House Bill No. 7253
Public Act No. 19-174
AN ACT CONCERNING DI STANCE LEARNING PROG RAMS
OPERATED BY INSTITUT IONS OF HIGHER EDUCA TION OUTSIDE
OF THE STATE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 10a-57f of the general statutes is repealed and the
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2020):
(a) Not later than January 1, 2017, the Office of Higher Education
shall enter into a multistate or regional reciprocity agreement for
purposes of enabling the state and Connecticut institutions of higher
education to participate in a nation-wide state authorization
reciprocity agreement (1) establishing uniform standards for distance
learning programs across states, and (2) eliminating the need for a state
participating in the state authorization reciprocity agreement to assess
the quality of a distance learning program offered by an out-of-state
institution of higher education through the participating state's
authorization, licensing and accreditation process. Notwithstanding
the provisions of part III of this chapter and upon the Office of Higher
Education entering into the multistate or regional reciprocity
agreement, an out-of-state institution of higher education that
participates in the state authorization reciprocity agreement may
operate a distance learning program in the state in accordance with the House Bill No. 7253
Public Act No. 19-174 2 of 3
uniform standards.
(b) Any Connecticut institution of higher education that seeks to
participate in the nation-wide state authorization reciprocity
agreement under subsection (a) of this section shall submit an
application with the Office of Higher Education on a form prescribed
by the office. The office shall approve or reject the institution's
application in accordance with the terms of such agreement.
Authorization by the office to participate in such agreement shall be
valid for a period of one year and may be renewed by the office for
additional one-year periods. The office shall establish a schedule of
application and renewal fees for all Connecticut institutions of higher
education that participate in such agreement. The fee schedule shall be
graduated based on the number of full-time equivalent students at
each Connecticut institution of higher education.
(c) Any out-of-state institution of higher education that does not
participate in the nation-wide, state authorization reciprocity
agreement and seeks to operate a distance learning program in the
state shall submit an application to the Office of Higher Education on a
form prescribed by the office. Each institution shall agree to abide by
standards, similar to those in the nation-wide, state authorization
reciprocity agreement and established by the office. The office shall
approve or reject the institution's application in accordance with the
standards established by the office. Authorization by the office to
operate a distance learning program in the state shall be valid for a
period of one year and may be renewed by the office for additional
one-year periods. The office shall establish a schedule of application
and renewal fees for all out-of-state institutions of higher education
that do not participate in the nation-wide, state authorization
reciprocity agreement and are approved by the office. The fee schedule
shall be graduated based on the number of full-time equivalent
students enrolled at each out-of-state institution of higher education. House Bill No. 7253
Public Act No. 19-174 3 of 3
[(c)] (d) Nothing in subsection (a) of this section shall be construed
to affect the authority of the Attorney General to enforce the provisions
of chapter 735a or Title X of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and
Consumer Protection Act, P.L. 111-203, as amended from time to time.