85-2605.

Legal dependent; agreement; terms; residency requirement.

(1) Each legal dependent who is a tuition waiver recipient under the First Responder Recruitment and Retention Act shall execute an agreement with the state. Such agreement shall be exempt from the requirements of sections 73-501 to 73-510 and shall include the following terms, as appropriate:

(a) The tuition waiver recipient agrees to reside within the State of Nebraska for a period of five years following the use of the tuition waiver;

(b) Each year during the five-year period following use of the tuition waiver the tuition waiver recipient agrees to file a tax return with the Department of Revenue to document that such recipient still resides in the State of Nebraska;

(c) If the tuition waiver recipient fails to annually file a tax return to prove residency in the State of Nebraska for the five-year period following the use of the tuition waiver or fails to remain a resident of Nebraska for the five-year period following the use of the tuition waiver, the tuition waiver recipient agrees to repay the community college, state college, or state university that such tuition waiver recipient attended the amount of tuition that was waived for such individual if the community college, state college, or state university requests such payment on the dates and in the amounts requested; and

(d) Any residency, filing, or payment obligation incurred by the tuition waiver recipient under the First Responder Recruitment and Retention Act is canceled in the event of the tuition recipient's total and permanent disability or death.

(2) The five-year residency requirement begins to run after use of the first tuition waiver and:

(a) Completion of the five-year tuition waiver eligibility;

(b) Completion of an undergraduate degree at a state college or state university;

(c) Completion of a two-year degree at a community college and notification by the tuition waiver recipient to the Department of Revenue that such recipient does not intend to pursue an undergraduate degree or additional two-year degree using tuition waivers pursuant to the First Responder Recruitment and Retention Act; or

(d) Notification by the tuition waiver recipient to the Department of Revenue that such recipient does not plan to use additional tuition waivers pursuant to the First Responder Recruitment and Retention Act.