Section 2733.10  Summary and Purpose

 

a)         As described in this Part, eligible Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) recipients are entitled to be exempt from paying tuition and certain fees at Illinois public postsecondary institutions. If appropriated Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) funds are insufficient to reimburse institutions for all eligible recipients, the obligation to pay is transferred to the institution.

 

b)         This Part establishes rules that govern the IVG Program.  Additional rules and definitions are contained in General Provisions, 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2700.

 

(Source:  Amended at 30 Ill. Reg. 11646, effective July 1, 2006)

 

Section 2733.20  Applicant Eligibility

 

a)         A qualified applicant shall be any member of the Armed Forces of the United States, a reserve component of the Armed Forces, or the Illinois National Guard who has served at least one year of federal active duty service and whose service has been characterized as honorable, provided the applicant:

 

1)         was a:

 

A)        resident of Illinois at the time of entering federal active duty service or within 6 months prior to entering the service; or

 

B)        student at an Illinois public university or community college at the time of entering federal active duty service; and

 

2)         established or plans to establish Illinois residency within 6 months after leaving federal active duty service, or if married to a person in continued military service:

 

A)        applied for this grant within 6 months after and including the date that the spouse was stationed within Illinois; or

 

B)        established Illinois residency within 6 months after and including the date that the spouse was separated (if the spouse was stationed outside Illinois).

 

b)         To use benefits, a qualified applicant meeting the requirements of subsection (a) must reside in Illinois while enrolled unless federal active duty is being served during the time of enrollment or the qualified applicant is residing with a spouse in continued military service who is currently stationed outside of Illinois.

 

c)         An applicant who does not meet the residency requirements in subsection (a) may be a qualified applicant if the applicant:

 

1)         resides in Illinois at the time of application and while enrolled; and

 

2)         has been a resident of Illinois for at least 15 consecutive years at some point since leaving federal active duty.

 

d)         Any member of the Armed Forces of the United States, a reserve component of the Armed Forces, or the Illinois National Guard who has served at least one year of federal active duty service and who meets the Illinois residency requirements of this Section is a qualified applicant if the service was characterized as honorable.  An honorable discharge may include a discharge under other than honorable conditions or general discharge under honorable conditions if only due to a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity but does not include a bad conduct discharge or a dishonorable discharge. [5 ILCS 70/1.44]  If the applicant is still in service, the individual shall be subject to verification of continued eligibility for assistance under this Part after each period of federal active duty service.

 

e)         A recipient must maintain an acceptable grade point average as determined by the institution pursuant to a published policy.

 

f)         An individual is not a qualified applicant unless the individual's service was characterized as honorable for the most recent period of federal active duty service.

 

g)         An individual is not a qualified applicant if the individual's federal active duty service was for less than one year unless:

 

1)         the applicant's separation from such service for medical reasons directly connected with such service was characterized as honorable; or

 

2)         the applicant's separation prior to August 11, 1967 was characterized as honorable; or

 

3)         the applicant's federal active duty service, which included service in a foreign country in a time of hostilities in that country, was characterized as honorable.  As used in this Section, "time of hostilities in a foreign country" means any action by the Armed Forces of the United States that is recognized by the issuance of a Presidential proclamation or a Presidential executive order and in which the Armed Forces expeditionary medal or other campaign service medals are awarded according to Presidential executive order. [20 ILCS 947/40]

 

h)         Members of the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) are not eligible for assistance under this Part.

 

i)          Applicants are not eligible if their only service has been attendance at a service academy.

 

j)          In order to establish eligibility for this grant, an individual shall submit to ISAC an application and documentation of all periods of service.

 

1)         An applicant should submit a copy of the Certificate of Release or Discharge From Active Duty (DD Form 214) or Discharge Certificate, which can be obtained from the National Personnel Records Center or the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs, or other documentation as required.

 

2)         If the applicant does not have a copy of the DD Form 214, the applicant should submit documentation that provides the following information: date of entry, date of separation, character of service, total active service, home or place of entry into the service, and home or place of separation from the service. The documentation must have been issued by the United States Department of Defense (DD) or the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.

 

3)         If the applicant is a member of the Armed Forces at the time of application, a letter from the commanding officer shall be submitted.  This letter must:

 

A)        indicate that the applicant is a member of the Armed Forces at the time of application;

 

B)        include character of service;

 

C)        include the veteran's home of record at the time of original enlistment;

 

D)        state the individual's length of time in each period of federal active duty service; and

 

E)        state the expiration date of the current enlistment.

 

4)         The definition of "Resident of Illinois" contained in 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2700.20 does not apply to the Illinois Veteran Grant Program; rather, for the purposes of this program, residency is established as stated in subsections (a) and (b) or (c).  If the applicant's DD Form 214 does not indicate Illinois residency when entering and/or separating from the Armed Forces, and when any other residency requirement is being verified, residency may be verified by providing one or more of the documents listed in this subsection (j)(4).  ISAC may choose to request documents in addition to, or instead of, those listed.  The dates recorded on the documents must indicate the applicant has resided in Illinois for the required period.

 

A)        Illinois driver's license issued during the relevant 6 month period;

 

B)        Illinois high school or college transcripts demonstrating attendance during the relevant 6 month period;

 

C)        Utility bills/rent receipts in the applicant's name for the relevant 6 month period;

 

D)        Illinois motor vehicle registration issued during the relevant 6 month period;

 

E)        Residential lease in the applicant's name for the relevant 6 month period;

 

F)         Statement of benefits history from the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services for the relevant 6 month period;

 

G)        Statement of benefits from the Illinois Department of Employment Security for the relevant 6 month period;

 

H)        State of Illinois identification card issued during the relevant 6 month period; or

 

I)         Letter of employment verified by certification in accordance with Illinois law (see 735 ILCS 5/1-109) and printed on company letterhead.

 

(Source:  Amended at 47 Ill. Reg. 2447, effective February 6, 2023)

 

Section 2733.30  Program Procedures

 

a)         An applicant must apply to ISAC for assistance under this Part.  ISAC will issue a Notice of Eligibility to each qualified applicant.

 

b)         To receive an Illinois Veteran Grant, a qualified applicant must notify the institution of the qualified applicant's eligibility no later than the last scheduled day of classes for the term for which a grant is requested.

 

c)         Benefits are applicable to both undergraduate and graduate enrollment. There are no minimum credit hour enrollment requirements and benefits are applicable for noncredit courses.

 

d)         Benefits are limited to use only at Illinois public universities and Illinois public community colleges.

 

e)         Costs exempted by the IVG:

 

1)         The recipient is exempt from paying costs as follows:

 

A)        tuition and fees that meet the definition of tuition (see 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2700.20);

 

B)        mandatory fees (see 23 Ill. Adm. Code 2700.20).

 

2)         A qualified applicant who has previously received benefits under this Part for a non-mandatory fee shall continue to receive benefits covering those fees while enrolled in a continuous program of study.  The qualified applicant shall no longer receive a grant covering non-mandatory fees if the applicant fails to enroll during an academic term, unless federal active duty is being served.  The non-mandatory fees include the following:

 

A)        instructional fees not meeting the definition of tuition;

 

B)        application fees;

 

C)        graduation and transcript fees;

 

D)        proficiency exam, College Level Exam Program (CLEP), placement exam and similar fees;

 

E)        off-campus and other extension course fees;

 

F)         air flight instructor and athletic fees; and

 

G)        matriculation, service and other registration type fees.

 

f)         Recipients attending out-of-district community colleges receive tuition and fee benefits equivalent to those at the in-district rate.  Recipients shall not be responsible for paying the difference between in-district and out-of-district tuition.  Institutions are permitted to require documentation of residency in order to determine in-district or out-of-district payment.

 

g)         Benefits are limited to the equivalent of four academic years of full-time enrollment, which is measured in eligibility units.  Recipients may accumulate up to 120 eligibility units.

 

1)         To determine the amount of eligibility a recipient has used, credit hours (and noncredit hours for which benefits are used) will be converted to eligibility units according to the following table:

 

Number of Hours	Semester Term	Quarter Term
12 or more hours	12 units	8 units
9 - 11.99 hours	9 units	6 units
6 - 8.99 hours	6 units	4 units
3 - 5.99 hours	3 units	2 units
up to 2.99 hours	1 unit	1 unit

 

2)         When a qualified applicant becomes eligible to receive educational assistance under Section 2733.40(b), the number of units used will be calculated as follows:

 

A)        Multiply the percentage of the tuition and mandatory fee charges covered by the IVG by the number of credit hours attempted.

 

B)        Convert the result to eligibility units, as described in the table in subsection (g)(1).

 

3)         Full program benefits may be extended for one additional term if the recipient has accumulated fewer than 120 eligibility units but does not have enough units remaining for the number of hours in which the recipient is enrolled for the term.

 

4)         In the event that a recipient withdraws from a course prior to the end of a term, a refund will be made according to the institution's refund withdrawal policy and eligibility units will be adjusted accordingly.

 

5)         The eligibility units used for a noncredit course shall be the same as the number of eligibility units used for a credit course having the same number of faculty contact hours.

 

6)         If, for any reason, the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) terminates or suspends a veteran educational benefits program, assistance under this Part shall cease six months following this action.  This does not include veterans who have begun receiving educational benefits under this Part.  In the event that the VA resumes terminated or suspended educational benefits, all current rules will be enforced.

 

(Source:  Amended at 44 Ill. Reg. 11019, effective July 1, 2020)

 

Section 2733.40  Institutional Procedures

 

a)         If a student is eligible for both an IVG and a Monetary Award Program (MAP) grant, the IVG benefits must be used first.  A student cannot decline IVG benefits in favor of using MAP.

 

b)         If a student is eligible for, and has indicated to the institution the intent to receive educational assistance through, the Post-9/11 GI Bill (38 U.S.C., Chapter 33), the institution must first apply Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to the student's financial aid award. IVG benefits can then be used to cover the remaining IVG eligible tuition and mandatory fees.

 

c)         A notice of eligibility from ISAC must be used by the institution to establish a qualified applicant's initial eligibility.

 

d)         Institutions shall submit a payment request to ISAC.

 

e)         So that ISAC can accurately track the recipient's use of eligibility units, institutions must report the total number of hours (including credit and noncredit hours) for which payment is being requested, even if IVG is paying only a portion of the charges for a course due to a withdrawal.

 

f)         ISAC will annually establish priority claim dates for the submission of payment requests and inform institutions of the required priority dates.  For the summer term, the priority claim date will be during the month of September; for the fall term, the priority claim date will be during the month of December; for the spring term, the priority claim date will be during the month of May.

 

g)         The reimbursement to institutions for Illinois Veteran Grants is contingent upon available funding.  Should General Assembly appropriations be insufficient to pay all claims, institutions will be reimbursed in accordance with this subsection:

 

1)         summer term claims received by the deadline date designated in subsection (f) will be paid, or prorated if funding is insufficient to pay all claims in full;

 

2)         if funds remain after summer term claims are paid, first semester and first quarter claims received by the designated deadline date will be paid, or prorated if funding is insufficient to pay all claims in full;

 

3)         if funds remain after first semester and first quarter claims are paid, then second semester/second and third quarter claims received by the designated deadline date will be paid, or prorated if funds remaining are insufficient to pay all such claims in full;

 

4)         if funds remain after second semester/second and third quarter claims are paid, claims received by ISAC after the designated deadline dates will be paid or prorated; and

 

5)         timely claims for the difference between in-district/state and out-of-district/state tuition for recipients who do not qualify for chargebacks will be considered for payment at the same time, and in the same priority order, as all other timely claims, in accordance with the provisions of this subsection (g).

 

h)         Institutions are required to reconcile payments, both payment data and actual funds, received through IVG and, as applicable, submit all necessary corrections to student records on a timely basis.

 

1)         Within 30 days after and including the date of receiving payment of any IVG funds claimed pursuant to this Section, the institution shall credit the IVG funds against the recipient's tuition and mandatory fee charges for the appropriate term.

 

2)         Within 30 days after the end of an academic term during which IVG funds are credited to recipient's tuition and mandatory fee charges, institutions must reconcile data received from ISAC as a result of payment claim processing against the eligibility status throughout that term for each student for whom payment claims were made. In reconciling the data with student eligibility, an institution must determine whether:

 

A)        The amount of the claim applied to a student's tuition and mandatory fee charges exceeded the amount that the student was eligible to receive for any reason, including as a result of billing errors or retroactive withdrawals; or

 

B)        The amount of the claim applied to a student's tuition and mandatory fee charges was less than the amount that the student was eligible to receive for any reason, including as a result of billing errors or retroactive withdrawals; or

 

C)        The amount of the claim applied to a student's tuition and mandatory fee charges equaled the amount that the student was eligible to receive.

 

3)         Any institution that determines that the amount of a claim applied to a student's tuition and mandatory fee charges either exceeded the amount that the student was eligible to receive, or was less than that amount, must submit an accounting of all such adjustments to ISAC within 30 days following the end of the applicable term.

 

4)         For any claims determined to exceed the amount that the student was eligible to receive, the amount in excess paid for the claims shall be remitted to ISAC within 45 days after the end of the applicable term unless the payment is received after the end of the applicable term. If the payment of claims is made after the end of the applicable term, the institution shall have 60 days following receipt of the payment to complete reconciliation and remit any funds due to ISAC.

 

5)         Award payments made in the name of one recipient cannot be applied to another recipient at the same institution. A refund of the payment made must be submitted to ISAC, and a supplemental request for payment must be processed for the proper recipient.

 

(Source:  Amended at 48 Ill. Reg. 4450, effective March 8, 2024)