1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to higher education; expanding access to state financial aid programs for 
1.3 	students without lawful immigration status;amending Minnesota Statutes 2014, 
1.4 	section 136A.121, subdivisions 5, 9.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 136A.121, subdivision 5, is amended to 
1.7 	read:
1.8 		Subd. 5.Grant stipends. The grant stipend shall be based on a sharing of 
1.9 	responsibility for covering the recognized cost of attendance by the applicant, the 
1.10 	applicant's family, and the government. The amount of a financial stipend must not 
1.11 	exceed a grant applicant's recognized cost of attendance, as defined in subdivision 6, after 
1.12 	deducting the following:
1.13 	(1) the assigned student responsibility of at least 50 percent of the cost of attending 
1.14 	the institution of the applicant's choosing;
1.15 	(2) the assigned family responsibility as defined in section 136A.101; and
1.16 	(3) the amount of a federal Pell grant award for which the grant applicant is eligible, 
1.17 	unless the student is ineligible to receive a Pell grant under United States Code, title 20, 
1.18 	section 1091(a)(5) or (d).
1.19 	The minimum financial stipend is $100 per academic year.

1.20 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 136A.121, subdivision 9, is amended to read:
1.21 		Subd. 9.Awards. (a) An undergraduate student who meets the office's requirements 
1.22 	is eligible to apply for and receive a grant in any year of undergraduate study unless the 
1.23 	student has obtained a baccalaureate degree or previously has been enrolled full time 
2.1 	or the equivalent for eight semesters or the equivalent, excluding courses taken from a 
2.2 	Minnesota school or postsecondary institution which is not participating in the state grant 
2.3 	program and from which a student transferred no credit. A student enrolled in a two-year 
2.4 	program at a four-year institution is only eligible for the tuition and fee maximums 
2.5 	established by law for two-year institutions.
2.6 	(b) For a student who qualifies as a resident student under section 136A.101, 
2.7 	subdivision 8, clause (9), the commissioner must not count towards the eight semester 
2.8 	limit in paragraph (a) any semester in which the student was not eligible for an award 
2.9 	under this section due to the fact that the student did not have lawful immigration status.