Georgia lawmakers Thursday fast-tracked the proposed overhaul of the popular lottery-funded HOPE scholarship.
First the House higher education appropriations committee met at 7:30 a.m. and approved the bill. Then at 8 a.m., the full House appropriations committee discussed and approved the bill.
They amended the bill by adding more restrictions to the bonuses paid to Georgia Lottery employees and changed from 5 percent to 6 percent the amount retailers will receive for selling winning tickets.
The bill moved on the the House rules committee, which will schedule when the bill goes before the full House. That won't happen until next week.
HOPE traditionally covers all tuition at public colleges for students who maintain a 3.0 GPA. But the bill would tie the scholarship amount to revenue from the Georgia Lottery instead. The plan calls for the scholarship award to be 90 percent of current tuition rates, although tuition is expected to increase this fall.
Many of the changes outlined in the bill will go into effect this fall. Other changes included eliminating money for books and mandatory fees. Private college students will see the amount of their scholarship drop from $4,000 to $3,600.
The governor and legislators agreed the changes will be a hardship on some, but said they don't have a choice because lottery revenue can't keep up with the scholarship's growing expenses.
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