Ohio GI Promise
In-State Tuition for Eligible Veterans
The Ohio GI Promise seeks to make Ohio the most veteran-friendly state in the country for higher education. To encourage veterans from across America to bring their families, leadership, motivation and maturity to Ohio's colleges and universities, Gov. Strickland, as part of the executive order creating the Ohio GI Promise, outlined criteria that would allow qualified veterans, and their dependents, from anywhere in the country to skip the 12-month residency requirement and attend University System of Ohio schools at in-state tuition rates. As of March 2009, 40 veterans and veteran dependents have been granted the Ohio GI Promise residency exception.
Expansion of the Veteran and Veteran Dependent Residency Exception
Effective April 7, 2009
In January 2009, Gov.Strickland signed House Bill 450 that contained amendments to the Ohio Revised Code Section 3333.31 expanding veteran and veteran dependent eligibility for in-state tuition. When HB 450 went into effect on Tuesday, April 7, 2009, the GI Bill eligibility and community service/internship/co-op provisions will no longer be required for a veteran to be considered a resident for in-state tuition purposes. Also veterans will not be required to enroll themselves in order to gain residency for their dependents. The new requirements can be summarized as follows:
- The veteran must have been honorably discharged or medically separated from service with at least one year of service. Veteran dependents also are eligible if the veteran was killed (KIA), declared missing in action (MIA) or a prisoner of war (POW). Eligibility should be documented by form DD-214.
- The veteran and the veteran's dependents must be domiciled in Ohio as of the first day of enrollment. In cases where the veteran was KIA, MIA or POW, only the dependents need be domiciled in Ohio.
- Documentation of dependent eligibility may include:
- Dependent Spouse: Proof of marriage; marriage certificate.
- Dependent Children: Proof of dependent status as provided by the veteran parent's IRS tax filing for the previous year (dependent as defined in Administrative Rule 3333-1-10(B)(5)).
- In cases where the veteran is KIA, or currently MIA or POW, official documentation of that status would be required.
The text of HB 450 can be found here: http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=127_HB_450
New changes to Administrative Rule 3333-1-10 will be made in implementation of this amendment to the Ohio GI Promise veteran residency exception. Those updates will be posted when they are available.
The criteria for veterans to establish residency in Ohio as stipulated in Ohio Administrative Rule 3333-1-10 will no longer be applicable due to the supremacy of the HB 450 amendment to Ohio Revised Code Section 3333.31.
If you have any questions about these requirements and changes, please e-mail GI_Promise@regents.state.oh.us.
