SENATE BILL 301

51st legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2013

INTRODUCED BY

Craig Brandt

AN ACT

RELATING TO HIGHER EDUCATION; INCREASING THE FAMILY INCOME FOR ELIGIBILITY FOR THE NEW MEXICO SCHOLARS ACT SCHOLARSHIPS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. Section 21-21H-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1989, Chapter 212, Section 1) is amended to read:

     "21-21H-1. SHORT TITLE.--[This act] Chapter 21, Article 21H NMSA 1978 may be cited as the "New Mexico Scholars Act"."

     SECTION 2. Section 21-21H-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1989, Chapter 212, Section 3) is amended to read:

     "21-21H-3. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the New Mexico Scholars Act:

          A. "academic year" means any consecutive period of two semesters, three quarters or other comparable units commencing with the fall term each year;

          B. "award recipient" means a student awarded a New Mexico Scholars Act scholarship;

          C. ["commission"] "department" means the [commission on] higher education department;

          D. "eligible institution" means any degree-granting educational institution in New Mexico accredited by the north central association of colleges and secondary schools;

          E. "satisfactory academic progress" means completion of at least twenty-four credit hours per year and maintenance of a cumulative grade point average of a minimum of 3.0 or higher on a scale of 4.0; and

          F. "scholarship" means a scholarship awarded pursuant to the New Mexico Scholars Act."

     SECTION 3. Section 21-21H-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1989, Chapter 212, Section 4) is amended to read:

     "21-21H-4. CREATION OF SCHOLARSHIP.--There are established "New Mexico Scholars Act scholarships" administered by the [commission] department."

     SECTION 4. Section 21-21H-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1989, Chapter 212, Section 5, as amended) is amended to read:

     "21-21H-5. CONDITIONS FOR FIRST YEAR ELIGIBILITY.--A

scholarship may be awarded to a New Mexico high school graduate who:

          A. is a resident of New Mexico as determined by the definition of residency for tuition purposes as established by the [commission] department;

          B. will graduate or has graduated from a New Mexico high school and who enrolls in an eligible institution by the end of [his] the graduate's twenty-first birthday;

          C. has met the admission requirements and is accepted for enrollment as a full-time undergraduate student at an eligible institution;

          D. has maintained a level of performance in high school reflected by an overall score of at least twenty-five on the American college test or SAT equivalent or a high school class rank in the top five percent of the student's high school graduating class in either the student's junior or senior year;

          E. has a total combined family income of no more than [thirty thousand dollars ($30,000)] sixty thousand dollars ($60,000) per year adjusted annually on January 1 to reflect any change from the previous year's then-current consumer price index for all urban consumers published by the bureau of labor statistics of the United States department of labor in either of the calendar years ending within the student's junior or senior years in high school or in the case of a student whose immediate family has more than one family member enrolled full time in an eligible institution of post-secondary education, a total combined family income of no more than an amount as determined by the [commission] department to be equivalent to a [thirty-thousand-dollar ($30,000)] sixty-thousand dollar ($60,000) total combined family income;

          F. has complied with all the rules [and regulations] adopted by the [commission] department for award of the scholarship and the provisions regarding the administration of scholarships adopted pursuant to the New Mexico Scholars Act; and

          G. is a citizen of the United States or has a permanent resident visa."

     SECTION 5. Section 21-21H-8 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1989, Chapter 212, Section 8, as amended) is amended to read:

     "21-21H-8. TERMINATION OF SCHOLARSHIPS.--A scholarship is terminated upon the substantial noncompliance by the award recipient with the New Mexico Scholars Act or the rules [regulations or procedures] promulgated by the [commission] department pursuant to that act."

     SECTION 6. Section 21-21H-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1989, Chapter 212, Section 9, as amended) is amended to read:

     "21-21H-9. RULES [AND REGULATIONS].--The [commission] department may adopt such rules [regulations and procedures] as necessary or appropriate to implement the provisions of the New Mexico Scholars Act. A financial aid officer may exercise professional judgment when special circumstances exist to adjust the cost of attendance or the expected family contribution or to modify other factors that make the program responsive to a student's special financial circumstances and for which documentation exists in the student's file within the parameters authorized for this program."

     SECTION 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2013.

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