SLS 19RS-299 ORIGINAL
2019 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 10
BY SENATOR BISHOP
TOPS. Requests the Board of Regents to study the feasibility of updating TOPS reporting
requirements.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To urge and request the Board of Regents to study the need for and feasibility of updating
3 Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS) reporting requirements to include
4 data on scholarship recipients' employment outcomes and other relevant data points.
5 WHEREAS, TOPS has often been cited as a program geared to keep the state's best
6 and brightest in state for their postsecondary education, with the expectation that they will
7 remain in Louisiana; and
8 WHEREAS, since its inception, the number of students receiving TOPS has more
9 than doubled and the cost for the program has increased almost sixfold; and
10 WHEREAS, legislators need information regarding TOPS recipients in order to make
11 programmatic decisions to ensure state appropriations are being spent in a manner that
12 benefits all citizens of the state; and
13 WHEREAS, R.S. 17:5067 requires the Board of Regents to formulate, develop, and
14 implement a TOPS information reporting system for the purposes of policy analysis and
15 program evaluation; and
16 WHEREAS, Act 671 of the 2018 regular session of the Louisiana Legislature
17 clarified that the Department of Revenue is not prohibited from sharing taxpayer information
18 for the purpose of determining the employment and residency status of past TOPS recipients;
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SLS 19RS-299 ORIGINAL
1 and
2 WHEREAS, information regarding the status of TOPS recipients after exiting
3 postsecondary education, including residency, employment status, the employing industry
4 sectors, and changes in household income, may help legislators make informed decisions
5 regarding TOPS; and
6 WHEREAS, with the wealth of student information harvested by the Board of
7 Regents, understanding how certain factors relate to TOPS degree attainment, such as time-
8 to-degree, and living on- or off-campus during college, could lead to solid policy
9 recommendations to enhance TOPS.
10 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
11 does hereby request the Board of Regents to study the need for and feasibility of updating
12 Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS) reporting requirements to include data on
13 scholarship recipients' employment outcomes and other relevant data points.
14 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be submitted to the
15 chair of the Board of Regents and the commissioner of higher education.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Cheryl Serrett.
DIGEST
SR 10 Original 2019 Regular Session Bishop
Requests the Board of Regents to study the need for and feasibility of updating the Taylor
Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS) reporting requirements to include data on
scholarship recipients' employment outcomes and other relevant data points.
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