A. To the extent that funds are made available by the legislature from the fund, the boards of regents or governing bodies of public post-secondary educational institutions and tribal colleges shall award tuition scholarships in department-approved amounts to qualified students and legacy students attending their respective public post-secondary educational institutions.

B. Beginning in fiscal year 2015:

(1) a legacy student is eligible to receive a tuition scholarship until the total number of program semesters for which the legislative lottery scholarship is received pursuant to the former provisions of Sections 21-1-4.3, 21-13-10 and 21-16-10.1 NMSA 1978 or the Legislative Lottery Tuition Scholarship Act reaches eight; provided that the legacy student maintains residency in New Mexico, maintains a grade point average of 2.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale and completes twelve or more credit hours per program semester; and

(2) a qualified student who is not a legacy student is eligible to receive the tuition scholarship for a maximum of seven program semesters and in an amount determined pursuant to the provisions of Section 21-21N-4 NMSA 1978.

C. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a tuition scholarship may be awarded to a qualified student who:

(1) maintains residency in New Mexico;

(2) maintains a grade point average of 2.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale; and

(3) completes:

(a) for a student attending a four-year public post-secondary educational institution or a tribal college, fifteen or more credit hours per program semester; and

(b) for a student attending a two-year public post-secondary educational institution, twelve or more credit hours per program semester.

D. For students with disabilities who may require accommodations, the department, in consultation with the student and the office at the public post-secondary educational institution or the tribal college that serves students with disabilities, shall review both the definition of "full time" and the maximum number of consecutive program semesters of eligibility and adjust either or both as deemed reasonable and appropriate, based on the student's disability needs. In no case, however, shall "full time" mean fewer than six credit hours per semester, and in no case shall eligibility extend beyond fourteen consecutive program semesters. The definition of "qualified student" notwithstanding, a New Mexico resident who had to leave the state to receive an education pursuant to the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act shall be eligible for a tuition scholarship if the student graduated from an accredited high school in another state and otherwise meets the qualifications for a tuition scholarship pursuant to the definition of "qualified student" and this section.

History: Laws 2014, ch. 80, § 3; 2016, ch. 21, § 2; 2019, ch. 33, § 1; 2019, ch. 54, § 2.

2019 Multiple Amendments. — Laws 2019, ch. 33, § 1, effective June 14, 2019, and Laws 2019, ch. 54, § 2, effective July 1, 2019, enacted different amendments to this section that can be reconciled. Pursuant to 12-1-8 NMSA 1978, Laws 2019, ch. 54, § 2, as the last act signed by the governor, is set out above and incorporates both amendments. The amendments enacted by Laws 2019, ch. 33, § 1 and Laws 2019, ch. 54, § 2 are described below. To view the session laws in their entirety, see the 2019 session laws on NMOneSource.com.

The nature of the difference between the amendments is that Laws 2019, ch. 33, § 1, extended scholarship eligibility to New Mexico residents who because of a disability left the state to receive a high school education pursuant to the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and Laws 2019, ch. 54, § 2, authorized tribal colleges to receive funds from the lottery tuition fund and to award scholarships to eligible students.

Laws 2019 ch. 33, § 1, effective June 14, 2019, extended scholarship eligibility to New Mexico residents who because of a disability left the state to receive a high school education pursuant to the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act; and in Subsection D, added the last sentence.

Laws 2019, ch. 54, § 2, effective July 1, 2019, authorized tribal colleges to receive funds from the lottery tuition fund and to award scholarships to eligible students and added "tribal colleges" in in Subsections A, C and D.

The 2016 amendment, effective May 18, 2016, clarified language as used in the Legislative Lottery Tuition Scholarship Act; in Subsection B, in Paragraph (1), after "total number of", added "program", after "legislative lottery scholarship", deleted "was" and added "is", and after "credit hours per", added "program", in Paragraph (2), after "Section", deleted "4 of the Legislative Lottery Tuition Scholarship Act" and added "21-21N-4 NMSA 1978"; in Subsection C, in Subparagraph C(3)(a) after "credit hours per", added "program", and in Subparagraph C(3)(b), after "credit hours per", added "program"; in Subsection D, after each occurrence of "consecutive", added "program".