HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	1488
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO RESIDENCE FOR TUITION PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that according to a report by the Western Interstate Compact for Higher Education, Hawaii is projected to produce fourteen thousand eight hundred high school graduates per year, on average, over the next decade. The legislature further finds that facilitating postsecondary education and training for all interested high school graduates serves the State's interests. These postsecondary options benefit graduates by preparing them for jobs and career pathways that typically pay higher wages, which enables them to achieve their educational and career goals and better afford Hawaii's high cost of living. Increased enrollment and completion of postsecondary education and training will also increase the State's human capital.

Furthermore, the legislature finds that there is a substantial number of Hawaii high school graduates who have attended out‑of‑state colleges and universities or pursued other ventures outside of Hawaii and wish to return home to Hawaii to complete their education. In some cases, upon their return, individuals who plan to enroll at a University of Hawaii campus, including a community college, find that they do not qualify for Hawaii resident tuition because of their time spent out of state.

The legislature further finds that recognizing local high school graduates and those who complete high school equivalencies locally as residents as qualifying for resident tuition fees would facilitate the enrollment of these students at one of the University of Hawaii's campuses.

The purpose of this Act is to simplify the residency determination for the State's high school students and recent graduates to enroll in postsecondary education and training at the University of Hawaii by considering high school seniors and recent high school graduates, including those who choose to return from out of state and pursue higher education in Hawaii, as residents under certain conditions.

SECTION 2. Section 304A-402, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"[[]§304A-402[]] Residence for tuition purposes; basic rule. The board of regents shall adopt the necessary rules defining residence for tuition purposes herein; provided that the basic rule shall be that a student shall qualify for the resident tuition fee only if the following criteria are met:

(1) The adult student, or in the case of a minor student, the student's parents or guardians[, has]:

(A) Has or have been a bona fide resident of this State for at least twelve consecutive months next preceding the student's first day of officially scheduled instruction for any semester or term in which the student is enrolling at the particular college or campus; and

[(2) The adult or minor student has] (B) Has not been claimed as a dependent for tax purposes for at least twelve months next preceding the student's first day of officially scheduled instruction for any semester or term in which the student is enrolling at the particular college or campus by the student's parents or guardians who are nonresidents of the State; provided that this provision shall not apply in cases where the parent claiming the student as a dependent is entitled to do so under a child support order or agreement issued or entered into in conjunction with a divorce proceeding or legal separation agreement and the other parent and the student meet the criteria set forth in [paragraph (1).] subparagraph (A); or

(2) The adult or minor student is enrolled in a high school in the State for at least twelve consecutive months preceding the student's first day of officially scheduled instruction at the particular college or campus; or

(3) For the purposes of enrollment at any University of Hawaii campus, including any community college, the student:

(A) Received a high school diploma or its equivalent in the State within eight years preceding the student's first day of officially scheduled instruction at the University of Hawaii; and

(B) Is working toward an undergraduate degree."

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050.

Report Title:

University of Hawaii; Residence for Tuition Purposes

Description:

Requires the tuition residency rules for the University of Hawaii to grant the resident tuition fee for enrollment at any University of Hawaii campus, including any community college, to individuals who have obtained a Hawaii high school diploma or equivalent credential and are working toward an undergraduate degree, under certain conditions. Effective 7/1/2050. (HD1)

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