SB 197 — Michigan: Modify Michigan Tuition Grant (1966 PA 313; MCL 390.991 et seq.)
Status
- Introduced: January 23, 2025
- Action: Referred to Committee on Appropriations (Budget/Finance committee)
- Statutory target: Amends sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 7a of 1966 PA 313 (MCL 390.991 et seq.)
Summary / Purpose
SB 197 updates the Michigan Tuition Grant (MTG) program — the state tuition grant that helps resident students attend eligible independent nonprofit colleges and universities in Michigan. The bill clarifies administration, eligibility, award calculation, and interactions with other scholarship programs, and makes conforming edits to who administers and implements the program.
Key provisions and changes
- Administration
- Transfers primary administration language from the Michigan Higher Education Assistance Authority to the named “department” (department of lifelong education, advancement, and potential) as the entity that administers MTG awards and promulgates rules under the Administrative Procedures Act.
- Department tasked with setting maximum grant levels in years when appropriations are insufficient.
Eligibility and residency
- Reiterates MTG is for resident students enrolled at eligible independent nonprofit Michigan institutions.
- Requires continuous Michigan residency for the preceding 12 months and that applicants are not residents of another state.
- Explicitly excludes students who are incarcerated in a corrections institution.
Enrollment status and priority
- Grants available to eligible undergraduate and graduate students; department gives priority to full‑time students.
Award limits and semesters
- Restates semester limits (undergraduate, graduate, dental) consistent with current statute language (e.g., limits for undergraduate semesters and special pandemic-era exception mentioned for certain 2020 enrollees).
- Grants may not exceed reported tuition & fees for the full academic year or an amount the department determines appropriate based on family resources.
Financial need and calculation
- Department must determine award amounts based on an evaluation of family financial resources using the same criteria used in MCL provisions cited from 1964 PA 208 (MCL 390.971–390.981). Allowances must be made for other family members enrolled in approved institutions.
Interaction with other scholarships
- Students receiving the Michigan Achievement Scholarship (School Aid Act §248, MCL 388.1848) are ineligible for MTG.
- Students with a state competitive scholarship cannot receive MTG concurrently, but the state competitive scholarship may be increased by tuition grant funds up to the MTG maximum if MTG maximum exceeds the competitive award.
- If a private, nonprofit institution provides a scholarship covering full tuition and fees, the student is ineligible for MTG; partial private scholarships permit proportionate MTG awards.
Administration, rulemaking, and payments
- Payments are to be prorated and made at the start of each semester/term to the student or the institution for credit to the student’s account.
- The department will promulgate implementing rules under the Administrative Procedures Act (1969 PA 306).
Who is affected
- Primary: Michigan resident students attending eligible independent nonprofit colleges and universities; particularly full‑time and financially needy students.
- Secondary: Private nonprofit institutions (report tuition/fees and cooperate with MTG administration); the administering state department and budget/appropriations processes.
- Excluded: Students incarcerated in corrections institutions; recipients of specified state scholarships (e.g., Michigan Achievement Scholarship).
Procedural / Budget implications
- Referred to Appropriations — indicates fiscal effects will be considered. The bill does not specify new appropriation amounts; it directs the department to set maximum awards when appropriations are insufficient.
- Potential fiscal impact: Changes clarify eligibility and administration but do not on their face appropriate additional funds — actual cost will depend on departmental rule choices and annual appropriations (number of recipients, award levels).
Next steps
- Pending review and possible amendments in the Committee on Appropriations; any fiscal analyses or appropriation provisions would be considered in that committee before further floor action.
