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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5363
February Session, 2024
AN ACT CONCERNING THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR HIGHER
EDUCATION.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 10a-11b of the 2024 supplement to the general 1
statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof 2
(Effective from passage): 3
(a) There is established a Planning Commission for Higher Education 4
to develop and ensure the implementation of a higher education 5
strategic master plan in Connecticut. 6
(1) The commission shall consist of the following voting members: 7
(A) The president of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities, the 8
president of The University of Connecticut, or their designees from the 9
Board of Regents for Higher Education and Board of Trustees; (B) the 10
provost of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities and the 11
provost of The University of Connecticut; (C) the [chair] chairperson of 12
the Board of Regents for [the Connecticut State Colleges and 13
Universities] Higher Education, and the Board of Trustees for The 14
University of Connecticut, or the chairs' designees; (D) the president, 15
provost or chair of the board of a large independent institution of higher 16
education in the state, to be selected by the president pro tempore of the 17
Senate; (E) the president, provost or chair of the board of a small 18
independent institution of higher education in the state, to be selected 19 Substitute Bill No. 5363
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by the speaker of the House of Representatives; (F) a representative from 20
a private career school, to be selected by the executive director of the 21
Office of Higher Education; (G) a teaching faculty representative from 22
the Connecticut State [Universities] University System, to be selected by 23
the president of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities; (H) a 24
teaching faculty representative from the regional community-technical 25
colleges, to be selected by the president of the Connecticut State Colleges 26
and Universities; (I) a teaching faculty representative from The 27
University of Connecticut, to be selected by the president of The 28
University of Connecticut; (J) a teaching faculty representative from a 29
private career school in the state, to be selected by the executive director 30
of the Office of Higher Education; (K) one member appointed by the 31
president pro tempore of the Senate, who shall be a representative of a 32
large manufacturing employer in the state; (L) one member appointed 33
by the speaker of the House of Representatives, who shall be a 34
representative of a large financial or insurance services employer in the 35
state; (M) one member appointed by the majority leader of the Senate, 36
who shall be a representative of an information technology or digital 37
media employer in the state; (N) one member appointed by the minority 38
leader of the Senate, who shall be a representative of a small business 39
employer in the state; (O) one member appointed by the majority leader 40
of the House of Representatives, who shall be a representative of a 41
health care employer in the state; and (P) one member appointed by the 42
minority leader of the House of Representatives, who shall be a 43
representative of a small business employer in the state. The 44
commission membership shall, where feasible, reflect the state's 45
geographic, racial and ethnic diversity. 46
(2) The following persons shall serve as ex-officio nonvoting 47
members on the commission: (A) The Commissioner of Education, the 48
Commissioner of Economic and Community Development and the 49
Labor Commissioner, or their designees; (B) a representative of an 50
association of the state's independent institutions of higher education, 51
appointed by the Governor; (C) a member of the State Board of 52
Education, as designated by the chairperson of the state board; (D) the 53 Substitute Bill No. 5363
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superintendent of the technical high school system, or the 54
superintendent's designee; (E) the chief executive officer of Connecticut 55
Innovations, Incorporated, or the chief executive officer's designee; (F) 56
the executive director of the Office of Higher Education; (G) the 57
chairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing committee of 58
the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to higher 59
education and employment advancement; (H) the Secretary of the 60
Office of Policy and Management, or the secretary's designee; and (I) the 61
Chief Workforce Officer. 62
(3) All initial appointments to the commission shall be made not later 63
than June 1, 2024. The Governor shall appoint the chairperson from 64
among the commission's voting members. If an appointment under 65
subdivision (1) of this subsection is not made by said date, the 66
chairperson may designate an individual with the required qualification 67
stated for the applicable appointment to serve on the commission. Such 68
chairperson shall schedule the first meeting of the commission, which 69
shall be held not later than July 1, 2024. The commission shall elect a 70
vice-chairperson at its first meeting. Any vacancies shall be filled by the 71
appointing authority. The term of each appointed member of the 72
commission shall be three years from the date of appointment, except a 73
member shall continue to serve until such member's successor is 74
appointed. A majority of the commission shall constitute a quorum for 75
the transaction of business. The commission members shall serve 76
without compensation. 77
(4) The commission may (A) seek the advice and participation of any 78
person, organization or state or federal agency it deems necessary to 79
carry out the provisions of this section, [. The commission may,] (B) 80
within available appropriations, retain consultants to assist in carrying 81
out its duties, [. The commission may] and (C) receive funds from any 82
public or private sources to carry out its activities. 83
(5) The [commission shall be within the Office of Higher Education 84
and shall be responsible for implementing any policies developed by the 85
commission] administrative staff of the joint standing committee of the 86 Substitute Bill No. 5363
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General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to higher 87
education and employment advancement shall serve as the 88
administrative staff of the commission. 89
(b) The commission shall revise and update the higher education 90
strategic master plan adopted in 2015. Such revised strategic master 91
plan shall: 92
(1) Examine the impact of demographic, workforce and education 93
trends on higher education in the state; 94
(2) (A) Assess progress toward the numerical goals established for 95
the years 2020 and 2025 under the strategic master plan adopted in 2015 96
and revise or establish numerical goals for the years [2025] 2026 and 97
2030 to (i) increase the number of people earning a bachelor's degree, 98
associate degree or certificate, (ii) increase the number of people 99
successfully completing coursework at the community college level and 100
the number of people entering the state's workforce, and (iii) eliminate 101
the postsecondary achievement gap between minority students and the 102
general student population, and (B) include specific strategies for 103
meeting such goals, as well as strategies for meeting the goals pursuant 104
to subsection (b) of section 10a-6 and section 10a-11c; 105
(3) Examine and recommend changes to funding policies, practices 106
and accountability in order to (A) align policies and practices with the 107
goals set forth in subsection (b) of section 10a-6 and section 10a-11c; (B) 108
determine how the constituent units shall annually report to the General 109
Assembly and the public in a transparent and thorough manner 110
regarding each constituent unit's expenditures, staffing and state 111
support, including the state appropriation, personnel expenses, 112
personnel fringe benefits, capital improvement bonds and financial aid 113
to students; and (C) improve coordination of appropriation, tuition and 114
financial aid and seek ways to maximize funding through federal and 115
private grants to accomplish state goals; and 116
(4) Recommend ways in which each constituent unit of the state 117 Substitute Bill No. 5363
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system of higher education and independent institution of higher 118
education in the state can, in a manner consistent with such institution's 119
mission, expand such institution's role in advancing the state's economic 120
growth. 121
(c) In updating the higher education strategic master plan, the 122
commission shall review the plan developed pursuant to section 10a-6. 123
In addition, the commission may consider the following: (1) 124
Establishing incentives for institutional performance and productivity; 125
(2) increasing financial aid, especially in workforce shortage areas and 126
for minority and first-generation students; (3) expanding dual credit 127
and career pathway opportunities in high schools and aligning such 128
opportunities with institutions of higher education; (4) promoting 129
partnerships with the business community and institutions of higher 130
education to expand work-based learning opportunities for students 131
and retraining and development opportunities for employees; (5) 132
establishing collaborative partnerships between public high schools, 133
community organizations and institutions of higher education to 134
expand college access for underserved and first-generation students; (6) 135
assessing and promoting programs in high school to assist high school 136
students seeking a college track or alternative pathways for post-137
secondary education, such as vocational and technical opportunities; (7) 138
developing policies to promote and measure retention and graduation 139
rates of students, including graduation rates for students who have 140
transferred among two or more constituent units or public institutions 141
of higher education; (8) developing policies to promote [Transfer] 142
transfer and [Articulation] articulation programs and the Connecticut 143
Automatic Admissions [program] Program state wide; (9) addressing 144
the educational needs of minority, underserved and first-generation 145
students and nontraditional students, including, but not limited to, part-146
time students, incumbent workers, adult learners, former inmates and 147
immigrants, in order to increase enrollment and retention in institutions 148
of higher education; (10) addressing the affordability of tuition at 149
institutions of higher education and the issue of increased student 150
indebtedness; and (11) developing policies to award credits for prior 151 Substitute Bill No. 5363
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learning and experience. 152
(d) Not later than September 1, [2024] 2025, the commission shall 153
submit a preliminary report on the development of the update of the 154
higher education strategic master plan and, not later than December 1, 155
[2024] 2025, the commission shall submit the higher education strategic 156
master plan, including specific goals and benchmarks for the years 157
ending [2025] 2026 and 2030, together with any recommendations for 158
appropriate legislation and funding to the Governor and the joint 159
standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of 160
matters relating to higher education and employment advancement, 161
education, commerce, labor and appropriations and the budgets of state 162
agencies, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a. 163
(e) Not later than January 1, [2026] 2027, and annually thereafter, the 164
commission shall submit a report to the Governor and the joint standing 165
committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 166
relating to higher education and employment advancement, education, 167
commerce, labor and appropriations and the budgets of state agencies, 168
in accordance with section 11-4a, on the implementation of the plan and 169
progress made toward achieving the goals specified in the plan. The 170
commission may periodically suggest changes to the goals as necessary. 171
(f) [Not later than January 1, 2018, for] For purposes of implementing 172
the higher education strategic master plan pursuant to subsection (b) of 173
this section, the commission [, in collaboration with the Office of Policy 174
and Management,] shall establish two standing subcommittees and may 175
establish any working groups necessary to supplement the work of the 176
subcommittees or work. The chairperson and vice-chairperson of the 177
commission shall appoint the members of the standing subcommittees 178
and working groups, and may appoint members to such standing 179
subcommittees and working groups who are not members of the 180
commission. 181
(1) One standing subcommittee shall focus on data, metrics and 182
accountability, and build upon the work of the Preschool through 20 183 Substitute Bill No. 5363
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and Workforce Information Network in its measures and data. Such 184
measures shall be used to assess the progress of each public institution 185
of higher education toward meeting the commission's goals. The 186
subcommittee shall collaborate with the Labor Department to (A) 187
produce periodic reports, capable of being sorted by student age, on the 188
employment status, job retention and earnings of students enrolled in 189
academic and noncredit vocational courses and programs, both prior to 190
enrollment and after completion of such courses and programs, who 191
leave the constituent units upon graduation or otherwise, and (B) 192
develop an annual affordability index for public higher education that 193
is based on state-wide median family income. The subcommittee shall 194
submit annual reports to the commission and the constituent units. 195
(2) One standing subcommittee shall focus on the higher education 196
strategic master plan, analyzing the plans submitted since 2014 and 197
making recommendations to the commission on key areas. The 198
commission may recommend key areas of focus each year and require 199
the standing subcommittee to report to the commission on such key 200
areas. 201
(g) The commission may appoint advisory committees with 202
representatives from public and independent institutions of higher 203
education to study methods and proposals for coordinating efforts of 204
the public institutions of higher education and the independent 205
institutions of higher education to implement the goals identified in 206
section 10a-11c. 207
(h) The commission may review its goals and plans and determine 208
how best to align its work with the work of the Higher Education 209
Innovation and Entrepreneurship Working Group and the Higher 210
Education Entrepreneurship Advisory Committee, established 211
pursuant to sections 32-39s and 32-39t. 212
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Substitute Bill No. 5363
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Section 1 from passage 10a-11b
Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Subsec. (c)(8), "Transfer and Articulation" was changed to "[Transfer]
transfer and [Articulation] articulation" and "program" was changed to
"[program] Program" for statutory consistency, and, in Subsecs. (d) and
(e), "and the budgets of state agencies" was inserted after
"appropriations" for accuracy.
HED Joint Favorable Subst. -LCO