A Council committee voted unanimously today to advance a bill that would provide substantial post-secondary scholarships to low-income D.C. students.

For the city’s poorest kids, Councilmember David Catania’s (I-At Large) D.C. Promise Establishment Act of 2013 could provide up to $60,000 total for higher learning. (For example: A family of four that makes $53,650 a year would be eligible for this level.) For students from middle class households (a family of four that makes between $134,126 to $214,600, for example), up to $15,000 would be available. The money would only be available to students who attended D.C. public or charter schools [Update: Or private schools or are homeschooled] between at least 9th and 12th grades and have exhausted other means of financial aid, including D.C. Tuition Assistance Grants.

The sliding scale, seen below, is based on Area Median Income.

The Promise program would eventually cost between $55 and $60 million annually, according to a fiscal impact statement, with $95 million spent over the next four years. It’s not clear where the money would come from. The bill, co-introduced by nine Councilmembers, would establish the D.C. Promise Fund. It now moves to the full Council.