(1) The following students are exempt from the payment of tuition and fees, including lab fees, at a school district that provides workforce education programs, Florida College System institution, or state university:
(a) A student enrolled in a dual enrollment or early admission program pursuant to s. 1007.271.
(b) A student enrolled in an approved apprenticeship program, as defined in s. 446.021.
(c) A student who was the subject of a shelter proceeding, a dependency proceeding, or a termination of parental rights proceeding, and:
1. Is, or was at the time he or she reached 18 years of age, in out-of-home care.
2. Is, or was at the time he or she reached 18 years of age, in the custody of a relative or nonrelative pursuant to s. 39.5085 or s. 39.6225.
3. After spending at least 6 months in the custody of the department after reaching 16 years of age, was placed in a guardianship by the court.
4. After reaching 14 years of age and thereafter spending at least 18 months in out-of-home care, was reunited with his or her parent or parents who were the subject of the dependency proceeding before he or she reaches 18 years of age, including a student who is reunited under s. 39.8155. For a student to be eligible under this subparagraph, the student must be Pell Grant-eligible, and the entity imposing the tuition and fees must verify such eligibility.
5. Was adopted from the department after May 5, 1997.
6. Was placed in a permanent guardianship, regardless of whether the caregiver participates or participated in the Relative Caregiver Program under s. 39.5085, and remains in such guardianship until the student either reaches 18 years of age or, if before reaching 18 years of age, he or she enrolls in an eligible institution.
Such exemption includes fees associated with enrollment in applied academics for adult education instruction. The exemption remains valid until the student reaches 28 years of age.
(d) A student enrolled in an employment and training program under the welfare transition program. The local workforce development board shall pay the state university, Florida College System institution, or school district for costs incurred for welfare transition program participants.
(e) A student who meets the definition of homeless children and youths in s. 725 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. s. 11434a(2). This includes a student who would otherwise meet the requirements of this paragraph, as determined by a college or university, but for his or her residence in college or university dormitory housing. The State Board of Education may adopt rules and the Board of Governors may adopt regulations regarding documentation and procedures to implement this paragraph. Such rules and regulations must consider documentation of a student’s circumstance to be adequate if such documentation meets the standards under 20 U.S.C. s. 1087uu-2(a). Any student who is determined to be a homeless child or youth for a preceding award year is presumed to be a homeless child or youth for each subsequent year unless the student informs the institution that the student’s circumstances have changed or the institution has specific conflicting information about the student’s independence, and has informed the student of this information.
(f) A student who is a proprietor, owner, or worker of a company whose business has been at least 50 percent negatively financially impacted by the buyout of property around Lake Apopka by the State of Florida. Such student may receive a fee exemption only if the student has not received compensation because of the buyout, the student is designated a Florida resident for tuition purposes, pursuant to s. 1009.21, and the student has applied for and been denied financial aid, pursuant to s. 1009.40, which would have provided, at a minimum, payment of all student fees. The student is responsible for providing evidence to the postsecondary education institution verifying that the conditions of this paragraph have been met, including supporting documentation provided by the Department of Revenue. The student must be currently enrolled in, or begin coursework within, a program area by fall semester 2000. The exemption is valid for a period of 4 years after the date that the postsecondary education institution confirms that the conditions of this paragraph have been met.
(g) Pursuant to s. 402.403, child protection and child welfare personnel as defined in s. 402.402 who are enrolled in an accredited bachelor’s degree or master’s degree in social work program, provided that the student attains at least a grade of “B” in all courses for which tuition and fees are exempted.
(2) Each Florida College System institution is authorized to grant student fee exemptions from all fees adopted by the State Board of Education and the Florida College System institution board of trustees for up to 54 full-time equivalent students or 1 percent of the institution’s total full-time equivalent enrollment, whichever is greater, at each institution.
History.—ss. 5, 6, 7, ch. 2002-19; ss. 2, 3, ch. 2002-38; s. 404, ch. 2002-387; s. 118, ch. 2004-357; s. 3, ch. 2004-362; s. 15, ch. 2006-194; s. 1, ch. 2010-68; s. 119, ch. 2011-5; s. 14, ch. 2011-63; s. 23, ch. 2012-134; s. 24, ch. 2012-191; s. 55, ch. 2013-27; s. 29, ch. 2013-51; s. 377, ch. 2014-19; s. 44, ch. 2014-224; s. 54, ch. 2016-216; s. 37, ch. 2017-151; s. 18, ch. 2019-142; s. 3, ch. 2021-160; s. 7, ch. 2021-162; s. 3, ch. 2021-232; s. 7, ch. 2022-65; s. 3, ch. 2022-68.
