85R28010 JRJ-F
By: Lozano, Blanco H.B. No. 3766
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3766:
By: Lozano C.S.H.B. No. 3766
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to tuition and fee exemptions or waivers at public
institutions of higher education.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 54, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 54.201 to read as follows:
Sec. 54.201. CERTAIN FINANCIAL AID ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION
REQUIRED. (a) Notwithstanding any other law and subject to
Subsection (b), to qualify for an exemption, waiver, or other
benefit authorized under this subchapter for enrollment at an
institution of higher education during an academic year, a person
must:
(1) complete a free application for federal student
aid (FAFSA) for that academic year and:
(A) submit the person's FAFSA student aid report
to the institution; or
(B) designate the institution as a preferred
institution to receive the report from the United States Department
of Education; or
(2) if the person is not eligible to receive federal
student aid, complete and submit to the institution the Texas
Application for State Financial Aid (TASFA) or a similar
application for state student financial assistance.
(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to a person who receives a
waiver under Section 54.216.
SECTION 2. Sections 54.341(l) and (n), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(l) To be eligible to receive an exemption under Subsection
(k), the child must:
(1) be a student who is classified as a resident under
Subchapter B when the child enrolls in an institution of higher
education;
(2) be [as] a graduate or undergraduate student[,
maintain a grade point average that satisfies the grade point
average requirement for making satisfactory academic progress in a
degree, certificate, or continuing education program as determined
by the institution at which the child is enrolled in accordance with
the institution's policy regarding eligibility for financial aid];
[and]
(3) maintain:
(A) a course load of at least 24 semester credit
hours per academic year; and
(B) a cumulative grade point average of at least
2.5 on a four-point scale or the equivalent;
(4) be 25 years of age or younger on the first class
date [day] of the semester or other academic term for which the
exemption is claimed; and
(5) if eligible, have exhausted all benefits available
to the child under the federal Post-9/11 Veterans Educational
Assistance Act of 2008 (38 U.S.C. Section 3301 et seq.) or any other
federal law authorizing educational benefits for veterans.
(n) The Texas Veterans Commission by rule shall prescribe
procedures by which a child assigned an exemption under Subsection
(k) who suffered from a severe illness or other debilitating
condition that affected the child's ability to use the exemption
before reaching the age described by Subsection (l)(4) [(l)(3)] may
be granted additional time to use the exemption corresponding to
the time the child was unable to use the exemption because of the
illness or condition.
SECTION 3. Section 434.00791(b), Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) The commission shall ensure a system to electronically
monitor the use of tuition and fee exemptions at institutions of
higher education under Section 54.341, Education Code, is
developed. The system must allow the commission to electronically
receive, for each semester, the following information from
institutions of higher education:
(1) the name of the institution;
(2) the name, identification number, and date of birth
of each individual attending the institution and receiving benefits
for the semester under Section 54.341, Education Code;
(3) for each individual receiving benefits, the number
of credit hours for which the individual received an exemption for
the semester;
(4) for each individual receiving benefits at the
institution during the semester, the total cumulative number of
credit hours for which the individual has received an exemption at
the institution; [and]
(5) for each individual receiving benefits, the length
of service of the person eligible for an exemption under Section
54.341(a), Education Code, as indicated by official documentation
from the United States Department of Defense; and
(6) any other information required by the commission.
SECTION 4. (a) Except as otherwise provided by this
section, the changes in law made by this Act apply beginning with
tuition and fees charged for the 2017 fall semester. Tuition and
fees charged for a term or semester before the 2017 fall semester
are governed by the law in effect immediately before the effective
date of this Act, and the former law is continued in effect for that
purpose.
(b) Section 54.201, Education Code, as added by this Act,
applies to a person's eligibility for an exemption or waiver from
the payment of all or part of tuition or other fees beginning with
tuition and fees charged for the 2018 fall semester.
SECTION 5. 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, 2017.