HB 209 Summary

• Establishes the Finish Fund administered by the Ohio Board of Regents' Chancellor to provide grants to undergraduate students nearing completion of bachelor's degrees who demonstrate financial need or hardship.

• Eligible students must be Ohio residents enrolled in bachelor's or associate degree programs at state institutions or nonprofit colleges, maintain a 2.5 GPA, be making satisfactory academic progress, and have declared an academic major.

• Prioritizes grant awards to seniors first, then juniors, with preference given to students who have exhausted federal Pell grants, Ohio College Opportunity Grants, institutional scholarships, and federal subsidized loans.

• Creates the Finish Reserve Fund to hold any unawarded grant funds at the end of each fiscal year for distribution in subsequent years, with Chancellor required to seek Controlling Board approval for additional expenditures.

• Appropriates $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2014 and $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2015 from the General Revenue Fund for the Finish Fund Program.