Section 2743.30  Program Procedures

a)         All applicants must complete annually an ISAC application for the Grant Program for Exonerees and their Dependents.

1)         Applications are available at ISAC's website and ISAC's Springfield and Deerfield offices.

2)         If the application is incomplete, ISAC will notify the applicant, who will have an opportunity to furnish the missing information. The application will only be considered for processing as of the date the application is complete and received by ISAC.

3)         All qualified applicants must also submit any forms required of the Program.

b)         Benefits are limited to the full-time enrollment equivalent of 8 semesters or 12 quarters of payment for undergraduate or graduate study.[110 ILCS 947/62(b)] Qualified applicants will be awarded a maximum 48 eligibility units as set forth on the Program page published on the ISAC website.  If the exonerated person has not exhausted their benefits, the exonerated person may designate one or more dependents to use the unexpended portion.  The combined benefits used by an exonerated person and their designated dependents are limited to the total benefit for which the exonerated person is eligible.

c)         The Grant Program for Exonerees and their Dependents funds shall be applicable only to tuition and mandatory fees and only for two semesters or three quarters in a regular school year.

d)         ISAC shall select the recipients from among those who have submitted complete applications, including qualified new applicants and those who filed timely renewal applications and have supplied information required.

e)         The total number of grants awarded in a given fiscal year is contingent upon available funding. If funding is insufficient to pay all eligible applicants of the grant, awarding will be based on the date the completed application is received by ISAC. Preference will first be given to renewal applicants, who continue to meet the eligibility requirements, followed by applicants who have been exonerated, and finally applicants who are designated dependents of exonerated persons.

f)         Each qualified applicant who is selected to receive a grant shall be notified by ISAC.  Applicants not receiving the grant will be notified as well.

g)         The grant may be used to pay costs associated with obtaining a high school equivalency certificate and up to one retest on each test module.

h)         The grant may be used to pay costs associated with obtaining an official transcript of test scores after successful completion of the high school equivalency test.

i)          The total amount of Grant Program for Exonerees and their Dependents funds awarded pursuant to Section 2743.30(b) to a qualified recipient in a given academic year, when added to other financial aid available to the qualified recipient for that year, shall not exceed the cost of attendance.

j)          A qualified applicant attending a private institution in Illinois may receive funds sufficient to pay the cost of tuition and mandatory fees, provided the funding does not exceed the maximum amount payable to a student enrolled in the most expensive comparable program of study at a public college or university in this State. [110 ILCS 947/62(b)]

k)         ISAC pays grant funds directly to the institution of record in the name of the recipient; however, ISAC reserves the right to reimburse costs associated with obtaining a high school equivalency certificate or in obtaining transcripts and test scores (as described in subsection (h)) directly to the qualified applicant.

(Source:  Amended at 50 Ill. Reg. 9451, effective June 25, 2026)