The state commission studying the HOPE scholarship program is expected to recommend toughening the definition of the required B average, a move that would prevent about a third of all HOPE scholars from receiving the scholarship.

The panel, which has its last meeting Thursday, is also expected to recommend that the lottery-funded program stop paying for books and mandatory college fees.

The commission is expected to reject an effort to add a minimum SAT score to the requirement for the scholarship, though Gov. Sonny Perdue's office asked the panel this week to take a second look at his proposal.

The commission's co-chairman, state Sen. Bill Hamrick (R-Douglasville), said even if the commission doesn't recommend the SAT proposal, the issue is almost sure to surface during the upcoming General Assembly session, which begins in January.

"I would fully expect somebody to file legislation on it," said Hamrick, chairman of the Senate Higher Education Committee.

Hamrick said the commission will not consider ending about $13.5 million a year in special scholarships that were added on to the HOPE program, often with the backing of powerful state officials.

Such awards include a scholarship for engineering students at Mercer University, a private school. House Speaker Terry Coleman (D-Eastman) has long been a political patron of the Macon university, which also has a campus in Atlanta.

"We decided it would be more trouble to eliminate those than it is worth," Hamrick said. "We've pretty much taken that off the table."

Shortfall on horizon

If some cuts aren't made, HOPE and Georgia's other lottery-funded educational program -- free pre-kindergarten -- are projected to begin dipping into their reserves in the 2006-07 budget year. The programs would sink $434 million into debt two years later.

State Rep. Louise McBee (D-Athens), commission co-chairman, said the study group -- made up of legislators, state officials, parents, students and educators -- will weigh all options before making recommendations.

"HOPE is a very popular program and everyone thinks they have the cure," she said. "Our final recommendations will be based on what is best for the students and for the budget. We want to make sure it is equitable and fair for all."

Some commission members have raised questions about the fairness of HOPE eligibility standards, arguing that the B average required isn't a true measure of success.

Standards vary widely

An Atlanta Journal-Constitution analysis showed standards for a B average vary widely from school to school in Georgia. Many high schools graduate large numbers of HOPE-eligible students, only to have them need remedial course work when they get to college. Only 40 percent of HOPE scholars survive their freshman year with the B average they need to retain the scholarship.

While both 80 percent and a 3.0 GPA are generally defined as a B average, a 3.0 is harder to get, because it limits how much one high grade -- such as a 95 -- can pull up a report card studded with C's.

Toughening the definition of a B to a 3.0 grade point average could reduce the money paid out in scholarships by about $33.5 million or more, depending on the year it is implemented.

About a third of the HOPE scholars entering Georgia's public universities do not have a standard 3.0 GPA, according to Board of Regents estimates. If the tougher definition had been in place in fall 2001, as many as 11,000 of the freshmen entering public universities that year would not have received the scholarship. Shelley Nickel, a commission member and head of the organization that administers HOPE, said standardizing the grade point average will reward students who truly deserve the scholarship.

"I don't understand how people could not support this change," Nickel said. "It's an appropriate measure for scholastic achievement."

The commission has already informally agreed to recommend eliminating fee and book money from the scholarship.

Books, fees studied

Currently, students with a B average or higher receive full tuition, mandatory fees and money for books to attend a Georgia public college. Technical school students are also eligible, and students at Georgia private colleges can receive a $3,000 annual grant.

Eliminating payments for books and fees would save about $125.6 million next year and more than $200 million a year by the end of the decade, according to state estimates. That could translate into about $1,200 in out-of-pocket costs for students at Georgia's largest universities.

Requiring a minimum SAT score of 1000 could eliminate enough students to save the program an estimated $44.3 million in the first year.

Perdue, who has not proposed a specific SAT score, does want a minimum score included in HOPE requirements as a way to improve the state's dismal showing on the college entrance exam. The governor reasons that setting a minimum score would be an incentive for high school students to do well on the test. The state ranked 50th last year with an average score of 984 out of a possible 1600.

State figures show that if a 1000 SAT score had been included in HOPE requirements in fall 2000, about two-thirds of African-American college freshmen who received the scholarship and a third of whites would not have been eligible. Commission members who oppose the idea argue it would penalize students who don't perform well on tests.

Perdue has since softened his proposal, calling for students with a B average who can't make a minimum SAT score to get the scholarship for one semester. If recipients get a B average during their first semester of college, they could keep the scholarship. If they don't, they'd lose it.

But that proposal has critics on the commission.

"The first semester [in college] is always the most difficult," said Rep. Bob Holmes (D-Atlanta), a member of the panel. "It's like being up at the plate and if you don't get a hit the first pitch, you're gone."

-- Staff writer Patti Ghezzi contributed to this article