Bill allowing out-of-state Job Corps students resident tuition status advances

Last legislative session, it was called a waiver. This session, the proposal is to allow out-of-state Job Corps students to have resident status in order to lower their cost of attending the state's colleges and universities.

The Senate Education Committee on Friday voted unanimously to send SB122 on to the full Senate. The bill's sponsor, Sen. Gregory S. Bell, R-Farmington, changed the wording from waivers to "resident tuition status" for Job Corps students.

"I tell you right now, I'm probably going to support this all the way through," said Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan.

Buttars said that despite the bill having no fiscal note. Bell said it may not be necessary to attach a fiscal note if he can show there would be no cost to the state.

A bill last year that called for tuition waivers for Job Corps students failed. Its fiscal note was estimated to be around $235,000, and if the state wasn't able to fund the loss to schools, institutions were expected to absorb the cost.