1.1    .................... moves to amend H.F. No. 3877 as follows:
1.2Delete everything after the enacting clause and insert:

1.3    "Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2007 Supplement, section 197.791, subdivision 1,
1.4is amended to read:
1.5    Subdivision 1. Definitions. (a) The definitions in this subdivision apply to this
1.6section.
1.7    (b) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of veterans affairs, unless otherwise
1.8specified.
1.9    (c) "Cost of attendance" for both graduate and undergraduate students has the
1.10meaning given in section 136A.121, subdivision 6, multiplied by a factor of 1.1 1.2. The
1.11"Cost of attendance" for graduate students has the meaning given in section 136A.121,
1.12subdivision 6, multiplied by a factor of 1.2, using the tuition and fee maximum established
1.13by law for four-year programs shall be used to calculate the tuition and fee maximum
1.14under section 136A.121, subdivision 6, for a graduate student.
1.15    (d) "Child" means a natural or adopted child of a person described in subdivision 4,
1.16paragraph (a), clause (1), item (i) or (ii).
1.17    (e) "Eligible institution" means a postsecondary institution under section 136A.101,
1.18subdivision 4., or a graduate school licensed or registered with the state of Minnesota
1.19serving only graduate students.
1.20    (f) "Program" means the Minnesota GI Bill program established in this section,
1.21unless otherwise specified.
1.22    (g) "Time of hostilities" means any action by the armed forces of the United States
1.23that is recognized by the issuance of a presidential proclamation or a presidential executive
1.24order in which the armed forces expeditionary medal or other campaign service medals
1.25are awarded according to presidential executive order, and any additional period or place
1.26that the commissioner determines and designates, after consultation with the United States
1.27Department of Defense, to be a period or place where the United States is in a conflict that
2.1places persons at such a risk that service in a foreign country during that period or in that
2.2place should be considered to be included.
2.3    (h) "Veteran" has the meaning given in section 197.447. Veteran also includes
2.4a service member who has received an honorable discharge after leaving each period of
2.5federal active duty service and has:
2.6    (1) served 90 days or more of federal active duty in a foreign country during a time
2.7of hostilities in that country or been awarded one or more of the following medals:
2.8    (i) Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal;
2.9    (ii) Kosovo Campaign Medal
2.10    (iii) Afghanistan Campaign Medal
2.11    (iv) Iraq Campaign Medal
2.12    (v) Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal; or
2.13    (vi) other campaign medals authorized for service after September 11, 2001; or
2.14    (2) received a service-related medical discharge from any period of service in a
2.15foreign country during a time of hostilities in that country.
2.16A service member who has fulfilled the requirements for being a veteran under this
2.17paragraph but is still serving actively in the United States armed forces is also a veteran
2.18for the purposes of this section.

2.19    Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2007 Supplement, section 197.791, subdivision 4, is
2.20amended to read:
2.21    Subd. 4. Eligibility. (a) A person is eligible for educational assistance under this
2.22section if:
2.23    (1) the person is:
2.24    (i) a veteran who is serving or has served honorably in any branch or unit of the
2.25United States armed forces at any time on or after September 11, 2001;
2.26    (ii) a nonveteran who has served honorably for a total of five years or more
2.27cumulatively as a member of the Minnesota National Guard or any other active or reserve
2.28component of the United States armed forces, and any part of that service occurred on or
2.29after September 11, 2001;
2.30    (iii) the surviving spouse or child of a person who has served in the military at any
2.31time on or after September 11, 2001, and who has died as a direct result of that military
2.32service; or
2.33    (iv) the spouse or child of a person who has served in the military at any time on or
2.34after September 11, 2001, and who has a total and permanent service-connected disability
2.35as rated by the United States Veterans Administration;
3.1    (2) the person providing the military service described in clause (1), items (i) to (iv),
3.2was a Minnesota resident within six months of the time of the person's initial enlistment or
3.3any reenlistment in the United States armed forces;
3.4    (3) (2) the person receiving the educational assistance is a Minnesota resident, as
3.5defined in section 136A.101, subdivision 8; and
3.6    (4) (3) the person receiving the educational assistance:
3.7    (i) is an undergraduate or graduate student at an eligible institution;
3.8    (ii) is maintaining satisfactory academic progress as defined by the institution for
3.9students participating in federal Title IV programs;
3.10    (iii) is enrolled in an education program leading to a certificate, diploma, or degree
3.11at an eligible institution;
3.12    (iv) has applied for educational assistance under this section prior to the end of the
3.13academic term for which the assistance is being requested;
3.14    (v) is in compliance with child support payment requirements under section
3.15136A.121, subdivision 2 , clause (5); and
3.16    (vi) if an undergraduate student, has applied for the federal Pell Grant and the
3.17Minnesota State Grant has completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid
3.18(FAFSA).
3.19    (b) A person's eligibility terminates when the person becomes eligible for benefits
3.20under section 135A.52.
3.21    (c) To determine eligibility, the commissioner may require official documentation,
3.22including the person's federal form DD-214 or other official military discharge papers;
3.23correspondence from the United States Veterans Administration; birth certificate; marriage
3.24certificate; proof of enrollment at an eligible institution; signed affidavits; proof of
3.25residency; proof of identity; or any other official documentation the commissioner
3.26considers necessary to determine eligibility.
3.27    (d) The commissioner may deny eligibility or terminate benefits under this section
3.28to any person who has not provided sufficient documentation to determine eligibility for
3.29the program. An applicant may appeal the commissioner's eligibility determination or
3.30termination of benefits in writing to the commissioner at any time. The commissioner
3.31must rule on any application or appeal within 30 days of receipt of all documentation that
3.32the commissioner requires. The decision of the commissioner regarding an appeal is final.
3.33However, an applicant whose appeal of an eligibility determination has been rejected by
3.34the commissioner may submit an additional appeal of that determination in writing to the
3.35commissioner at any time that the applicant is able to provide substantively significant
3.36additional information regarding the applicant's eligibility for the program. An approval
4.1of an applicant's eligibility by the commissioner following an appeal by the applicant is
4.2not retroactively effective for more than one year or the semester of the person's original
4.3application, whichever is later.
4.4    (e) Upon receiving an application with insufficient documentation to determine
4.5eligibility, the commissioner must notify the applicant within 30 days of receipt of the
4.6application that the application is being suspended pending receipt by the commissioner of
4.7sufficient documentation from the applicant to determine eligibility.

4.8    Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2007 Supplement, section 197.791, subdivision 5, is
4.9amended to read:
4.10    Subd. 5. Benefit amount. (a) On approval by the commissioner of eligibility for
4.11the program, the applicant shall be awarded, on a funds-available basis, the educational
4.12assistance under the program for use at any time according to program rules at any
4.13eligible institution.
4.14    (b) The amount of educational assistance in any semester or term for an eligible
4.15person must be determined by subtracting from the eligible person's cost of attendance the
4.16amount the person received or was eligible to receive in that semester or term from:
4.17    (1) the federal Pell Grant;
4.18    (2) the state grant program under section 136A.121; and
4.19    (3) any federal military or veterans educational benefits including but not limited
4.20to the Montgomery GI Bill, GI Bill Kicker, the federal tuition assistance program,
4.21vocational rehabilitation benefits, and any other federal benefits associated with the
4.22person's status as a veteran, except veterans disability payments from the United States
4.23Veterans Administration.
4.24    (c) The amount of educational assistance for any eligible person who is a full-time
4.25student must not exceed the following:
4.26    (1) $1,000 per semester or term of enrollment;
4.27    (2) $2,000 $3,000 per state fiscal year; and
4.28    (3) $10,000 in a lifetime.
4.29For a part-time student, the amount of educational assistance must not exceed $500
4.30per semester or term of enrollment. For the purpose of this paragraph, a part-time
4.31undergraduate student is a student taking fewer than 12 credits for a semester or term of
4.32enrollment and a part-time graduate student is a student considered part time by the eligible
4.33institution the graduate student is attending. The minimum award for undergraduate and
4.34graduate students is $50 per term."
4.35Amend the title accordingly