Amend Senate File 423 as follows:
   1.  Page 46, after line 27 by inserting: 

<DIVISION ___

EDUCATION SAVINGS GRANT PROGRAM, FUND, APPROPRIATION, AND PENALTIES
   Sec. ___.  Section 256.7, Code 2013, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  33.  Adopt rules relating to applications for an education savings grant pursuant to section 257.11B, including application processing timelines and information required to be submitted by a parent or guardian.
   Sec. ___.  NEW SECTION.  257.11B  Education savings grant program.
   1.  Pupils eligible to enroll in grades kindergarten through twelve and attending a nonpublic school or receiving competent private instruction under chapter 299A shall be eligible to receive an education savings grant in the manner provided in this section for school years beginning on or after July 1, 2014. Education savings grants shall be made available to parents and guardians in the manner authorized under subsection 4, paragraph “c”, for the payment of qualified education expenses as provided in this section.
   2.
  a.  (1)  By January 31 preceding the school year for which the education savings grant is requested, the parent or guardian of the pupil requesting to receive an education savings grant shall submit an application to the department of education, on application forms developed by the department, indicating that the parent or guardian intends to enroll the pupil in a nonpublic school or provide competent private instruction for the pupil under chapter 299A.
   (2)  In addition to such information deemed appropriate by the department of education, the application shall require certification from the nonpublic school of the pupil’s enrollment for the following school year or a statement indicating the parent or guardian’s intent to provide or arrange for competent private instruction for the pupil for the following school year.
   b.  By March 1 preceding the school year for which the education savings grant is requested, the department of education shall notify the department of management of the number of pupils in each school district designated for the following school year to receive an education savings grant and the amount of the education savings grant for each pupil. The department of education shall also notify the parent or guardian of such pupils who are approved to receive an education savings grant.
   c.  Education savings grants shall only be approved for one school year and applications must be submitted under paragraph “a” for education savings grants in subsequent school years. 
   3.
  a.  The department of management shall assign each pupil an education savings grant in an amount equal to the statewide average state foundation aid per pupil in the same school year.
   b.  The department of management shall on July 1 following the determination of the amount of the education savings grant for each approved pupil transfer such amounts to the pupil’s account in the education savings grant fund established under subsection 4. Such amount shall be available to the pupil’s parent or guardian in the manner authorized under subsection 4, paragraph “c”, for the payment of qualified educational expenses incurred by such persons for the pupil during that school year.
   4.  An education savings grant fund is created in the state treasury under the control of the department of management consisting of moneys appropriated to the department for the purpose of providing education savings grants under this section. For the fiscal year commencing July 1, 2014, and each succeeding fiscal year, there is appropriated from the general fund of the state to the department of management to be credited to the fund the amount necessary to pay all education savings grants approved for that fiscal year. The director of the department of management has all powers necessary to carry out and effectuate the purposes, objectives, and provisions of this section pertaining to the fund, including the power to do all of the following:
   a.  Make and enter into contracts necessary for the administration of the fund.
   b.  Procure insurance against any loss in connection with the assets of the fund or require a surety bond.
   c.  Contract with a private financial management firm to manage the fund, in collaboration with the treasurer of state, including providing for the disbursement of education savings grants in the form of an electronic debit card or checks that are payable directly from the pupil’s account within the fund.
   d.  Conduct audits or other review necessary to properly administer the program.
   e.  Adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A for the administration of the fund and accounts within the fund.
   5.
  a.  For each pupil approved for an education savings grant, the department shall establish an account for that pupil in the education savings grant fund. The amount of the pupil’s education savings grant determined under subsection 3 shall be deposited into the pupil’s account on July 1 and such amount shall be immediately available for the payment of qualified education expenses incurred by the parent or guardian for the pupil during that fiscal year using the payment method authorized under subsection 4, paragraph “c”.
   b.  A nonpublic school or other entity that accepts payment from a parent or guardian using funds from a pupil’s account in the education savings grant fund shall not refund, rebate, or share any portion of such payment with the parent, guardian, or pupil.
   c.  Moneys remaining in a pupil’s account upon conclusion of the fiscal year shall remain in the pupil’s account within the education savings grant fund for the payment of qualified educational expenses in future fiscal years or for the payment of higher education costs under subsection 8.
   6.  For purposes of this section, “qualified educational expense” includes tuition and fees at a nonpublic school, textbooks, fees or payments for tutoring or cognitive skills training, curriculum materials, tuition or fees for nonpublic online education programs, education materials and services for pupils with disabilities, standardized test fees, fees required by the department not to exceed for each grant recipient five percent of the total grant amount in any fiscal year, and other expenses incurred by the parent or guardian that are directly related to the education of the pupil at a nonpublic school, including a nonpublic school accredited by an independent accrediting agency approved by the department of education, or directly related to providing competent private instruction for the pupil under chapter 299A.  The cost of one computer or other portable computing device shall be allowed as a qualified educational expense for a pupil if such a purchase has not been made using funds from that pupil’s account in either of the two immediately preceding fiscal years. “Qualified educational expenses” do not include transportation costs for the pupil, the cost of food or refreshments consumed by the pupil, the cost of clothing for the pupil, or the cost of disposable materials including but not limited to paper, notebooks, pencils, pens, and art supplies.
   7.  A person who makes a false claim for the purpose of obtaining an education savings grant provided for in this section or who knowingly receives the grant or makes a payment from an account within the education savings grant fund without being legally entitled to it is guilty of a fraudulent practice. The false claim for an education savings grant or a payment from an account shall be disallowed and if amounts from the grant have been disbursed from the applicable account in the education savings grant fund, the department of management shall initiate legal proceedings to recover such amounts. A parent or guardian, or a pupil for purposes of subsection 8, who violates this subsection is prohibited from participating in the education savings grant program in the future.
   8.  For each pupil with a positive balance in the pupil’s account in the education savings grant fund upon graduation from high school or completion of an equivalent level of competent private instruction under chapter 299A, the department of management shall maintain such account in the fund until the pupil is twenty-five years of age. Following graduation from high school until the pupil is twenty-five years of age, moneys in the pupil’s account may be used for higher education costs, as defined in section 12D.1, subsection 2, incurred by the pupil while attending an institution of higher education under the control of the state board of regents, a community college located in this state, or a private college or university located in this state. Payments from a pupil’s account for higher education costs shall be made in the same manner as payments for qualified educational expenses under subsection 5. Moneys in a pupil’s account when the pupil turns twenty-five years of age shall be transferred by the department for deposit in the general fund of the state.
   9.  This section shall not be construed to authorize this state or any political subdivision of this state to exercise authority over any nonpublic school or pupil receiving competent private instruction under chapter 299A or construed to require a nonpublic school to modify its admissions or educational program in order to receive payment from a parent or guardian using funds from a pupil’s account in the education savings grant fund. A nonpublic school or entity providing competent private instruction under chapter 299A, that accepts payment from a parent or guardian using funds from a pupil’s account in the education savings grant fund is not an agent of this state or other political subdivision of this state. Rules adopted by the department to implement this section that impose an undue burden on a nonpublic school or entity providing competent private instruction under chapter 299A are invalid.
   Sec. ___.  APPLICABILITY.  This division of this Act applies to school budget years and fiscal years beginning on or after July 1, 2014.>
   2.  Title page, line 5, before <establishing> by inserting <making appropriations and>
   3.  By renumbering as necessary.

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JERRY BEHN

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NANCY J. BOETTGER

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DAN ZUMBACH

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MICHAEL BREITBACH

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DAVID JOHNSON

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SANDRA H. GREINER

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JAKE CHAPMAN

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RICK BERTRAND

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BILL ANDERSON

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DENNIS GUTH

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HUBERT HOUSER

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MARK CHELGREN

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TIM KAPUCIAN

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JONI ERNST

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MARK SEGEBART

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CHARLES SCHNEIDER

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JACK WHITVER

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RANDY FEENSTRA

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KEN ROZENBOOM

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AMY SINCLAIR