By: Cohen, Kent (Senate Sponsor - Zaffirini) H.B. No. 4476
(In the Senate - Received from the House April 29, 2009;
May 1, 2009, read first time and referred to Committee on Higher
Education; May 7, 2009, reported adversely, with favorable
Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 4, Nays 0;
May 7, 2009, sent to printer.)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 4476 By: Patrick
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to eligibility requirements for the tuition equalization
grant program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Sections 61.2251(b), (c), and (e), Education
Code, as added by Chapter 1230 (H.B. 1172), Acts of the 79th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2005, are amended to read as follows:
(b) To be eligible for a tuition equalization grant in the
first academic year in which the person receives the grant, a person
must:
(1) be a Texas resident as defined by the coordinating
board and meet, at a minimum, the resident requirements defined by
law for Texas resident tuition in fully state-supported
institutions of higher education;
(2) be enrolled in at least three-fourths of [for] a
full course load conforming to an individual degree plan in an
approved college or university;
(3) be required to pay more tuition than is required at
a public college or university and be charged no less than the
regular tuition required of all students enrolled at the
institution;
(4) establish financial need in accordance with
procedures and regulations of the coordinating board;
(5) not be a recipient of any form of athletic
scholarship; [and]
(6) make satisfactory academic progress toward a
degree or certificate as determined by the institution at which the
person is enrolled; and
(7) have complied with other requirements adopted by
the coordinating board under this subchapter.
(c) After qualifying for a tuition equalization grant under
Subsection (b), a person may receive a tuition equalization grant
in a subsequent academic year in which the person is enrolled at an
approved institution only if the person:
(1) meets the requirements of Subsection (b);
(2) completed at least:
(A) 24 semester credit hours in the person's most
recent full academic year, if the person is enrolled in an
undergraduate degree or certificate program; or
(B) 18 semester credit hours in the person's most
recent full academic year, if the person is enrolled in a graduate
or professional degree program; and
(3) has earned an overall grade point average of at
least 2.5 on a four-point scale or the equivalent on coursework
previously attempted at public or private institutions of higher
education.
(e) The coordinating board shall adopt rules to allow a
person who is otherwise eligible to receive a tuition equalization
grant, in the event of a hardship or for other good cause shown, to
receive a tuition equalization grant if the person does not:
(1) make satisfactory academic progress as required
under Subsection (b)(6);
(2) complete the semester credit hours required by
Subsection (c)(2);
(3) [(2)] maintain the grade point average required by
Subsection (c)(3); or
(4) [(3)] complete the person's certificate or degree
program within the period prescribed by Subsection (d).
SECTION 2. (a) The changes in law made by this Act to
Section 61.2251, Education Code, apply beginning with tuition
equalization grants awarded for the 2009-2010 academic year. For
that purpose, a person's eligibility for a grant under Section
61.2251(c), Education Code, as amended by this Act, for the
2009-2010 academic year shall be based on the person's satisfaction
of the requirements of Section 61.2251(c), as amended, in the
2008-2009 academic year, without regard to whether the person
satisfied the former requirements of Section 61.2251(c) or received
a grant under Subchapter F, Chapter 61, Education Code, in that
academic year.
(b) A tuition equalization grant awarded for an academic
year before the 2009-2010 academic year is covered by the law in
effect when the grant was awarded, and that law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
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