1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to veterans; increasing the per semester and annual grant amount for 
1.3 	veterans receiving Minnesota GI Bill educational assistance for higher education;
1.4 	amending Minnesota Statutes 2007 Supplement, section 197.791, subdivision 5.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2007 Supplement, section 197.791, subdivision 5, 
1.7 	is amended to read:
1.8 		Subd. 5.Benefit amount. (a) On approval by the commissioner of eligibility for 
1.9 	the program, the applicant shall be awarded, on a funds-available basis, the educational 
1.10 	assistance under the program for use at any time according to program rules at any 
1.11 	eligible institution.
1.12 	(b) The amount of educational assistance in any semester or term for an eligible 
1.13 	person must be determined by subtracting from the eligible person's cost of attendance the 
1.14 	amount the person received or was eligible to receive in that semester or term from:
1.15 	(1) the federal Pell Grant;
1.16 	(2) the state grant program under section 136A.121; and 
1.17 	(3) any federal military or veterans educational benefits including but not limited 
1.18 	to the Montgomery GI Bill, GI Bill Kicker, the federal tuition assistance program, 
1.19 	vocational rehabilitation benefits, and any other federal benefits associated with the 
1.20 	person's status as a veteran, except veterans disability payments from the United States 
1.21 	Veterans Administration.
1.22 	(c) The amount of educational assistance for any eligible person who is a full-time 
1.23 	student must not exceed the following:
1.24 	(1) $1,000 $1,250 per semester or term of enrollment;
2.1 	(2) $2,000 $2,500 per state fiscal year; and
2.2 	(3) $10,000 in a lifetime.
2.3 	For a part-time student, the amount of educational assistance must not exceed $500
2.4 	$625 per semester or term of enrollment. For the purpose of this paragraph, a part-time 
2.5 	undergraduate student is a student taking fewer than 12 credits for a semester or term 
2.6 	of enrollment and a part-time graduate student is a student considered part time by the 
2.7 	eligible institution the graduate student is attending.

2.8 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective July 1, 2008, for grant applications 
2.9 	pending on or after that date.