Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1811 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Springer S.B. No. 1811
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to Firefighters Enrolled in Fire Science Courses
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Sec 54.353, Education Code, is amended to read as
9	9	follows: (a) The governing board of an institution of higher
10	10	education shall exempt from the payment of tuition and laboratory
11	11	fees any student enrolled in one or more courses offered as part of
12	12	a fire science curriculum who:
13	13	(1) is employed as a firefighter by a political subdivision
14	14	of this state; or
15	15	(2) a member in good standing in a volunteer firefighter
16	16	department, registered with Texas Forest Service and providing 911
17	17	service to a designated area: is currently, and has been for at
18	18	least one year, an active member of an organized volunteer fire
19	19	department participating in the Texas Emergency Services
20	20	Retirement System or a retirement system established under the
21	21	Texas Local Fire Fighters Retirement Act (Article 6243e, Vernon's
22	22	Texas Civil Statutes) and who holds:
23	23	(i) attends at least 20 hours of annual training;
24	24	(ii) attends or provides support services for at
25	25	least 25 percent of the departments emergencies in a
26	26	calendar year; and
27	27	(iii) and who holds:
28	28	(A) an Accredited Advanced level of certification, or
29	29	an equivalent successor certification, under the State
30	30	Firemen's and Fire Marshals' Association of Texas volunteer
31	31	certification program; or
32	32	(B) Phase V (Firefighter II) certification, or an
33	33	equivalent successor certification, under the Texas
34	34	Commission on Fire Protection's voluntary certification
35	35	program under Section 419.071, Government Code.
36	36	(b) An exemption provided under this section does not apply
37	37	to deposits that may be required in the nature of security for the
38	38	return or proper care of property loaned for the use of students.
39	39	(c) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a student who for a
40	40	semester or term at an institution of higher education receives an
41	41	exemption under this section may continue to receive the exemption
42	42	for a subsequent semester or term at any institution only if the
43	43	student makes satisfactory academic progress toward a degree or
44	44	certificate at that institution as determined by the institution
45	45	for purposes of financial aid.
46	46	(d) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the exemption provided
47	47	under this section does not apply to any amount of additional
48	48	tuition the institution elects to charge a resident undergraduate
49	49	student under Section 54.014(a) or (f).
50	50	(e) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the exemption provided
51	51	under this section does not apply to any amount of tuition the
52	52	institution charges a graduate student in excess of the amount of
53	53	tuition charged to similarly situated graduate students because the
54	54	student has a number of semester credit hours of doctoral work in
55	55	excess of the applicable number provided by Section 61.059(l)(1) or
56	56	(2).
57	57	(f) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall
58	58	adopt:
59	59	(1) rules governing the granting or denial of an
60	60	exemption under this section, including rules relating to the
61	61	determination of a student's eligibility for an exemption;
62	62	and
63	63	(2) a uniform listing of degree programs covered by
64	64	the exemption under this section.
65	65	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021