House Bill 1090

AN ACT TO WAIVE TUITION AND MANDATORY STUDENT FEES FOR ANY UNDERGRADUATE OR GRADUATE PROGRAM OF ANY MISSISSIPPI PUBLIC POSTSECONDARY INSTITUTION FOR A MISSISSIPPI FOSTER OR ADOPTED CHILD; TO PRESCRIBE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY TO RECEIVE A WAIVER; TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT OF CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES TO CONFIRM THE APPLYING STUDENTS' ELIGIBILITY STATUS UPON REQUEST OF THE POSTSECONDARY INSTITUTION; TO REQUIRE THE STUDENT TO COMPLETE THE FREE APPLICATION FOR FEDERAL STUDENT AID TO DETERMINE THE LEVEL OF NEED AND ELIGIBILITY FOR STATE AND FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID PROGRAMS; TO PROVIDE THAT A STUDENT'S WAIVER SHALL BE REDUCED BY THE AMOUNT EXCEEDING THE TOTAL COST OF ATTENDANCE WHEN COMBINED WITH OTHER STUDENT FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE; TO STIPULATE REQUIREMENTS FOR CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY; TO REQUIRE THE MISSISSIPPI POSTSECONDARY STUDENT FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE BOARD TO REPORT DATA ON GRADUATION RATES OF STUDENTS PARTICIPATING IN THE TUITION WAIVER PROGRAM BY NOVEMBER 30 EACH YEAR TO PEER; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. (1) Tuition and mandatory student fees for any undergraduate or graduate program of any Mississippi public postsecondary institution, including all two-year community colleges and four-year universities and colleges, shall be waived for a Mississippi foster or adopted child who is a full-time or part-time student if the student meets all entrance requirements and maintains academic eligibility while enrolled at the postsecondary institution, and if:

(a) The student's family receives supplemental adoption benefits under Section 93-17-57;

(b) The student is currently placed within the custody of the Department of Child Protection Services and placed in a family foster home or is placed in accordance with the provisions of Section 43-15-13;

(c) The student is in an independent living program and the placement is funded by the Department of Child Protection Services;

(d) The student who is an adopted child was in the permanent legal custody of and placed for adoption by the Department of Child Protection Services. A student who meets the eligibility criteria of this paragraph and lives outside of Mississippi at the time of application to a Mississippi postsecondary institution may apply for the waiver up to the amount of tuition for a Mississippi resident; or

(e) The Department of Child Protection Services was the student's legal custodian on his or her eighteenth birthday.

(2) Upon request of the postsecondary institution, the Department of Child Protection Services shall confirm the eligibility status under subsection (1) of this section of the student seeking to participate in the waiver program. Release of this information shall not constitute a breach of confidentiality required by Section 43-21-261.

(3) The student shall complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid to determine the level of need and eligibility for state and federal financial aid programs. If the sum of the tuition waiver plus other student financial assistance, except loans and the work study program under 42 USCS 2751-2756b, from all sources exceeds the student's total cost of attendance, as defined in 20 USCS 1087ll, the tuition waiver shall be reduced by the amount exceeding the total cost of attendance.

(4) Except when extended in accordance with subsection (5) of this section, the student shall be eligible for the tuition waiver:

(a) For entrance to the institution for a period of no more than four (4) years after the date of graduation from high school or obtaining a high school equivalency diploma; and

(b) For one hundred fifty (150) consecutive or nonconsecutive credit hours earned, after first admittance to any Mississippi institution if satisfactory progress is achieved or maintained up to age twenty-eight (28).

(5) The expiration of a student's eligibility under subsection (4)(a) of this section shall be extended by the number of academic terms the institution determines the student was unable to enroll for or complete due to serving:

(a) On active duty status in the United States Armed Forces;

(b) As an officer in the Commissioned Corps of the United States Public Health Service; or

The original age limitation under subsection (4)(b) of this section shall be extended by the total number of years during which the student was on active duty status. The number of months served on active duty status shall be rounded up to the next higher year to determine the maximum length of eligibility extension allowed.

(6) The Mississippi Postsecondary Student Financial Assistance Board shall report nonidentifying data on graduation rates of students participating in the tuition waiver program by November 30 each year to the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review (PEER).

(8) Nothing in this section shall be construed to:

(a) Guarantee acceptance of or entrance into any postsecondary institution for a foster or adopted child;

(b) Limit the participation of a foster or adopted student in any other program of financial assistance for postsecondary education;

(d) Restrict any postsecondary institution or the Department of Child Protection Services from accessing other sources of financial assistance, except loans, that may be available to a foster or adopted student.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2022.