| 1 | 1 | | 85R3544 SRS-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: West S.B. No. 1899 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to common admission application forms for institutions of |
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| 8 | 8 | | higher education. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 51.761, Education Code, is amended to |
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| 11 | 11 | | read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 51.761. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter, "board," |
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| 13 | 13 | | "general academic teaching institution," "governing board," |
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| 14 | 14 | | "institution of higher education," "public state college," "public |
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| 15 | 15 | | technical institute," "private or independent institution of |
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| 16 | 16 | | higher education," and "university system" have the meanings |
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| 17 | 17 | | assigned by Section 61.003. |
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| 18 | 18 | | SECTION 2. Sections 51.762(a), (f), and (h), Education |
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| 19 | 19 | | Code, are amended to read as follows: |
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| 20 | 20 | | (a) The board, with the assistance of high school counselors |
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| 21 | 21 | | and an advisory committee composed of representatives of general |
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| 22 | 22 | | academic teaching institutions, junior college districts, public |
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| 23 | 23 | | state colleges, [and] public technical institutes, and private or |
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| 24 | 24 | | independent institutions of higher education [and with the |
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| 25 | 25 | | consultation of all institutions of higher education that admit |
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| 26 | 26 | | freshman-level students]: |
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| 27 | 27 | | (1) shall adopt by rule: |
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| 28 | 28 | | (A) a common admission application form for use |
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| 29 | 29 | | by a person seeking admission [as a freshman student] to a general |
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| 30 | 30 | | academic teaching institution; |
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| 31 | 31 | | (B) an electronic common admission application |
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| 32 | 32 | | form for use by a person seeking admission [as a freshman student] |
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| 33 | 33 | | to an institution of higher education [that admits freshman-level |
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| 34 | 34 | | students], other than a general academic teaching institution; and |
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| 35 | 35 | | (C) if the board determines that adoption of the |
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| 36 | 36 | | form would be cost-effective for nursing schools, an electronic |
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| 37 | 37 | | common admission application form for use by a person seeking |
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| 38 | 38 | | admission as a student to an undergraduate nursing education |
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| 39 | 39 | | program at an institution of higher education; and |
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| 40 | 40 | | (2) may adopt by rule a printed format common |
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| 41 | 41 | | admission application form for use by a person seeking admission as |
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| 42 | 42 | | a freshman student to an institution of higher education that |
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| 43 | 43 | | admits freshman-level students, other than a general academic |
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| 44 | 44 | | teaching institution. |
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| 45 | 45 | | (f) The board shall ensure that copies of the [freshman] |
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| 46 | 46 | | common admission application forms appropriate for use by a person |
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| 47 | 47 | | seeking admission to an institution of higher education as a |
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| 48 | 48 | | freshman student and information for the use of the forms are |
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| 49 | 49 | | available in electronic format [for distribution] to the |
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| 50 | 50 | | appropriate personnel at each public high school in this state. |
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| 51 | 51 | | (h) An applicant may file, and each institution of higher |
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| 52 | 52 | | education shall accept, an application for admission [as an |
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| 53 | 53 | | entering freshman or undergraduate transfer student] that uses the |
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| 54 | 54 | | appropriate form adopted under this section. The form used to |
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| 55 | 55 | | apply to a general academic teaching institution may be filed in |
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| 56 | 56 | | either electronic or printed format. An institution of higher |
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| 57 | 57 | | education is not prohibited from requiring an applicant to submit |
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| 58 | 58 | | additional information within a reasonable time after the |
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| 59 | 59 | | institution has received an application using a form adopted under |
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| 60 | 60 | | this section. |
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| 61 | 61 | | SECTION 3. Section 51.763(a), Education Code, is amended to |
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| 62 | 62 | | read as follows: |
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| 63 | 63 | | (a) The governing board of a university system shall adopt a |
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| 64 | 64 | | common admission application form consistent with this subchapter |
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| 65 | 65 | | to be used by any person seeking [freshman or undergraduate |
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| 66 | 66 | | transfer] admission to one or more of the general academic teaching |
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| 67 | 67 | | institutions within the university system. |
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| 68 | 68 | | SECTION 4. Section 51.762(b), Education Code, is repealed. |
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| 69 | 69 | | SECTION 5. The changes in law made by this Act apply |
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| 70 | 70 | | beginning with applications for admission to institutions of higher |
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| 71 | 71 | | education for the 2018-2019 academic year. |
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| 72 | 72 | | SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 73 | 73 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 74 | 74 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 75 | 75 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 76 | 76 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |
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