S.B. No. 1159
AN ACT
relating to higher education for certain military personnel and
their dependents.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. This Act shall be known as Andrew's Law.
SECTION 2. Subchapter W, Chapter 51, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 51.844 to read as follows:
Sec. 51.844. READMISSION OF CERTAIN MILITARY PERSONNEL TO
GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL PROGRAMS. (a) This section applies only
to a person who:
(1) was previously offered admission to, or was
enrolled in, a graduate program or professional program at a
general academic teaching institution or medical and dental unit;
(2) did not initially enroll in the program, or
withdrew from the program, as applicable, because of the person's
deployment as a member of the armed forces of the United States
serving on active duty for the purpose of engaging in a combative
military operation outside the United States; and
(3) seeks readmission to the program following the
person's military deployment under Subdivision (2).
(b) A general academic teaching institution or a medical and
dental unit must, regardless of the time since the person was
initially offered admission to, or withdrew from, the program, as
applicable:
(1) readmit a person to whom this section applies to
the applicable graduate or professional program;
(2) apply credit toward the program for any course
work previously completed by the person under the program; and
(3) accept a standardized test score previously
submitted by that person for admission to the program.
SECTION 3. 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,
shall study and evaluate federal education benefits and 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 1232g);
(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 4. 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.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1159 passed the Senate on
April 18, 2013, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that
the Senate concurred in House amendments on May 25, 2013, by the
following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1159 passed the House, with
amendments, on May 22, 2013, by the following vote: Yeas 148,
Nays 0, two present not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
______________________________
Date
______________________________
Governor