A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to broaden the eligible counties for the criminal justice fellows program and to allow for the extension of certain program deadlines.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 17C‑20 reads as rewritten:
"§ 17C‑20.  Definitions.
As used in this Article, the following definitions apply:
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(5)	Eligible county. – A county in North Carolina.
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SECTION 2.  G.S. 17C‑22 reads as rewritten:
"§ 17C‑22.  North Carolina Criminal Justice Fellows Program established; administration.
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(c)	Awards of Forgivable Loans. – The Program shall provide forgivable loans of up to three thousand one hundred fifty‑two dollars ($3,152.00) per year, totaling a maximum of six thousand three hundred four dollars ($6,304.00) over two years, to selected individuals. If the Committee, in its sole discretion, determines that circumstances warrant an extension of the period over which the Program shall provide forgivable loans to a selected individual, the Committee may extend that period to three years but may not increase the maximum loan amount. The funds from the forgivable loans may be used for tuition, fees, and the cost of books. The Committee may determine the maximum amount of loan proceeds that may be applied to community college fees and course textbooks. The number of forgivable loans awarded annually shall not exceed 100 and the total number of recipients in the Program each year shall not exceed 200. The Committee shall select recipients no later than June 1 of each year.
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(h)	Recipient Obligations. – A recipient must become and remain a student at a North Carolina community college in an Applied Associate Degree in Criminal Justice or in a Committee‑approved related field of study at all times during each of the recipient's two academic years of community college study and pursue continuously studies that will qualify the recipient to be employed in an eligible criminal justice profession upon graduation. The recipient must maintain a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA throughout the course of study and also maintain appropriate credit hours for each semester to obtain an Applied Associate Degree in Criminal Justice or Committee‑approved field of study within two years. If the Committee, in its sole discretion, determines that circumstances warrant an extension of the period within which the recipient must obtain an Applied Associate Degree in Criminal Justice or Committee‑approved field of study, the Committee may extend that period by up to 12 additional months. The recipient must also accept employment in an eligible county in an eligible criminal justice profession for at least four out of five years following graduation. The Committee may adopt additional recipient obligations it deems appropriate.
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SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to individuals participating in the Program on or after that date and to Committee extension determinations made on or after that date.