Bills to help Oklahoma National Guard members with tuition head to Governor’s desk – Shawnee News-Star

Home Communications

OKLAHOMA CITY – A pair of payments that may grant Oklahoma Nationwide Guard members in-state standing and tuition and payment help when attending an Oklahoma public school or college handed overwhelmingly within the Home at the moment.

Rep. Nicole Miller, R-Edmond, is the Home writer of Senate Invoice 1416, which might grant in-state residency standing for higher-educational functions just for Guard members at the moment serving in Oklahoma, and Senate Invoice 1418, which might replace the Oklahoma Nationwide Guard Schooling Help Act to cowl each tuition and charges for state Guard members at in-state increased training establishments. This invoice additionally would create a revolving fund to assist the funding mechanisms included within the measure.

“This laws permits us a solution to honor and assist the women and men who serve us in our Oklahoma Nationwide Guard by offering better entry for them to realize a school training whereas right here in our state,” Miller mentioned.

“It is a very important element of our recruitment and retention efforts for this indispensable a part of our navy. As well as, this revolving fund will assist us give some reduction to the universities and universities that willingly soak up the majority of the price of this program.”

Miller described the present Nationwide Guard Tuition Waiver Program as a handshake settlement between the Guard and better training courting again to 1995. SB1418 would place this in statute. Funding can be on an availability foundation however can be a precedence included in funds requests by each increased training and the Guard, she mentioned.

Miller additionally defined that members of the Oklahoma Nationwide Guard embody individuals from surrounding states, which is the necessity for the residency requirement included in SB1416.

Sen. Kim David, R-Porter, is the principal writer of each payments.

“Our courageous women and men of the Oklahoma Nationwide Guard step up throughout occasions of want from pure disasters to nationwide crises just like the pandemic. In addition they defend freedom and struggle for these with no voice world wide,” David mentioned. “Simply as they’re all the time able to serve our state, we need to assist them by offering these instructional alternatives. These patriots have full-time jobs outdoors of their voluntary service within the Guard and these monetary incentives will assist them additional their training and in the end their profession alternatives.”

The payments now go to the governor for his consideration of signing them into legislation.