By: Creighton S.B. No. 1490
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the authority of the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board to issue a certificate of authority or
certificate of authorization regarding professional degrees.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 61.303(c), Education Code, is amended as
follows:
(c) The board may issueapprove the issuance of a
certificate of authorization to grant degrees to an exempt
institution or person a certificate of authorization to grant
degrees. The board may adopt rules regarding a process to allow an
exempt institution or person to apply for and receive approval for a
certificate of authorization under this section. The board shall
not issue a certificate of authorization to any institution
offering a professional degree or representing its credits earned
in this state are applicable toward a professional degree except to
the extent allowed for an authorized institution operating under a
State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA). In this
subsection, "professional degree" includes Doctor of Medicine
(M.D.), Doctor of Osteopathy (D.O.), Doctor of Dental Surgery
(D.D.S.), Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.), Juris Doctor
(J.D.), and Bachelor of Laws (LL.B).
SECTION 2. Section 61.306, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
(d) The board may not issue a certificate of authority for a
private postsecondary institution to grant a professional degree as
defined in Sec. 61.306(c), or to represent that credits earned in
this state are applicable toward a professional degree unless the
Board determines that all of the following conditions have been
met:
(1) the capacity and ability of similar professional
degree programs at institutions of higher education and private or
independent institutions of higher education, as those terms are
defined in Sec. 61.003, are insufficient to meet the current market
needs for the state;
(2) the institution seeking the certificate of
authority has the necessary faculty and other resources to ensure
student success;
(3) sufficient placements are available to students
for required field-based experience, such as clinicals or
clerkships, in the proposed professional degree; and
(4) the institution seeking the certificate of
authority is subject to, and will meet, the same standard for
approval and all academic criteria applicable to similar
professional degree programs at institutions of higher education
and private or independent institutions of higher education, as
those terms are defined in Sec. 61.003.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.