Senate Bill No. 112
(By Senator Deem)
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[Introduced February 15, 2001; referred to the
Committee on Military; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section twenty-one, article one-b,
chapter fifteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to providing
for the payment of tuition and fees to members of the
national guard who attend schools in this state approved for
veterans administration benefits.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section twenty-one, article one-b, chapter fifteen of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one,
as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1B. NATIONAL GUARD.
§15-1B-21. Tuition and fees for guard members at institutions of higher education.
(a) Any member of the national guard who is enrolled in a
course of undergraduate study and is attending any accredited
college, university, business, or trade school or school approved
for veterans administration benefits located in West Virginia or
is attending any aviation school located in West Virginia for the
purpose of taking college-credit courses, may be entitled to
payment of tuitions and fees at that college, university,
business or trade school, or aviation school or school approved
for veterans administration benefits during the period of his or
her service in the national guard: Provided, That the adjutant
general may prescribe criteria of eligibility for payment of
tuition and fees at the college, university, business or trade
school, or aviation school or school approved for veterans
administration benefits: Provided, however, That such payment is
contingent upon appropriations being made by the Legislature for
this express purpose.
(b) The amount of the payment for members attending a
state-supported school shall be determined by the adjutant
general and may not exceed the actual amount of tuition and fees
at the school. The amount of such payment for members attending a private school shall be determined by the adjutant general, but
in no event may exceed the highest amounts payable at any state-
supported school.
(c) Any member of the national guard who is enrolled in a
course of postgraduate study and is attending any accredited
college or university located in West Virginia, and is receiving
payments under the army continuing education system, may be
entitled to payment of tuition and fees at that college or
university during his or her period of service in the national
guard: Provided, That the sum of payments received under this
subsection and the army continuing education system may not
exceed the actual amount of tuition and fees at the school and in
no event may exceed the highest amounts payable at any state-
supported school. Such payments are contingent upon
appropriations being made by the Legislature for this express
purpose.
(d) The adjutant general shall administer the tuition and
fee payments authorized under this section and shall propose
policies to implement the provisions of this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide for the payment
of tuition and fees to national guard members who are enrolled in
schools located in this state that are approved for Veterans
Administration benefits.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.