2003 House Bill 4551

Introduced in the House

April 9, 2003

Introduced by Rep. Julie Dennis (D-92)

To reduce from $2,500 to $500 the amount of the merit scholarship awards made to high school students who do well on the state MEAP test, and eliminate the $500 award for middle school students. Under current law, 75 percent of the tobacco lawsuit proceeds are set aside for the scholarships. This would be reduced to one-third of the proceeds, and the balance would go into the general fund to pay for other programs, including health care. This is one of a number of bills authorizing program reductions which Gov. Jennifer Granholm has proposed to close a gap between state spending and expected revenue in the Fiscal Year 2003-2004 budget.

Referred to the Committee on Appropriations