By Lucas Johnson and Beth Rucker

NASHVILLE — A compromise between House and Senate leaders on a measure to loosen requirements for college students to keep lottery-funded scholarships has fallen apart nearly as soon as it was reached.

The House Democratic Caucus balked at the compromise Tuesday night when lawmakers became concerned that Senate Republicans had added several other provisions.

“They changed a lot of the stuff we had agreed to,” said Rep. Ulysses Jones Jr., a Memphis Democrat who attended the compromise meeting.

Under current rules, students must be enrolled full time in college and have a grade point average of at least 2.75 after their freshman year and a cumulative 3.0 GPA subsequently.

The compromise would have set the required GPA at 2.75 through the middle of the junior year. Students then would have to earn at least a 3.0 GPA for each semester after that to keep the scholarship.

Currently, the House proposal would set the required GPA at 2.75 for all four years of college, while the Senate version would give students an extra year to get back up to a 3.0.

House leaders planned to continue to meet with Senate leaders. But Jones said some Democrats are considering sticking to the measure that would allow students to have a 2.75 for four years of college. “We think we’re helping more students,” he said.

Most lawmakers agree that some form of grade adjustment is needed. Figures released earlier this year by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission showed 50 percent of students lost their HOPE scholarships after their first year in college and 68 percent by their fourth year.

However, legislators have had to find a more feasible approach because the economic downturn has lowered lottery revenue projections for next year.

The across-the-board grade reduction would cost $17.5 million, compared to roughly $7.2 million for the other version.

The House bill has been approved and the companion version is scheduled to be heard by the full Senate on Wednesday. If approved by the Senate, then a conference committee will be called if the two chambers still can’t agree on the legislation.

Last year’s session ended without lawmakers reaching an agreement.

Read the full text of SB0611/HB0653 on the General Assembly’s Web site at: http://www.legislature.state.tn.us