MANY STUDENTS APPEAR UNAWARE OF LAW CHANGES

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, February 15, 1993                   TAG: 9302130011
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short
MANY STUDENTS APPEAR UNAWARE OF LAW CHANGES
More than six years after enactment of the biggest federal tax overhaul in a generation, some people are still being surprised. College students, for example.
Under the old law, most scholarships, fellowships and grants to students working toward a degree were tax-free, as was up to $300 a month in grants for non-degree candidates.
The new rule: A degree candidate may exclude from taxation the portion of a scholarship awarded after Aug. 16, 1986, and spent for tuition, fees, books and supplies. The share spent for room and board, for example, is taxable. Grants awarded on or before that date generally fall under the old rules.
Any post-Aug. 16, 1986, award to a student not working toward a degree is fully taxable.
The Internal Revenue Service reportedly targeted at least one major university to determine compliance with the new rules and, not surprisingly, found many students totally unaware of the changes.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB