Georgia Code
Subpart 3 - Educational Loans Financed by State Funds
§ 20-3-374. Service Cancelable Loan Fund; Authorized Types of Service Cancelable Educational Loans

The authority is authorized to place other conditions and limitations on loans made under this paragraph as it may deem necessary to fill the void that has created the critical shortage in the field.
History. Ga. L. 1964, p. 699, §§ 1, 2; Ga. L. 1965, p. 210, §§ 1, 2; Ga. L. 1966, p. 465, § 1; Ga. L. 1971, p. 520, § 1; Ga. L. 1974, p. 461, § 1; Ga. L. 1977, p. 739, § 1; Code 1933, § 32-3750, enacted by Ga. L. 1980, p. 835, § 3; Ga. L. 1981, p. 735, §§ 41, 42; Ga. L. 1986, p. 499, § 1; Ga. L. 1987, p. 378, § 3; Ga. L. 1992, p. 6, § 20; Ga. L. 1992, p. 1058, § 1; Ga. L. 1994, p. 588, § 1; Ga. L. 1998, p. 748, § 2; Ga. L. 2003, p. 158, § 8; Ga. L. 2004, p. 631, § 20; Ga. L. 2005, p. 1134, § 4/HB 298; Ga. L. 2011, p. 333, § 1/HB 60; Ga. L. 2016, p. 842, § 1/HB 1072; Ga. L. 2018, p. 203, § 1/HB 700; Ga. L. 2019, p. 1056, § 20/SB 52; Ga. L. 2022, p. 26, § 2-1/HB 1013.
The 2016 amendment, effective July 1, 2016, deleted the former fourth sentence of paragraph (b)(2), which read: “Students eligible for the HOPE scholarship or HOPE grant at an eligible public or private postsecondary institution are not eligible to receive this loan during a school term in which they are receiving HOPE scholarship or HOPE grant funds.”
The 2018 amendment, effective July 1, 2018, substituted the present provisions of paragraph (b)(2) for the former provisions, which read: “The authority is authorized to make service cancelable educational loans to residents of Georgia who are eligible members of the Georgia National Guard and who are enrolled at the undergraduate level in a private or public college or public postsecondary technical or vocational school located in the state. Members of the Georgia National Guard who are in good standing according to applicable regulations of the National Guard shall be eligible to apply for a loan. Such loans shall be on the terms and conditions set by the authority in consultation with the Department of Defense, provided that any such loan shall not exceed an amount equal to the actual tuition charged to the recipient for the period of enrollment in an educational institution or the tuition charged by the University of Georgia for the period of enrollment at the university, whichever is less. A loan recipient shall not be eligible to receive loan assistance provided for in this paragraph for more than five academic years of study. Educational loans may be made to full-time and half-time students. Upon the recipient’s attainment of a baccalaureate degree from an institution or cessation of status as an active member, whichever occurs first, the loan provided by this paragraph shall be discontinued. The loan provided by this paragraph may be suspended at the discretion of the authority for a recipient’s failure to maintain good military standing as an active member or failure to maintain sufficient academic standing and good academic progress and program pursuit. Loans made under this paragraph shall be repayable in cash, with interest thereon, or, upon satisfactory completion of a quarter, semester, year, or other period of study as determined by the authority; graduation; termination of enrollment in school; or termination of this assistance with approval of the authority, shall be canceled in consideration of the student’s retaining membership in the Georgia National Guard during the period in which the loan is applicable. The adjutant general of Georgia shall certify eligibility and termination of eligibility of students for educational loans and eligibility for cancellation of educational loans by members of the Georgia National Guard in accordance with regulations of the authority;”.
The 2019 amendment, effective May 12, 2019, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, substituted “United States” for “U.S.” in subparagraphs (b)(2)(B) and (b)(2)(C).
The 2022 amendment, effective July 1, 2022, in subparagraph (b)(1)(A), substituted “gerontology, geriatrics, and primary care medicine” for “gerontology and geriatrics” at the end of the first sentence and added “unless the area of specialization is psychiatry or primary care medicine” at the end of the second sentence; and substituted the present provisions of paragraph (b)(3) for the former provisions, which read: “Reserved; and”.
Editor’s notes.
Ga. L. 1998, p. 748, § 1, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “The General Assembly finds that a fully-staffed, experienced, and well-organized National Guard is vital to the security and safety of the citizens of the nation and the state. A reduction in the manpower of the National Guard could result in the closing of certain military operations in this state causing severe economic hardship to certain counties and municipalities. It is imperative that the state remain competitive with other states and establish a recruitment and retention program to adequately staff the Georgia National Guard. The General Assembly declares that it is the intent of this Act that the Georgia Student Finance Authority exercise its authority to the fullest extent to facilitate the granting, processing, and renewal of service cancelable loans to eligible members of the Georgia National Guard as authorized in this Act.

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