Minnesota Session Laws - 2018, Regular Session

CHAPTER 156--S.F.No. 3461

An act

relating to military veterans; recodifying certain GI Bill statutory language; making technical changes;

amending Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 197.791, subdivision 6, by adding a subdivision; Minnesota Statutes 2017 Supplement, section 197.791, subdivisions 3, 5.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2017 Supplement, section 197.791, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Duties; responsibilities.

(a) The commissioner shall establish policies and procedures including, but not limited to, procedures for student application record keeping, information sharing, payment of educational assistance benefits under subdivision 5, payment of apprenticeship or on-the-job training benefits under subdivision 5a, payment of other educational or professional benefits under subdivision deleted text begin 5 deleted text end new text begin 5b new text end , and other procedures the commissioner considers appropriate and necessary for effective and efficient administration of the program established in this section.

(b) The commissioner may delegate part or all of the administrative procedures for the program to responsible representatives of participating eligible institutions. The commissioner may execute an interagency agreement with the Minnesota Office of Higher Education for services the commissioner determines necessary to administer the program.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2017 Supplement, section 197.791, subdivision 5, is amended to read:

Subd. 5.

Educational assistance amount.

(a) On approval by the commissioner of eligibility for the program, the applicant shall be awarded, on a funds-available basis, the educational assistance under the program for use at any time according to program rules at any eligible institution.

(b) The amount of educational assistance in any semester or term for an eligible person must be determined by subtracting from the eligible person's cost of attendance the amount the person received or was eligible to receive in that semester or term from:

(1) the federal Pell Grant;

(2) the state grant program under section 136A.121; and

(3) any federal military or veterans educational benefits including but not limited to the Montgomery GI Bill, GI Bill Kicker, the federal tuition assistance program, vocational rehabilitation benefits, and any other federal benefits associated with the person's status as a veteran, except veterans disability payments from the United States Veterans Administration and payments made under the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP).

(c) The amount of educational assistance for any eligible person who is a full-time student must not exceed the following:

(1) $3,000 per state fiscal year; and

(2) $10,000 in a lifetime.

deleted text begin (d) A person eligible under this subdivision may use the benefit amounts for the following purposes: deleted text end

deleted text begin (1) licensing or certification tests, the successful completion of which demonstrates an individual's possession of the knowledge or skill required to enter into, maintain, or advance in employment in a predetermined and identified vocation or profession, provided that the tests and the licensing or credentialing organizations or entities that offer the tests are approved by the commissioner; deleted text end

deleted text begin (2) tests for admission to institutions of higher learning or graduate schools; deleted text end

deleted text begin (3) national tests providing an opportunity for course credit at institutions of higher learning; deleted text end

deleted text begin (4) a preparatory course for a test that is required or used for admission to an institution of higher education or a graduate program; and deleted text end

deleted text begin (5) any fee associated with the pursuit of a professional or educational objective specified in clauses (1) to (4). deleted text end

deleted text begin (e) If an eligible person receives benefits under subdivision 5, the eligible person's aggregate benefits under this subdivision and subdivision 5 must not exceed $10,000 in the eligible person's lifetime. deleted text end

deleted text begin (f) If an eligible person receives benefits under subdivision 5a, the eligible person's aggregate benefits under this subdivision and subdivision 5a must not exceed $10,000 in the eligible person's lifetime. deleted text end

new text begin (d) new text end For a part-time student, the amount of educational assistance must not exceed $500 per semester or term of enrollment. For the purpose of this paragraph, a part-time undergraduate student is a student taking fewer than 12 credits or the equivalent for a semester or term of enrollment and a part-time graduate student is a student considered part time by the eligible institution the graduate student is attending. The minimum award for undergraduate and graduate students is $50 per term.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 197.791, is amended by adding a subdivision to read:

new text begin Subd. 5b. new text end

new text begin Additional professional or educational benefits. new text end

new text begin (a) The commissioner shall develop and implement a program to administer a portion of the Minnesota GI Bill program to pay additional benefit amounts to eligible persons as provided under this subdivision. new text end

new text begin (b) A person is eligible for additional benefits under this subdivision if the person meets the criteria established under subdivision 4, paragraph (a), clause (1). The commissioner may determine eligibility as provided in subdivision 4, paragraph (c), and may deny or terminate benefits as prescribed under subdivision 4, paragraphs (d) and (e). The amount of assistance paid to or on behalf of an eligible individual under this subdivision must not exceed the following amounts: new text end

new text begin (1) $3,000 per state fiscal year; and new text end

new text begin (2) $10,000 in a lifetime. new text end

new text begin (c) A person eligible under this subdivision may use the benefit amounts for the following purposes: new text end

new text begin (1) licensing or certification tests, the successful completion of which demonstrates an individual's possession of the knowledge or skill required to enter into, maintain, or advance in employment in a predetermined and identified vocation or profession, provided that the tests and the licensing or credentialing organizations or entities that offer the tests are approved by the commissioner; new text end

new text begin (2) tests for admission to institutions of higher learning or graduate schools; new text end

new text begin (3) national tests providing an opportunity for course credit at institutions of higher learning; new text end

new text begin (4) a preparatory course for a test that is required or used for admission to an institution of higher education or a graduate program; and new text end

new text begin (5) any fee associated with the pursuit of a professional or educational objective specified in clauses (1) to (4). new text end

new text begin (d) If an eligible person receives benefits under subdivision 5, the eligible person's aggregate benefits under this subdivision and subdivision 5 must not exceed $10,000 in the eligible person's lifetime. new text end

new text begin (e) If an eligible person receives benefits under subdivision 5a, the eligible person's aggregate benefits under this subdivision and subdivision 5a must not exceed $10,000 in the eligible person's lifetime. new text end

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 197.791, subdivision 6, is amended to read:

Subd. 6.

Appropriation.

The amount necessary to pay the benefit amounts in subdivisions 5 deleted text begin and deleted text end new text begin , new text end 5a new text begin , and 5b new text end is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner. During any fiscal year beginning on or after July 1, 2012, the amount paid under this subdivision must not exceed $6,000,000.

Presented to the governor May 16, 2018

Signed by the governor May 19, 2018, 4:54 p.m.