Florida Senate - 2020 SB 132
By Senator Braynon
35-00148-20 2020132__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Sunshine Scholarship Program;
3 creating s. 1009.895, F.S.; establishing the Sunshine
4 Scholarship Program; requiring the Department of
5 Education to administer the program; providing the
6 purpose of the program; defining terms; requiring
7 certain financial aid to be credited to a student’s
8 tuition and fees before the award of a Sunshine
9 Scholarship; providing student eligibility
10 requirements; requiring a student to repay the
11 scholarship amount under certain circumstances;
12 providing that the program only applies to a student’s
13 tuition and fees; providing for funding; providing for
14 rulemaking; providing an effective date.
15
16 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
17
18 Section 1. Section 1009.895, Florida Statutes, is created
19 to read:
20 1009.895 Sunshine Scholarship Program.—
21 (1) There is established the Sunshine Scholarship Program
22 to be administered by the Department of Education. The Sunshine
23 Scholarship Program shall provide funding for 100 percent of
24 tuition and fees for Florida residents pursuing an associate
25 degree or career certificate from an eligible postsecondary
26 institution. For purposes of this section, “eligible
27 postsecondary institution” means a Florida College System
28 institution, a career center operated by a school district, or a
29 charter technical career center. Financial aid received from the
30 Pell Grant, the Florida Public Student Assistance Grant Program,
31 and the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program shall be
32 credited first to the student’s tuition and fees before the
33 award of a scholarship under this section.
34 (2) To be eligible to receive a scholarship pursuant to
35 this section, a student must:
36 (a) Be a resident for tuition purposes, as defined in s.
37 1009.21.
38 (b) Meet the general requirements for student eligibility
39 as provided in s. 1009.40, except as otherwise provided in this
40 section.
41 (c) Have a total annual household income equal to or less
42 than $50,000.
43 (d) Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid
44 (FAFSA) for each academic year in which the scholarship is
45 sought.
46 (e) Be accepted by and enroll in an eligible postsecondary
47 institution.
48 (f) Maintain continuous enrollment as a full-time student
49 while receiving the scholarship. For purposes of this section,
50 “full-time student” means a student enrolled in a minimum of 12
51 semester hours or the clock hour equivalent.
52 (3) Upon completion of his or her program of study, or upon
53 disenrollment from an eligible postsecondary institution, the
54 student must reside and work within this state for the same
55 period of time he or she received funds from the program. If the
56 student does not reside and work within this state for the
57 specified period, the student must repay the total amount
58 awarded, plus an annual interest rate equal to the federal
59 student loan interest rate in effect when the student entered
60 the program. The requirements of this subsection do not apply:
61 (a) When a student enlists in the United States Armed
62 Forces; or
63 (b) While a student is continuously enrolled in a
64 baccalaureate degree program or higher at a Florida
65 postsecondary institution. Once the student graduates or
66 disenrolls from a Florida postsecondary institution, the
67 requirements of this subsection apply.
68 (4) To remain eligible for the program, a student must
69 maintain the equivalent of a cumulative grade point average of
70 2.5 on a 4.0 scale while enrolled at an eligible postsecondary
71 institution.
72 (5) The Sunshine Scholarship Program applies only to
73 tuition and fees. Each student is responsible for additional
74 user fees, textbooks, and other college-related expenses.
75 (6) Funding for the program shall be as provided in the
76 General Appropriations Act.
77 (7) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules to
78 administer this section.
79 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.