Illinois 2025-2026 Regular Session

Illinois Senate Bill SB1345 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1345 Introduced 1/28/2025, by Sen. Michael W. Halpin SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: 110 ILCS 947/40 Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Provides that a qualified applicant for the Illinois Veteran grant program includes a person who, among other requirements, served less than one year of federal active duty and received an uncharacterized discharge as a result of a service-connected disability. LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b A BILL FOR 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1345 Introduced 1/28/2025, by Sen. Michael W. Halpin SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: 110 ILCS 947/40 110 ILCS 947/40 Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Provides that a qualified applicant for the Illinois Veteran grant program includes a person who, among other requirements, served less than one year of federal active duty and received an uncharacterized discharge as a result of a service-connected disability. LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b A BILL FOR
2	2	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1345 Introduced 1/28/2025, by Sen. Michael W. Halpin SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
3	3	110 ILCS 947/40 110 ILCS 947/40
4	4	110 ILCS 947/40
5	5	Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Provides that a qualified applicant for the Illinois Veteran grant program includes a person who, among other requirements, served less than one year of federal active duty and received an uncharacterized discharge as a result of a service-connected disability.
6	6	LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
7	7	LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
8	8	A BILL FOR
9	9	SB1345LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b SB1345 LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
10	10	SB1345 LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
11	11	1 AN ACT concerning education.
12	12	2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
13	13	3 represented in the General Assembly:
14	14	4 Section 5. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is
15	15	5 amended by changing Section 40 as follows:
16	16	6 (110 ILCS 947/40)
17	17	7 Sec. 40. Illinois Veteran grant program.
18	18	8 (a) As used in this Section:
19	19	9 "Qualified applicant" means a person who served in the
20	20	10 Armed Forces of the United States, a Reserve component of the
21	21	11 Armed Forces, or the Illinois National Guard, excluding
22	22	12 members of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps and those
23	23	13 whose only service has been attendance at a service academy,
24	24	14 and who meets all of the qualifications of either paragraphs
25	25	15 (1) through (4) or paragraphs (2), (3), and (5):
26	26	16 (1) At the time of entering federal active duty
27	27	17 service the person was one of the following:
28	28	18 (A) An Illinois resident.
29	29	19 (B) An Illinois resident within 6 months of
30	30	20 entering such service.
31	31	21 (C) Enrolled at a State-controlled university or
32	32	22 public community college in this State.
33	33	23 (2) The person meets one of the following
34	34
35	35
36	36
37	37	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1345 Introduced 1/28/2025, by Sen. Michael W. Halpin SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
38	38	110 ILCS 947/40 110 ILCS 947/40
39	39	110 ILCS 947/40
40	40	Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Provides that a qualified applicant for the Illinois Veteran grant program includes a person who, among other requirements, served less than one year of federal active duty and received an uncharacterized discharge as a result of a service-connected disability.
41	41	LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
42	42	LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
43	43	A BILL FOR
44	44
45	45
46	46
47	47
48	48
49	49	110 ILCS 947/40
50	50
51	51
52	52
53	53	LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
54	54
55	55
56	56
57	57
58	58
59	59
60	60
61	61
62	62
63	63	SB1345 LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
64	64
65	65
66	66	SB1345- 2 -LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b SB1345 - 2 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
67	67	SB1345 - 2 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
68	68	1 requirements:
69	69	2 (A) He or she served at least one year of federal
70	70	3 active duty.
71	71	4 (B) He or she served less than one year of federal
72	72	5 active duty and received an honorable discharge for
73	73	6 medical reasons directly connected with such service.
74	74	7 (C) He or she served less than one year of federal
75	75	8 active duty and was discharged prior to August 11,
76	76	9 1967.
77	77	10 (D) He or she served less than one year of federal
78	78	11 active duty in a foreign country during a time of
79	79	12 hostilities in that foreign country.
80	80	13 (E) He or she served less than one year of federal
81	81	14 active duty and received an uncharacterized discharge
82	82	15 as a result of a service-connected disability.
83	83	16 (3) The person received an honorable discharge or an
84	84	17 uncharacterized discharge as a result of a
85	85	18 service-connected disability after leaving federal active
86	86	19 duty service.
87	87	20 (4) The person returned to this State within 6 months
88	88	21 after leaving federal active duty service, or, if married
89	89	22 to a person in continued military service stationed
90	90	23 outside this State, returned to this State within 6 months
91	91	24 after his or her spouse left service or was stationed
92	92	25 within this State.
93	93	26 (5) The person does not meet the requirements of
94	94
95	95
96	96
97	97
98	98
99	99	SB1345 - 2 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
100	100
101	101
102	102	SB1345- 3 -LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b SB1345 - 3 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
103	103	SB1345 - 3 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
104	104	1 paragraph (1), but (i) is a resident of Illinois at the
105	105	2 time of application to the Commission and (ii) at some
106	106	3 point after leaving federal active duty service, was a
107	107	4 resident of Illinois for at least 15 consecutive years.
108	108	5 "Time of hostilities" means any action by the Armed Forces
109	109	6 of the United States that is recognized by the issuance of a
110	110	7 Presidential proclamation or a Presidential executive order
111	111	8 and in which the Armed Forces expeditionary medal or other
112	112	9 campaign service medals are awarded according to Presidential
113	113	10 executive order.
114	114	11 (b) A person who otherwise qualifies under subsection (a)
115	115	12 of this Section but has not left federal active duty service
116	116	13 and has served at least one year of federal active duty or has
117	117	14 served for less than one year of federal active duty in a
118	118	15 foreign country during a time of hostilities in that foreign
119	119	16 country and who can provide documentation demonstrating an
120	120	17 honorable service record is eligible to receive assistance
121	121	18 under this Section.
122	122	19 (c) A qualified applicant is not required to pay any
123	123	20 tuition or mandatory fees while attending a State-controlled
124	124	21 university or public community college in this State for a
125	125	22 period that is equivalent to 4 years of full-time enrollment,
126	126	23 including summer terms.
127	127	24 A qualified applicant who has previously received benefits
128	128	25 under this Section for a non-mandatory fee shall continue to
129	129	26 receive benefits covering such fees while he or she is
130	130
131	131
132	132
133	133
134	134
135	135	SB1345 - 3 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
136	136
137	137
138	138	SB1345- 4 -LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b SB1345 - 4 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
139	139	SB1345 - 4 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
140	140	1 enrolled in a continuous program of study. The qualified
141	141	2 applicant shall no longer receive a grant covering
142	142	3 non-mandatory fees if he or she fails to enroll during an
143	143	4 academic term, unless he or she is serving federal active duty
144	144	5 service.
145	145	6 (d) A qualified applicant who has been or is to be awarded
146	146	7 assistance under this Section shall receive that assistance if
147	147	8 the qualified applicant notifies his or her postsecondary
148	148	9 institution of that fact by the end of the school term for
149	149	10 which assistance is requested.
150	150	11 (e) Assistance under this Section is considered an
151	151	12 entitlement that the State-controlled college or public
152	152	13 community college in which the qualified applicant is enrolled
153	153	14 shall honor without any condition other than the qualified
154	154	15 applicant's maintenance of minimum grade levels and a
155	155	16 satisfactory student loan repayment record pursuant to
156	156	17 subsection (c) of Section 20 of this Act.
157	157	18 (f) The Commission shall administer the grant program
158	158	19 established by this Section and shall make all necessary and
159	159	20 proper rules not inconsistent with this Section for its
160	160	21 effective implementation.
161	161	22 (g) All applications for assistance under this Section
162	162	23 must be made to the Commission on forms that the Commission
163	163	24 shall provide. The Commission shall determine the form of
164	164	25 application and the information required to be set forth in
165	165	26 the application, and the Commission shall require qualified
166	166
167	167
168	168
169	169
170	170
171	171	SB1345 - 4 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
172	172
173	173
174	174	SB1345- 5 -LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b SB1345 - 5 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
175	175	SB1345 - 5 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b
176	176
177	177
178	178
179	179
180	180
181	181	SB1345 - 5 - LRB104 07179 LNS 17216 b