83R23669 JRJ-D
By: Patrick H.B. No. 2555
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2555:
By: Branch C.S.H.B. No. 2555
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a study and report regarding tuition and fee exemptions
for certain military personnel and their dependents.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 54, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 54.3411 to read as follows:
Sec. 54.3411. STUDY REGARDING TUITION AND FEE EXEMPTIONS
FOR CERTAIN MILITARY PERSONNEL AND DEPENDENTS. (a) The Legislative
Budget Board, in consultation with the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board and the Texas Veterans Commission, as the
Legislative Budget Board considers necessary, shall study and
evaluate the tuition and fee exemptions provided under Section
54.341. In the study, the Legislative Budget Board shall consider
any available historical data and the projected data regarding
recipients of the exemptions provided under Section 54.341,
disaggregated by veteran, dependent, spouse, and legacy recipient,
for each of the following categories of information:
(1) the total number of recipients, disaggregated by
gender, race and ethnicity, institution, and socioeconomic
background as indicated in the Free Application for Federal Student
Aid (FAFSA);
(2) the number of undergraduate, graduate, and
doctoral credit hours attempted and earned by semester;
(3) the number of degrees attempted and earned, and
the associated semester credit hours required for those degrees,
per recipient;
(4) the grade point average of recipients after
completing the first, second, third, and fourth academic years, and
subsequent academic years, as applicable, and to the extent allowed
under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20
U.S.C. Section 1232q);
(5) the average time to graduation;
(6) the four-year and six-year graduation rates,
retention rates, and noncompletion rates;
(7) the number of semester credit hours of
developmental education courses attempted and earned by
recipients;
(8) the proportion of federal education benefits,
including veteran and non-veteran benefits, and of the exemption
provided under Section 54.341, used for undergraduate, graduate,
and doctoral semester credit hours attempted and earned by
recipients; and
(9) the average cost of tuition and mandatory fees for
an undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral recipient enrolled in a
full course load at an institution of higher education compared to
the average cost for a nonrecipient student enrolled in a full
course load at the same institution for the same degree level.
(b) To the greatest extent possible:
(1) the Legislative Budget Board shall:
(A) include in its study a review of all federal
education benefits for veterans in order to comprehensively review
the sustainability of state and federal benefits for veterans; and
(B) use applicable data from the 2008-2009
academic year or a more recent academic year as a baseline in the
study; and
(2) institutions of higher education shall cooperate
with the Legislative Budget Board by providing any requested data
and ensuring the reliability and validity of the data collected and
submitted for the purpose of the study.
(c) Not later than December 1, 2014, the Legislative Budget
Board shall submit to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating
Board, the Texas Veterans Commission, the governor, the lieutenant
governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives a written
report of the results of the study conducted under this section,
together with any recommendations for legislative or
administrative action, including any changes to eligibility
criteria or other changes necessary to promote sustainability,
fiscal efficiency, and effectiveness in the use of the exemption
provided under Section 54.341. A recommendation included in the
report must include an explanation of the basis for that
recommendation.
(d) This section expires January 31, 2015.
SECTION 2. 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, 2013.