SB 1015 Summary

• Establishes the Michigan Higher Education Grant program administered by the Michigan Higher Education Assistance Authority to award grants to eligible resident students attending public universities and community colleges in Michigan beginning in the 2012-2013 academic year.

• Requires students to be Michigan residents for 12 months prior to application, have received a high school diploma or GED from a Michigan school within 2 years of applying (with extensions available for military service or hardship), and be enrolled in a bachelor's, associate's, or vocational program.

• Sets the base grant amount equal to the median tuition cost for full-time students at Michigan public universities in 2011-2012, adjusted annually for inflation using the Detroit consumer price index, reduced by other federal and state grants the student receives.

• Limits full-time students to receiving grants for no more than 5 academic years and restricts grants to students attending at least half-time; requires students to submit FAFSA and apply for other available state grants.

• Creates the Michigan Higher Education Grant Trust Fund in the Department of Treasury funded by appropriations, donations, and interest earnings, with the intent that the first $1.8 billion in savings from eliminated tax expenditures shall fund the program.