Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a) Funding. No
awards may be made by an institution in excess of the amount of money on
balance at the State Comptroller's Office for that institution, generated
through the sale of special license plates bearing the institution's insignia.
(1) The License Plate Insignia Scholarship
Program is funded through funds paid to the department for the purchase of
automobile license plates bearing the insignia of Texas colleges and
universities. The amount of money available for scholarships to students at
each institution will depend on the number of license plates purchased with
that school's insignia.
(2) Funds
for license plates bearing the insignia of public senior colleges and
universities will be held on deposit by the State Comptroller's Office, for the
institutions to draw down as needed. Funds for license plates bearing the
insignia of other public, private and independent institutions will be
deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of the Board, which in turn will
allocate the funds to the relevant institutions.
(b) Award Amount. No award received through
this program may exceed a student's financial need.
(c) Responsibilities.
(1) Probation Notice. If the institution is
placed on public probation by its accrediting agency, it must immediately
advise grant recipients of this condition and maintain evidence in each
student's file to demonstrate that the student was so informed.
(2) Disbursements to Students.
(A) Documentation. The institution must
maintain records to prove the receipt of program funds by the student or the
crediting of such funds to the student's school account.
(B) Procedures in Case of Illegal
Disbursements. If the Commissioner has reason for concern that an institution
has disbursed funds for unauthorized purposes, the Board will notify the
institution and offer an opportunity for a hearing pursuant to the procedures
outlined in Chapter 1 of this title (relating to Agency Administration).
Thereafter, if the Board determines that funds have been improperly disbursed,
the institution shall become primarily responsible for restoring the funds to
the Board. No further disbursements of grants or scholarships shall be
permitted to students at that institution until the funds have been
repaid.
(3) Reporting
Requirements/Deadlines. All institutions must meet Board reporting requirements
in accordance with stated deadlines in the Board's published
materials.
(4) In addition, the
institution must meet the Department of Transportation's requirements for
designing and issuing license plates bearing the institution's
insignia.
(d) Over
Awards. If, at a time after an award has been offered by the institution and
accepted by the student, the student receives assistance that was not taken
into account in the student's estimate of financial need, so that the resulting
sum of assistance exceeds the student's financial need, the institution is not
required to adjust the award under this program unless the sum of the excess
resources is greater than $300.
