.
16 "Full-time" means the number of credit hours the
17 Commission determines is full-time enrollment for a student
18 for purposes of the program.
19 "Program" means the GROW Illinois Program created by this
20 Act.
21 "Qualifying degree" means an associate or a bachelor's
22 degree granted by a qualifying public institution that
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB1378 Introduced , by Rep. Janet Yang Rohr SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
New Act30 ILCS 105/5.990 new New Act 30 ILCS 105/5.990 new
New Act
30 ILCS 105/5.990 new
Creates the Graduate and Retain Our Workforce Act. Establishes the GROW Illinois Program, in which public institutions of higher education award incentive loans to applicants. Provides that, subject to appropriation, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission may, each year, administer applications for assistance under the GROW Illinois Program. Sets forth qualifications for recipients, degrees, and jobs. Provides for loan repayment and rulemaking. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Graduate and Retain Our Workforce (GROW) Illinois Fund as a special fund in the State treasury.
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A BILL FOR
New Act
30 ILCS 105/5.990 new
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1 qualifies an individual to work in a qualifying job, as
2 determined by the Commission.
3 "Qualifying job" means a job selected by the Commission
4 pursuant to Section 20 of this Act (i) for which a recipient of
5 an award under this Act is pursuing a qualifying degree, (ii)
6 for which the recipient has completed a qualifying degree, or
7 (iii) in which the recipient is working.
8 "Qualifying public institution" means a public institution
9 of higher education located in this State.
10 "Recipient" means a State resident enrolled in a
11 qualifying public institution who receives an award under this
12 Act.
13 Section 15. GROW Illinois Program.
14 (a) There is established the Graduate and Retain Our
15 Workforce (GROW) Illinois Program to recruit and train
16 individuals to work in certain jobs that have a high demand for
17 new employees and offer high wages by awarding forgivable
18 incentive loans.
19 (b) Subject to appropriation, the Commission may, each
20 year, administer applications for assistance under this Act.
21 (c) Subject to available funds, a qualifying public
22 institution shall award an incentive loan to an individual
23 who:
24 (1) is enrolled full time in the qualifying public
25 institution;
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1 (2) has completed at least:
2 (A) one semester of full-time equivalent course
3 work if the individual is pursuing an associate
4 degree; or
5 (B) 2 semesters of full-time equivalent course
6 work if the individual is pursuing a bachelor's
7 degree;
8 (3) is pursuing or declares an intent to pursue a
9 qualifying degree;
10 (4) declares an intent to work, which may be fulfilled
11 by completing and signing an application created by the
12 Commission pursuant to Section 30 of this Act, in a
13 qualifying job in this State following graduation;
14 (5) applies, via an application created by the
15 Commission pursuant to Section 30 of this Act, to the
16 qualifying public institution to receive an incentive
17 loan; and
18 (6) meets other criteria determined by the Commission
19 by rule under Section 30 of this Act.
20 (d) A qualifying public institution may do any of the
21 following:
22 (1) Award an incentive loan to a recipient in an
23 amount up to the cost of resident tuition, fees, and books
24 for the number of credit hours in which the recipient is
25 enrolled each semester.
26 (2) Award an incentive loan to a recipient for up to
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1 the expected amount of time for the recipient to complete
2 a qualifying degree, as determined by the institution.
3 (3) Cancel an incentive loan in accordance with rules
4 adopted by the Commission under Section 30 of this Act.
5 (e) A qualifying public institution may use money from a
6 partnership with an industry or business for funding or
7 repaying an incentive loan.
8 (f) Each fiscal year, the Commission may use up to 5% of
9 money appropriated for the program for administration.
10 Section 20. Selection of qualifying jobs and qualifying
11 degrees.
12 (a) Subject to appropriation, for the 2023-2024 academic
13 year or for the first academic year for which the General
14 Assembly appropriates funds for the program, whichever occurs
15 first, the following eligible majors shall be considered for
16 the program:
17 (1) computer and information sciences;
18 (2) information technology;
19 (3) information science;
20 (4) computer science;
21 (5) computer systems networking and
22 telecommunications;
23 (6) computer and information systems
24 security/information assurance;
25 (7) management information systems; and
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1 (8) any other similarly designed college majors as
2 determined acceptable by the Commission.
3 (b) Subject to appropriation, starting with either the
4 2024-2025 academic year or the academic year following the
5 first academic year for which the General Assembly
6 appropriates funds for the program, and every 2 academic years
7 thereafter, the Commission shall select 5 qualifying jobs that
8 have the highest demand for new employees and offer high wages
9 and select the qualifying degrees required for each of those
10 qualifying jobs.
11 (c) The Commission shall ensure that each qualifying job
12 selected ranks in the top 40% of jobs based on an employment
13 index that considers the job's growth rate and total openings,
14 ranks in the top 40% of jobs for wages, and requires an
15 associate degree or a bachelor's degree. The Commission shall
16 publish and make available to the public an annual report
17 covering the selection of the 5 qualifying jobs and their
18 qualifying degrees.
19 (d) For purposes of administering this Section, the
20 Commission may consult with the Illinois Community College
21 Board, the Board of Higher Education, the Department of
22 Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the Department of
23 Employment Security, or any other State agency deemed
24 necessary by the Commission.
25 Section 25. Repayment of an incentive loan.
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1 (a) For each year that a recipient works in a qualifying
2 job in this State following completion of a qualifying degree,
3 the qualifying public institution that awarded the incentive
4 loan shall waive repayment of the amount of one year of the
5 recipient's incentive loan. Except as provided in subsection
6 (b), a qualifying public institution may not require a
7 recipient to repay an incentive loan.
8 (b) Repayment of an incentive loan may be required as
9 follows:
10 (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this
11 subsection (b), a qualifying public institution shall
12 require a recipient to repay to the qualifying public
13 institution:
14 (A) the full amount of an incentive loan if the
15 recipient fails to either graduate with a qualifying
16 degree within 6 years after initially receiving the
17 incentive loan or work in a qualifying job in this
18 State within one year after completing a qualifying
19 degree; or
20 (B) the outstanding amount of an incentive loan if
21 the recipient works in a qualifying job for fewer
22 years than the number of years required to waive
23 repayment of the full incentive loan.
24 (2) A qualifying public institution may waive or delay
25 a repayment described in paragraph (1) of this subsection
26 (b) in accordance with rules adopted by the Commission
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1 under Section 30 of this Act.
2 (d) A qualifying public institution may require
3 appropriate interest with the repayment of an incentive loan.
4 (e) A qualifying public institution shall use all
5 repayments received under this Section for the program.
6 Section 30. Rulemaking. The Commission has the power to
7 adopt rules necessary for the implementation of this Act,
8 including, but not limited to, rules:
9 (1) establishing an application process for an
10 individual to apply for an incentive loan;
11 (2) subject to Section 15 of this Act, establishing
12 qualifying criteria for an individual to receive an
13 incentive loan;
14 (3) establishing how State funding available for
15 incentive loans is distributed among qualifying public
16 institutions;
17 (4) establishing how to determine the amount of an
18 incentive loan;
19 (5) establishing the circumstances under which a
20 qualifying public institution may either cancel an
21 incentive loan or waive or delay repayment of an incentive
22 loan; and
23 (6) establishing a methodology for prioritizing
24 applications from applicants who demonstrate a financial
25 need or hardship and applications from applicants
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1 demonstrating academic excellence.
2 Section 35. Graduate and Retain Our Workforce (GROW)
3 Illinois Fund. The Graduate and Retain Our Workforce (GROW)
4 Illinois Fund is created as a special fund in the State
5 treasury. Money from institutional, organizational, or other
6 private entities shall be deposited into the Fund. All money
7 in the Fund shall be used, subject to appropriation, by the
8 Commission to implement and administer the program pursuant to
9 this Act.
10 Section 90. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
11 Section 5.990 as follows:
12 (30 ILCS 105/5.990 new)
13 Sec. 5.990. The Graduate and Retain Our Workforce (GROW)
14 Illinois Fund.
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