| 1 | 1 | | 83R23669 JRJ-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Patrick H.B. No. 2555 |
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| 3 | 3 | | Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2555: |
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| 4 | 4 | | By: Branch C.S.H.B. No. 2555 |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 8 | 8 | | AN ACT |
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| 9 | 9 | | relating to a study and report regarding tuition and fee exemptions |
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| 10 | 10 | | for certain military personnel and their dependents. |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 54, Education Code, is |
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| 13 | 13 | | amended by adding Section 54.3411 to read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | Sec. 54.3411. STUDY REGARDING TUITION AND FEE EXEMPTIONS |
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| 15 | 15 | | FOR CERTAIN MILITARY PERSONNEL AND DEPENDENTS. (a) The Legislative |
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| 16 | 16 | | Budget Board, in consultation with the Texas Higher Education |
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| 17 | 17 | | Coordinating Board and the Texas Veterans Commission, as the |
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| 18 | 18 | | Legislative Budget Board considers necessary, shall study and |
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| 19 | 19 | | evaluate the tuition and fee exemptions provided under Section |
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| 20 | 20 | | 54.341. In the study, the Legislative Budget Board shall consider |
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| 21 | 21 | | any available historical data and the projected data regarding |
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| 22 | 22 | | recipients of the exemptions provided under Section 54.341, |
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| 23 | 23 | | disaggregated by veteran, dependent, spouse, and legacy recipient, |
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| 24 | 24 | | for each of the following categories of information: |
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| 25 | 25 | | (1) the total number of recipients, disaggregated by |
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| 26 | 26 | | gender, race and ethnicity, institution, and socioeconomic |
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| 27 | 27 | | background as indicated in the Free Application for Federal Student |
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| 28 | 28 | | Aid (FAFSA); |
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| 29 | 29 | | (2) the number of undergraduate, graduate, and |
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| 30 | 30 | | doctoral credit hours attempted and earned by semester; |
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| 31 | 31 | | (3) the number of degrees attempted and earned, and |
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| 32 | 32 | | the associated semester credit hours required for those degrees, |
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| 33 | 33 | | per recipient; |
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| 34 | 34 | | (4) the grade point average of recipients after |
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| 35 | 35 | | completing the first, second, third, and fourth academic years, and |
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| 36 | 36 | | subsequent academic years, as applicable, and to the extent allowed |
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| 37 | 37 | | under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 |
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| 38 | 38 | | U.S.C. Section 1232q); |
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| 39 | 39 | | (5) the average time to graduation; |
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| 40 | 40 | | (6) the four-year and six-year graduation rates, |
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| 41 | 41 | | retention rates, and noncompletion rates; |
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| 42 | 42 | | (7) the number of semester credit hours of |
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| 43 | 43 | | developmental education courses attempted and earned by |
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| 44 | 44 | | recipients; |
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| 45 | 45 | | (8) the proportion of federal education benefits, |
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| 46 | 46 | | including veteran and non-veteran benefits, and of the exemption |
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| 47 | 47 | | provided under Section 54.341, used for undergraduate, graduate, |
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| 48 | 48 | | and doctoral semester credit hours attempted and earned by |
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| 49 | 49 | | recipients; and |
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| 50 | 50 | | (9) the average cost of tuition and mandatory fees for |
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| 51 | 51 | | an undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral recipient enrolled in a |
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| 52 | 52 | | full course load at an institution of higher education compared to |
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| 53 | 53 | | the average cost for a nonrecipient student enrolled in a full |
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| 54 | 54 | | course load at the same institution for the same degree level. |
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| 55 | 55 | | (b) To the greatest extent possible: |
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| 56 | 56 | | (1) the Legislative Budget Board shall: |
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| 57 | 57 | | (A) include in its study a review of all federal |
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| 58 | 58 | | education benefits for veterans in order to comprehensively review |
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| 59 | 59 | | the sustainability of state and federal benefits for veterans; and |
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| 60 | 60 | | (B) use applicable data from the 2008-2009 |
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| 61 | 61 | | academic year or a more recent academic year as a baseline in the |
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| 62 | 62 | | study; and |
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| 63 | 63 | | (2) institutions of higher education shall cooperate |
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| 64 | 64 | | with the Legislative Budget Board by providing any requested data |
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| 65 | 65 | | and ensuring the reliability and validity of the data collected and |
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| 66 | 66 | | submitted for the purpose of the study. |
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| 67 | 67 | | (c) Not later than December 1, 2014, the Legislative Budget |
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| 68 | 68 | | Board shall submit to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating |
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| 69 | 69 | | Board, the Texas Veterans Commission, the governor, the lieutenant |
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| 70 | 70 | | governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives a written |
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| 71 | 71 | | report of the results of the study conducted under this section, |
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| 72 | 72 | | together with any recommendations for legislative or |
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| 73 | 73 | | administrative action, including any changes to eligibility |
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| 74 | 74 | | criteria or other changes necessary to promote sustainability, |
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| 75 | 75 | | fiscal efficiency, and effectiveness in the use of the exemption |
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| 76 | 76 | | provided under Section 54.341. A recommendation included in the |
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| 77 | 77 | | report must include an explanation of the basis for that |
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| 78 | 78 | | recommendation. |
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| 79 | 79 | | (d) This section expires January 31, 2015. |
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| 80 | 80 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 81 | 81 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 82 | 82 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 83 | 83 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 84 | 84 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2013. |
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