An Act To Permit a Student Holding a Degree from a Non-Maine Institution To Participate in the Job Creation Through Educational Opportunity Program
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §12542, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2011, c. 665, §§2 and 3, is further amended to read:
3. Eligibility for the program. To be eligible to participate in the program:
A. An individual must be a Maine resident;
B. An Except as provided in paragraph F, an individual must attend and obtain an associate degree or a bachelor's degree from an accredited Maine community college, college or university. The individual need not obtain the degree from the institution in which that individual originally enrolled, as long as all course work toward the degree is performed at accredited Maine community colleges, colleges or universities. Beginning January 1, 2013, an individual who transfers to an accredited Maine community college, college or university after completing the equivalent of up to 30 credit hours of course work toward a degree at an accredited non-Maine community college, college or university is eligible for a portion of the benefits that would have been available under the program had the individual performed all course work at an accredited Maine community college, college or university. Such an individual is eligible for 1/2 of the educational opportunity tax credit in the case of obtaining an associate degree and 3/4 of the educational opportunity tax credit in the case of obtaining a bachelor's degree. Program eligibility for such an individual must be determined as if the commencement of course work at the relevant accredited Maine community college, college or university was the commencement of course work for the degree program as a whole;
C. An individual must live in this State while pursuing the degree, excepting periods when it is reasonably necessary for the individual to live elsewhere as part of the relevant institution's academic programs or while pursuing course work at an accredited non-Maine community college, college or university as provided in paragraph B or F. The individual must also agree to live in this State after obtaining the degree during any period when that individual seeks to take advantage of the educational opportunity tax credit; and
D. An individual must maintain records relating to loan payments claimed under the educational opportunity tax credit for 5 years after those payments are claimed . ; and
F. An individual who obtains an associate degree or a bachelor's degree from an accredited non-Maine community college, college or university after January 1, 2015 may participate in the program if the department determines that the degree received by the individual cannot be obtained from an accredited Maine community college, college or university.
Summary
This bill provides that an individual whose associate degree or bachelor's degree was obtained from an accredited non-Maine institution may participate in the Job Creation Through Educational Opportunity Program if the degree obtained was not available from an accredited Maine institution.