(a) An education award may be used to pay educational expenses and/or to repay qualified student loans, as defined in § 2525.2;

(b) An education award is divisible and may be applied to any combination of loans, costs, or expenses described in paragraph (a) of this section.

(a) Required information. Before disbursing an amount from an education award to repay a qualified student loan, AmeriCorps must receive:

(1) An Eligible Individual's written authorization and request for a specific payment amount; and

(2) Any identifying and other information from the loan holder as requested by AmeriCorps.

(b) Payment. When AmeriCorps receives the information required under paragraph (a) of this section, it will pay the loan holder and notify the Eligible Individual of the payment.

(c) Aggregate payments. AmeriCorps may establish procedures to aggregate payments to holders of loans for more than a single individual.

(a) Required information. Before disbursing funds from an education award to pay all or part of the current educational expenses at an institution of higher education, AmeriCorps must receive:

(1) An Eligible Individual's written authorization and request for a specific payment amount;

(2) Information from the institution of higher education as requested by AmeriCorps, including verification that—

(i) It has in effect a program participation agreement under section 487 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094);

(ii) Its eligibility to participate in any of the programs under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 has not been limited, suspended, or terminated;

(iii) If an Eligible Individual who has used an education award withdraws or otherwise fails to complete the period of enrollment for which the education award was provided, the institution of higher education will ensure an appropriate refund to AmeriCorps of the unused portion of the education award under its own published refund policy, or if it does not have one, provide a pro-rata refund to AmeriCorps of the unused portion of the education award;

(iv) Individuals using education awards to pay for current educational expenses at that institution do not comprise more than 15 percent of the institution's total student population;

(v) The requested amount will be used to pay all or part of the Eligible Individual's educational expenses attributable to a course offered by the institution;

(vi) The requested amount does not exceed the difference between:

(A) The Eligible Individual's cost of attendance and other educational expenses; and

(B) The Eligible Individual's estimated student financial assistance for that period under Part A of Title IV of the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.).

(b) Payment. When AmeriCorps receives the information required under paragraph (a) of this section, it will pay the institution and notify the Eligible Individual of the payment.

(c) Installment payments. AmeriCorps will disburse the education award payment to the institution in at least two separate installments, none of which exceeds 50 percent of the total amount. The interval between installments may not be less than one-half of the period of enrollment, except as necessary to permit the second installment to be paid at the beginning of the second semester, quarter, or other division of a period of enrollment.

Yes. AmeriCorps' disbursement from an Eligible Individual's education award for any period of enrollment may not exceed the difference between:

(a) The Eligible Individual's educational expenses, determined by the institution; and

(b) The Eligible Individual's estimated financial assistance for that period under part A of Title IV of the Higher Education Act.

(a) If an Eligible Individual for whom AmeriCorps has disbursed education award funds withdraws or otherwise fails to complete a period of enrollment, then an institution that receives a disbursement of education award funds from AmeriCorps must:

(1) Provide a refund to AmeriCorps in an amount determined under that institution's published refund requirements, unless the institution charged the Eligible Individual for the uncompleted period of study or training.

(2) Provide a pro-rata refund to AmeriCorps of the unused portion of the education award if the institution does not have a published refund policy.

(b) AmeriCorps will credit any refund received for an Eligible Individual under paragraph (a) of this section to the individual's education award allocation in the National Service Trust.

To use the education award to pay expenses incurred in enrolling in a G.I. Bill-approved program, an Eligible Individual must have received an education award for successfully completing a term in an approved national service position, in which they enrolled on or after October 1, 2009.

(a) Required information. Before disbursing funds from an education award for this purpose, AmeriCorps must receive:

(1) An individual's written authorization and request for a specific payment amount;

(2) Verification from the individual that they meet the criteria in § 2525.260; and

(3) Information from the educational institution or training establishment as requested by AmeriCorps, including verification that—

(i) The amount requested will be used to pay all or part of the individual's expenses attributable to a course, program of education, apprenticeship, or job training offered by the institution or establishment;

(ii) The course(s) or program(s) for which the individual is requesting to use the education award has been and is currently approved by the State approving agency for the State where the institution or establishment is located, or by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; and

(iii) If an individual who has used an education award withdraws or otherwise fails to complete the period of enrollment for which the education award was provided, the institution or establishment will ensure a pro-rata refund to AmeriCorps of the unused portion of the education award.

(b) Payment. When AmeriCorps receives the information required under paragraph (a) of this section, it will pay the institution or establishment and notify the individual of the payment.

(a) If an individual for whom AmeriCorps has disbursed education award funds withdraws or otherwise fails to complete a period of enrollment, the approved educational institution or training establishment that received a disbursement of education award funds from AmeriCorps must provide a pro-rata refund to AmeriCorps of the unused portion of the education award.

(b) AmeriCorps will credit any refund received for an individual under paragraph (a) of this section to the individual's education award allocation in the National Service Trust.

(a) Prohibition on treatment of an education award as marital property. An education award may not be treated as marital property, or the asset of a marital estate, subject to division in a divorce or other civil proceeding.

(b) Death of Eligible Individual. An educational award expires and is no longer available for any purpose upon the death of the Eligible Individual, except for:

(1) Any award or portion of the educational award the Eligible Individual transferred prior to death;

(2) Any amount for which the Eligible Individual submitted a request for disbursement prior to death that the National Service Trust had not yet either received or acted upon as of the date of death.