HASBSB148 TYLERT 2679
SENATE SUMMARY OF HOUSE AMENDMENTS
SB 148 2021 Regular Session Cortez
KEYWORD AND SUMMARY AS RETURNED TO THE SENATE
COLLEGES/UNIVERSITIES. Establishes the M. J. Foster Promise Program.
(gov sig)
SUMMARY OF HOUSE AMENDMENTS TO THE SENATE BILL
1. Removes requirement that an award applicant shall not have any criminal
convictions for award eligibility.
2. Removes requirement than an award recipient shall not have any criminal
convictions to maintain award eligibility.
3. Adds requirement that funds for the program be carried forward from year
to year and be expended as appropriated.
DIGEST OF THE SENATE BILL AS RETURNED TO THE SENATE
SB 148 Re-Reengrossed 2021 Regular Session Cortez
Proposed law creates the M. J. Foster Promise Award Program to provide a financial award
to an eligible student who enrolls in a qualified program at a two-year public postsecondary
education institution or an accredited proprietary school licensed by the Board of Regents
to pursue an associate degree or shorter-term postsecondary education credential required
for certain high-demand, high-wage occupations aligned to Louisiana's workforce priorities.
Proposed law provides an award of up to $3,200 per year to apply to the tuition and required
fees of each award recipient enrolled full-time or an amount proportional to the hours
enrolled if the recipient is enrolled part-time. Allows awards for students enrolled in
qualified programs of less than a year duration to receive an award greater than $3,200 but
less than $6,400. Caps the total award amount at $6,400 per recipient.
Proposed law requires the award to be paid by the state to the two-year public postsecondary
education institution or proprietary school on behalf of the award recipient. Further requires
all other financial aid that the student qualifies for to be applied before the M. J. Foster
Promise Award. Proposed law further requires, in order to receive the funding, two-year
public postsecondary institutions or proprietary schools offering qualified programs to
identify and provide a path for credentials earned to be stackable and transferable as
academic credit.
Proposed law requires the Board of Regents to establish an advisory council to identify
programs in which an eligible student may enroll to receive the award which shall be
designated as "quality programs", including a review of the return on the state's investment
in awards made to recipients who completed a qualified program. Proposed law delineates
the process that the advisory council must use in designating qualified programs including
a review of the return on the state's investment in award made to recipients who completed
a qualified program. Further requires the advisory council to identify and assist in the
establishment of mechanisms to support award recipients to complete a qualified program
and gain employment in the associated high-demand, high-wage jobs.
Proposed law provides that the advisory council is comprised of the following members or
their designees:
(1)The chancellor of Louisiana State University at Eunice.
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(2)The chancellor of Southern University at Shreveport.
(3)The president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System.
(4)The commissioner of higher education.
(5)The state superintendent of education.
(6)The secretary of the Louisiana Department of Economic Development.
(7)The executive director of the Louisiana Workforce Commission.
(8)The chairman of the Louisiana Workforce Investment Council.
(9)The secretary of the Louisiana Department of Revenue.
Proposed law requires an applicant for the award must:
(1)Be at least twenty-one years old.
(2)Have earned a high school diploma or its equivalent or co-enroll in a qualified
program and a program to earn a high school credential.
(3)Be a citizen of the United States.
(4)Be a Louisiana resident during the twenty-four months preceding the date of
application.
(5)Not have previously earned an undergraduate degree at the associate level or above.
(6)Meet any admission requirements of the postsecondary education institution or
proprietary school and the qualified program.
(7)Have received an honorable discharge if previously served.
(8)Applied for federal student aid.
(9)Provide the administering agency permission to collect and verify information
relative to the success of the award program including information regarding the
applicant's employment before and after receiving the award.
(10)Agree to reside and work full-time in Louisiana for at least one year after the
completion of the last semester that an award is provided.
(11)Agree to annually perform, during each year that an award is received, at least
twenty hours of community service or to participate for at least twenty hours in an
apprenticeship, internship, or mentorship that is related to the qualified program.
(12)Have a family income that does not exceed three hundred percent of the applicable
federal poverty guideline as published in the Federal Register by the United States
Department of Health and Human Services or certify unemployment or
underemployment for at least the six months prior to the receipt of the award.
Proposed law provides that to maintain an award the award recipient must:
(1)Make steady academic progress unless provided an exception for cause by the
administering agency.
(2)Remain in good academic standing at the postsecondary education institution while
enrolled in a qualified program.
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(3)Maintain continuous enrollment by earning at least one shorter-term postsecondary
education or proprietary school credential per year or enrolling in the fall and spring
semester of each academic year depending on the program in which enrolled.
(4)Maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.00 calculated on a 4.00 scale
in a qualified program for which grades are issued.
(5)Have received an honorable discharge if separation occurs after becoming a recipient
of the award.
(6)Have received the award for not more than three academic years.
(7)Have used the award to earn not more than sixty hours of academic credit.
(8)Certify the completion of at least twenty hours of community service or participation
in an apprenticeship, internship, or mentorship for the prior calendar year.
Proposed law allows an award recipient who successfully completes a qualified program in
less than three years to be eligible to continue to receive the award for any remaining time
of eligibility by enrolling in another qualified program and continuing to meet all other
eligibility requirements.
Proposed law allows an award recipient who previously received the award and enrolled in
a program that is no longer a qualified program, to continue to use the award to continue in
the program as long as all other continuing eligibility requirements are met.
Proposed law provides that the administering agency may seek, accept, and expend funds
from any source, including private business, industry, foundations, and other groups, as well
as any available federal or other governmental funding.
Proposed law provides that if the funding provided is not sufficient to fully fund all eligible
award recipients, awards shall be provided to eligible students in the order that applications
are received, with priority given to previous award recipients who have met all requirements
for maintaining the award and who are continuing in a qualified program for which they
previously received the award.
Proposed law provides that implementation of the award is subject to the appropriation of
state funds by the Legislature and limits the state appropriation to $10 million per year for
students enrolled in public postsecondary education institutions and $500,000 per year for
students enrolled in proprietary schools.
Proposed law requires that monies appropriated, awarded, or donated for the program be
carried forward from year to year and may be expended as appropriated.
Proposed law provides for the program to be administered by the Board of Regents, through
the office of student financial assistance (OSFA) and requires the administering agency to
adopt rules and regulations in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.
Proposed law requires OSFA to establish a working group to identify federal and state
programs, including childcare supplements and other aid or services, that may provide
additional support to award recipients to further their postsecondary education endeavors.
Provides that the working group be composed of an appointee from each of the following:
(1)The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services.
(2)The Louisiana Department of Health.
(3)The Louisiana Department of Education.
(4)The Louisiana Workforce Commission.
(5)The Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs.
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(6)The Louisiana Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.
(7)The OSFA.
Proposed law requires the administering agency to enter into a memorandum of
understanding with the Louisiana Department of Revenue and the Louisiana Workforce
Commission to share information relative to a taxpayer's reported income and employment
information for purposes of generating data related to the success of award recipients in the
workforce. Proposed law requires that any information shared or furnished shall be held
confidential by the administering agency, shall be reported in the aggregate only, and shall
contain no personally identifiable information for any award recipient.
Proposed law requires the administering agency to develop and implement a uniform
information reporting system for the purposes of policy analysis and program evaluation.
Additionally, requires an annual report to the legislature and provides that all information
reported shall be reported in the aggregate only and contain no personally identifiable
information for any award recipient.
Effective upon signature of the governor or lapse of time for gubernatorial action.
(Adds R.S. 17:3047-3047.7)
______________________
Thomas L. Tyler
Deputy Chief of Staff
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