HOUSE BILL NO. 1060 Offered January 9, 2008 Prefiled January 9, 2008 A BILL to amend and reenact § 23-38.56 of the Code of Virginia, relating to conditions for senior citizen tuition waivers at state institutions of higher education. ---------- Patron-- Amundson ---------- Committee Referral Pending ----------

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1.  That § 23-38.56 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 23-38.56. Attendance at state institutions; conditions.

A senior citizen shall be permitted, under regulations as may be prescribed by the State Council of Higher Education:

(i) To register for and enroll in courses as a full-time or part-time student for academic credit if such senior citizen either had a taxable individual income not exceeding $15,000 for Virginia income tax purposes or qualified for property tax relief pursuant to § 58.1-3210, for the year preceding the year in which enrollment is sought;

(ii) To register for and audit courses offered for academic credit; and

(iii) To register for and enroll in courses not offered for academic credit in any state institution of higher education in this Commonwealth.

Such senior citizen shall pay no tuition or fees except fees established for the purpose of paying for course materials, such as laboratory fees, but shall be subject to the admission requirements of the institution and a determination by the institution of its ability to offer the course or courses for which the senior citizen registers. The State Council of Higher Education shall establish procedures to ensure that tuition-paying students are accommodated in courses before senior citizens participating in this program are enrolled. However, the state institutions of higher education may make individual exceptions to these procedures when the senior citizen has completed seventy-five percent of the requirements for a degree.