Signed by Governor Jared Polis

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that expands in-state tuition to Native American students.

Highlights:

• Alleges many American Indian tribes and members of American Indian tribes have been forced to relocate across state lines, far from their historical home places. As a consequence, American Indian high school students often only receive in-state tuition eligibility in their state of current residence rather than the state their tribes traditionally called their ancestral home (Sec. 2.I).

• Requires Colorado public universities and colleges to extend in-state tuition classification to American Indian students who are registered members of a federally recognized American Indian tribe with historical ties to Colorado (Sec. 2.b).

• Requires the governing board of each institution to adopt a policy to grant in-state tuition classification to a student who is a registered member of a federally recognized American Indian tribe with historical ties to Colorado, as designated by the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs, in partnership with history Colorado (Sec. 2-2).

• Establishes a student classified as an in-state student according to this law (Sec. 2-3):

• May be counted as a resident student for any purpose;

• May be counted as a resident student for purposes of section 23-1-113.5; and

• Is eligible to participate in the college opportunity fund stipend and state-funded student financial assistance programs, and may be eligible for private financial aid programs.

• Specifies this law does not apply to Fort Lewis College due to its historic commitment to American Indian education (Sec. 2-4).

Full Bill Text