Section 53F-6-402 - Utah Fits All Scholarship Program - Scholarship account application - Scholarship expenses - Program information(1) There is established the Utah Fits All Scholarship Program under which, beginning March 1, 2024, a parent may apply to a program manager on behalf of the parent's student to establish and maintain a scholarship account to cover the cost of a scholarship expense.(2)(a) The program manager shall establish and maintain, in accordance with this part, scholarship accounts for eligible students.(b) The program manager shall: (i) determine that a student meets the requirements to be an eligible student; and(ii) subject to Subsection (2)(c), each year the student is an eligible student, maintain a scholarship account for the scholarship student to pay for the cost of one or more scholarship expenses that the student or student's parent incurs in the student's education.(c) Each year, subject to this part and legislative appropriations, a scholarship student is eligible for no more than:(i) for the 2024-2025 school year, $8,000; and(ii) for each school year following the 2024-2025 school year, the maximum allowed amount under this Subsection (2)(c) in the previous year plus a percentage increase that is equal to the five-year rolling average inflationary factor described in Section 53F-2-405.(3)(a) A program manager shall establish a scholarship account on behalf of an eligible student who submits a timely application, unless the number of applications exceeds available scholarship funds for the school year.(b) If the number of applications exceeds the available scholarship funds for a school year, the program manager shall select students on a random basis, except as provided in Subsection (6).(c) An eligible student or a public education student shall submit an application for an initial scholarship or renewal for each school year that the student intends to receive scholarship funds.(d)(i) To maintain eligibility, a scholarship student or the scholarship student's parent shall annually complete and deliver to the program manager a portfolio describing the scholarship student's educational opportunities and achievements under the program for the given year.(ii) The program manager may not disclose the content of a given scholarship student's portfolio except to the scholarship student's parent.(4)(a) An application for a scholarship account shall contain an acknowledgment by the student's parent that the qualifying provider selected by the parent for the student's enrollment or engagement is capable of providing education services for the student.(b) A scholarship account application form shall contain the following statement: "I acknowledge that:
1: A qualifying provider may not provide the same level of disability services that are provided in a public school;2: I will assume full financial responsibility for the education of my scholarship recipient if I agree to this scholarship account;3: Agreeing to establish this scholarship account has the same effect as a parental refusal to consent to services as described in 34 C.F.R. Sec. 300.300, issued under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1400 et seq.; and4: My child may return to a public school at any time.".(c) Upon agreeing to establish a scholarship account, the parent assumes full financial responsibility for the education of the scholarship student, including the balance of any expense incurred at a qualifying provider or for goods that are not paid for by the scholarship student's scholarship account.(d) Agreeing to establish a scholarship account has the same effect as a parental refusal to consent to services as described in 34 C.F.R. Sec. 300.300, issued under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1400 et seq.(e) The creation of the program or establishment of a scholarship account on behalf of a student does not: (i) imply that a public school did not provide a free and appropriate public education for a student; or(ii) constitute a waiver or admission by the state.(5) A program manager may not charge a scholarship account application fee.(6)(a) A program manager shall give an enrollment preference based on the following order of preference:(i) to an eligible student who used a scholarship account in the previous school year;(ii) to an eligible student: (A) who did not use a scholarship account in the previous school year; and(B) with a family income at or below 200% of the federal poverty level;(iii) to an eligible student who is a sibling of an eligible student who:(A) uses a scholarship account at the time the sibling applies for a scholarship account; or(B) used a scholarship account in the school year immediately preceding the school year for which the sibling is applying for a scholarship account; and(iv) to an eligible student: (A) who did not use a scholarship account in the previous school year; and(B) with a family income between 200% and 555% of the federal poverty level.(b) The State Tax Commission may, upon request, provide state individual income tax information to the program manager for income verification purposes regarding a given individual if:(i) the individual voluntarily provides the individual's social security number to the program manager; and(ii) consents in writing to the sharing of state individual income tax information solely for income verification purposes.(c) In addition to the tax information described in Subsection (6)(b), the program manager shall accept the following for income verification:(ii) a wage statement from an employer; and(iii) other methods or documents that the program manager identifies.(7)(a) Subject to Subsections (7)(b) through (e), a parent may use a scholarship account to pay for a scholarship expense from a qualifying provider that a parent or scholarship student incurs in the education of the scholarship student.(b) A scholarship student or the scholarship student's parent may not use a scholarship account for an expense that the student or parent does not incur in the education of the scholarship student, including:(i) a rehabilitation program that is not primarily designed for an educational purpose; or(ii) a travel expense other than a transportation expense described in Section 53F-6-401.(c) The program manager may not: (i) approve a scholarship expense for a service that a qualifying provider provides unless the program manager determines that the scholarship student or the scholarship student's parent incurred the expense in the education of the scholarship student; or(ii) reimburse an expense for a service or good that a provider that is not a qualifying provider provides unless: (A) the parent or scholarship student submits a receipt that shows the cost and type of service or good and the name of provider;(B) the expense would have qualified as a scholarship expense if a qualifying provider provided the good or service;(C) the provider of the good or service is not the parent of the student who is a home-based scholarship student solely in relation to the parent's child; and(D) the program manager determines that the parent or scholarship student incurred the expense in the education of the scholarship student.(d) The parent of a scholarship student may not receive scholarship funds as payment for the parent's time spent educating the parent's child.(e) Except for cases in which a scholarship student or the scholarship student's parent is convicted of fraud in relation to scholarship funds, if a qualifying provider, scholarship student, or scholarship student's parent repays an expenditure from a scholarship account for an expense that is not approved under this Subsection (7), the program manager shall credit the repaid amount back to the scholarship account balance within 30 days after the day on which the program manager receives the repayment.(8) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, funds that the program manager disburses under this part to a scholarship account on behalf of a scholarship student do not constitute state taxable income to the parent of the scholarship student.(9) The program manager shall prepare and disseminate information on the program to a parent applying for a scholarship account on behalf of a student, including the information that the program manager provides in accordance with Section 53F-6-405.(10) On or before September 1, 2023, and as frequently as necessary to maintain the information, the state board shall provide information on the state board's website, including: (a) scholarship account information;(b) information on the program manager, including the program manager's contact information; and(c) an overview of the program.Amended by Chapter 26, 2024 General Session ,§ 3, eff. 5/1/2024.Added by Chapter 1, 2023 General Session ,§ 4, eff. 5/3/2023.