By: Pacheco H.B. No. 3351
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to establishing the Texas Commission on Community College
Finance.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter G, Chapter 130, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 130.1305 to read as follows:
Sec. 130.1305. TEXAS COMMISSION ON COMMUNITY COLLEGE
FINANCE. (a) The Texas Commission on Community College Finance is
established to make recommendations for consideration by the 88th
Texas Legislature regarding the state funding formula and funding
levels for public junior colleges in Texas that would be sufficient
to sustain viable junior college education and training offerings
throughout the state.
(b) The commission is composed of 11 members as follows:
(1) three members appointed by the governor;
(2) three members appointed by the lieutenant
governor;
(3) three members appointed by the speaker of the
house of representatives;
(4) one member appointed by the board of the Texas
Association of Community Colleges; and
(5) one member appointed by the board of the Community
College Association of Texas Trustees.
(c) Members appointed by the governor must be
representatives of junior college leaders, business leaders, or
other stakeholders knowledgeable in junior college mission,
instructional programs, and finance.
(d) Members appointed by the lieutenant governor shall
consist of:
(1) two members of the Texas Senate; and
(2) an administrator from an institution of higher
education as defined by Section 61.003.
(e) Members appointed by the speaker of the house shall
consist of:
(1) two members of the house of representatives; and
(2) an administrator from an institution of higher
education as defined by Section 61.003.
(f) In making appointments, the governor, lieutenant
governor, and speaker of the house of representatives shall
coordinate to ensure that the membership of the commission
reflects, to the extent possible, the geographic diversity of Texas
public junior colleges and the ethnic diversity of the communities
served by those junior colleges.
(g) The commission shall convene not later than the 90th day
after the enactment of this section by the legislature and shall
continue its activities until completion of a final report.
(h) The commission shall examine trend and forecast data,
seek stakeholder input, and account for equity in student outcomes,
with a particular focus on students who are underrepresented in
higher education, including from families in the bottom quintiles
of the economic spectrum, and make recommendations on the following
policies:
(1) contact hour funding formulas established for
public junior colleges under Subchapter C, Chapter 61, and
Subchapter A of this chapter;
(2) the use of student success points established
under Section 61.0593 to determine the allocation of state funding
to public junior colleges;
(3) historical or innovative funding methods for
supporting underfunded colleges;
(4) revenue source proportionality in the payment of
employee group insurance benefits; and
(5) the feasibility of establishing shared service
agreements or interinstitutional collaboratives where institutions
of higher education perform administrative services, other than
direct instruction and student support services, for other
institutions of higher education for a fee or other consideration.
(i) The commission may seek resource support, including
data analyses and technical assistance, from the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board, the Texas Association of Community
Colleges, and research organizations. The commission may accept
gifts, grants, and donations from any source to be used to carry out
a function of the commission.
(j) The commission shall submit a final report and
recommendations to the governor, lieutenant governor, and both
houses of the legislature not later than November 1, 2022.
(k) This section expires January 1, 2023.
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, 2021.