LOUISIANA
STUDENT FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE COMMISSION
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| TOPS BULLETIN NUMBER: | T2001- 12 |
| DATE ISSUED: | July 27, 2001 |
| EFFECTIVE DATE: | As Indicated |
| DISTRIBUTION: |
Louisiana High School Principals and Counselors, City and Parish School Board Presidents, School Board Superintendents, College and University, Technical College and LAICU Chancellors, Financial Aid Offices, Business Offices, and Auditors, System Governance, Board of Regents, Department of Education, Louisiana Legislators, and Commission Members |
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Utility Surcharge and TOPS |
To assure that your Scholarship and Grant Policy and Procedure Manual remains current, please record this document on your TOPS Bulletin index and retain it with your manual.
The Office of Student Financial Assistance has received numerous calls regarding whether TOPS will pay the "Utility Surcharge" which some schools may impose on their students as a fee. By definition, any change in the amount of tuition implemented after January, 1998 must have the authorization of the legislature in order to be covered by TOPS. Because this charge is not a part of legislatively approved tuition costs, it cannot be covered.
The Louisiana Legislature did enact legislation this year authorizing a maximum annual tuition increase of 3% over the next five years, subject to the approval of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. Any such increase approved by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee will be covered by TOPS. University officials will be notified by individual letter when TOPS award amounts have been revised to cover approved tuition increases.