Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4880 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R9196 CXP-F
2	2	By: Tepper H.B. No. 4880
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the accreditation of public institutions of higher
8	8	education; providing a private cause of action.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Chapter 51, Education Code, is amended by adding
11	11	Subchapter G-1 to read as follows:
12	12	SUBCHAPTER G-1. ACCREDITATION OF INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION
13	13	Sec. 51.371. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
14	14	(1) "Accrediting agency" means any organization,
15	15	association, or other entity that accredits postsecondary
16	16	educational institutions.
17	17	(2) "Commission" means the Texas Higher Education
18	18	Accreditation Commission established by this subchapter.
19	19	(3) "Institution of higher education" has the meaning
20	20	assigned by Section 61.003.
21	21	Sec. 51.372. TEXAS HIGHER EDUCATION ACCREDITATION
22	22	COMMISSION. (a) The commission is an independent state agency
23	23	directly accountable to the governor.
24	24	(b) The commission is composed of nine members of the public
25	25	appointed as follows:
26	26	(1) three members appointed by the governor;
27	27	(2) three members appointed by the lieutenant
28	28	governor; and
29	29	(3) three members appointed by the speaker of the
30	30	house of representatives.
31	31	(c) At least two of the three commission members appointed
32	32	under Subsections (b)(1), (b)(2), and (b)(3) must be an employer or
33	33	representative of an association of employers in a target
34	34	occupations field, as determined by the Texas Workforce Commission.
35	35	Sec. 51.373. APPROVAL AND REVIEW OF ACCREDITING AGENCIES.
36	36	(a) The commission shall identify and approve at least three
37	37	accrediting agencies best suited to serve as accreditors for
38	38	institutions of higher education.
39	39	(b) The commission shall conduct a biennial evaluation of
40	40	approved accrediting agencies. The evaluation must rate each
41	41	agency as unsatisfactory, satisfactory, or exemplary based on
42	42	evaluation standards established by the commission. The commission
43	43	shall publish the evaluation standards in a manner that is easily
44	44	accessible to the general public.
45	45	(c) The commission's evaluation of each approved
46	46	accrediting agency must include an assessment of:
47	47	(1) educational and labor market outcomes for students
48	48	attending an institution accredited by the agency, including:
49	49	(A) the percentage of students who return to the
50	50	accredited institution after completing their first year of study;
51	51	(B) degree or credential completion and
52	52	graduation rates;
53	53	(C) the percentage of institution graduates
54	54	employed in a field related to the credential or degree received
55	55	within one year of graduation, to the extent that data is available;
56	56	(D) the median student loan debt among borrowers
57	57	attending the institution;
58	58	(E) the percentage of students at each accredited
59	59	institution who fully repay their student loans within the standard
60	60	10-year repayment period; and
61	61	(F) the median earnings of institution graduates
62	62	expressed as a yearly amount and as a percentage of median student
63	63	debt among borrowers, as reported by the U.S. Department of
64	64	Education's College Scorecard or successor tool; and
65	65	(2) whether the agency takes or considers taking
66	66	action with respect to an institution's accreditation in a manner
67	67	that would hinder or interfere with the authority of the
68	68	institution's governing board and the institution's accountability
69	69	to the legislature.
70	70	(d) Not later than November 1 of each even-numbered year,
71	71	the commission shall submit a report of the evaluation made under
72	72	this section to the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the
73	73	house of representatives, Legislative Budget Board, and chairs of
74	74	the standing committees of each house of the legislature with
75	75	primary jurisdiction over higher education. The report must
76	76	include a ranking of the performance of approved accrediting
77	77	agencies and information on any accrediting agency the commission
78	78	determines should no longer be approved due to poor performance.
79	79	Sec. 51.374. ACCREDITATION OF INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER
80	80	EDUCATION. (a) Each institution of higher education shall, at the
81	81	institution's expense, seek accreditation by an accrediting agency
82	82	approved by the commission with a performance rating of
83	83	satisfactory or higher.
84	84	(b) An institution of higher education accredited by an
85	85	accrediting agency that receives an unsatisfactory performance
86	86	rating from the commission shall, at the institution's expense,
87	87	obtain accreditation from a different approved accrediting agency
88	88	with at least a satisfactory performance rating as of the date the
89	89	institution's current accreditation expires.
90	90	(c) An institution of higher education accredited by an
91	91	accrediting agency with a satisfactory performance rating shall, at
92	92	the institution's expense, obtain accreditation from a different
93	93	approved accrediting agency at the institution's next
94	94	accreditation renewal date after 15 years have elapsed from the
95	95	date of the institution's current accreditation.
96	96	(d) An institution of higher education accredited by an
97	97	accrediting agency with an exemplary performance rating shall, at
98	98	the institution's expense, obtain accreditation from a different
99	99	approved accrediting agency at the institution's next
100	100	accreditation renewal date after 20 years have elapsed from the
101	101	date of the institution's current accreditation.
102	102	(e) Notwithstanding any other law, an institution of higher
103	103	education may not receive any state funding for a state fiscal year
104	104	following a state fiscal year in which the coordinating board
105	105	determines that the institution has not substantially complied with
106	106	the requirements of this section.
107	107	Sec. 51.375. CAUSE OF ACTION. An institution of higher
108	108	education that is adversely impacted by retaliatory action taken
109	109	against the institution by an accrediting agency may bring an
110	110	action against the accrediting agency in a court of competent
111	111	jurisdiction and may be awarded liquidated damages up to the amount
112	112	of federal financial aid received by the institution in the most
113	113	recent academic year, court costs, and reasonable attorney's fees.
114	114	SECTION 2. (a) As soon as practicable after the effective
115	115	date of this Act, the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of
116	116	the house of representatives shall appoint the members to the Texas
117	117	Higher Education Accreditation Commission as provided by Section
118	118	51.372, Education Code, as added by this Act.
119	119	(b) The Texas Higher Education Accreditation Commission
120	120	established under Subchapter G-1, Chapter 51, Education Code, as
121	121	added by this Act, shall identify and approve accrediting agencies
122	122	as required by Section 51.373(a), Education Code, as added by this
123	123	Act, not later than September 1, 2024.
124	124	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.