[Oasfaa] Update - Oklahoma National Guard Educational Assistance Program (SB 1418)

[Fair, Bryce]

To Financial Aid Officers at State System Colleges and Universities:
Please see the information below and attached that was sent yesterday from the State Regents office to the Presidents of state system institutions and also forwarded to the Business Officers of the institutions regarding SB 1418 (attached) that passed during the 2022 session creating the Oklahoma National Guard Educational Assistance Program.  Following are some important points about the changes beginning with the Fall 2022 semester.


  *   The new Oklahoma National Guard Educational Assistance Program (Program) will replace the previous Oklahoma National Guard Tuition Waiver program beginning with the Fall 2022 semester.
  *   The expanded educational benefits under the new Program cover tuition, mandatory fees, and academic service fees for up to 18 credit hours per semester.  Benefits for undergraduate programs are limited to a maximum of 120 credit hours.  Benefits for graduate programs leading to a master’s degree are authorized for up to a maximum of 40 credit hours.
  *   As discussed below, state funding for the new Program was not included in the state appropriations to the higher education for the FY2023.  However, the State Regents and the Oklahoma National Guard are working with legislative budget leaders (see attached letter) to secure funding to reimburse institutional costs of the Program for the Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 semesters when the Legislature convenes its regular session next February.
  *   The new Program is intended to reimburse institutions for the full cost of the expanded educational benefits rather than the partial reimbursement structure under the previous tuition waiver program.
We will be working on more detailed information and a claim form for institutions to use for reimbursement of costs. The contact person in our department for this Program will be:
Linette McMurtrey
Scholarship Programs Coordinator
lmcmurtrey at osrhe.edu<mailto:lmcmurtrey at osrhe.edu>
405-225-9131

Let us know if you have questions.  We appreciate your patience and support as we work with the Oklahoma National Guard to implement this important new program.
Bryce Fair

Bryce Fair
Associate Vice Chancellor for Scholarships & Grants
Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education
Phone: 405-225-9162
Email: bfair at osrhe.edu<mailto:bfair at osrhe.edu>


====================================================================
From: Smith, Kylie
Date: August 1, 2022 at 4:43:40 PM CDT
To: Presidents
Subject: Oklahoma National Guard Educational Assistance Program (SB 1418)

Good afternoon Presidents,

As you know, SB 1416 and SB 1418 were passed and signed into law during the 2022 legislative session.


  1.  SB 1416 extends in-state residency status to current members of the Oklahoma National Guard (copy attached).


  1.  SB 1418 creates the Oklahoma National Guard Educational Assistance Program, which covers the costs of resident tuition, mandatory fees, and academic services fees for courses in which eligible Guard members enroll, not to exceed a maximum of 18 credit hours per semester, subject to the availability of funds (copy attached).

Based on recent discussions with the National Guard, these changes become effective beginning with the 2022-23 academic year, and the expanded education benefits covering mandatory fees and academic service fees WILL BE awarded for the Fall 2022 semester.

Given that funding to cover the additional costs associated with the expansion of the current National Guard Tuition Waiver program through SB 1418 was not included in our system-wide appropriation for FY23, we have been having discussions with legislative leaders and the National Guard to ensure that our institutions receive adequate funding for this program. As a result of these discussions, we have attached a letter from House Appropriations & Budget Committee Chair Kevin Wallace and Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Roger Thompson acknowledging that additional, ongoing funding is needed to sustain this program.

The National Guard and the OSRHE will be working with Chair Wallace and Chair Thompson to secure a supplemental appropriation to reimburse institutional costs for the Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 semesters when the Legislature convenes its regular session next February and to ensure that continued funding is included in higher education’s base appropriation going forward in subsequent fiscal years.

While we are in the process of drafting administrative rules to implement the changes associated with SB 1416 and SB 1418, we wanted to provide this information about program funding to you as soon as possible since many institutions have already had National Guard students inquire about these programmatic changes.

This information is also being shared with your institution’s business officer and financial aid officer.

Thank you.

Kylie

Kylie Smith
Vice Chancellor for Administration
Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education

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