| 1 | 1 | | 89R17071 AND-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Goodwin H.B. No. 5608 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 8 | 8 | | AN ACT |
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| 9 | 9 | | relating to certain requirements regarding persons with |
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| 10 | 10 | | disabilities enrolled in public institutions of higher education. |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 61, Education Code, is |
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| 13 | 13 | | amended by adding Section 61.06642 to read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | Sec. 61.06642. DOCUMENTATION REGARDING AND INFORMATION ON |
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| 15 | 15 | | ACCOMMODATIONS FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES. (a) The board shall |
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| 16 | 16 | | adopt rules requiring institutions of higher education to accept as |
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| 17 | 17 | | proof that a person is a person with a disability documentation of: |
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| 18 | 18 | | (1) an individualized education program developed for |
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| 19 | 19 | | the person in accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities |
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| 20 | 20 | | Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.); |
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| 21 | 21 | | (2) services or accommodations provided to the person |
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| 22 | 22 | | by a primary or secondary school in accordance with Section 504, |
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| 23 | 23 | | Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794); |
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| 24 | 24 | | (3) a plan or record of service from a private school, |
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| 25 | 25 | | a public school, a state educational agency, or an institution of |
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| 26 | 26 | | higher education prepared for the person in accordance with the |
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| 27 | 27 | | Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. Section 12101 et |
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| 28 | 28 | | seq.); |
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| 29 | 29 | | (4) a diagnosis or finding of a disability from a |
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| 30 | 30 | | licensed physician or other appropriate medical professional; |
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| 31 | 31 | | (5) a plan or other record related to the person's |
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| 32 | 32 | | disability from another institution of higher education or a |
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| 33 | 33 | | private or independent institution of higher education; or |
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| 34 | 34 | | (6) the person's service-related disability based on |
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| 35 | 35 | | the person's service in the armed forces of the United States, the |
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| 36 | 36 | | Texas Army National Guard, or the Texas Air National Guard. |
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| 37 | 37 | | (b) The rules adopted under this section may provide for an |
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| 38 | 38 | | institution of higher education to establish less burdensome |
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| 39 | 39 | | options for documentation with which a person may establish that |
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| 40 | 40 | | the person is a person with a disability. |
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| 41 | 41 | | (c) The rules adopted under this section must require |
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| 42 | 42 | | institutions of higher education to: |
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| 43 | 43 | | (1) provide specific and transparent information |
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| 44 | 44 | | about the institution's policies and procedures for determining the |
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| 45 | 45 | | accommodations available to persons with disabilities; and |
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| 46 | 46 | | (2) make the institution's policies and procedures |
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| 47 | 47 | | described by Subdivision (1) available to students, parents, and |
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| 48 | 48 | | faculty, including by providing the information during any student |
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| 49 | 49 | | orientation and on the institution's publicly accessible Internet |
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| 50 | 50 | | website. |
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| 51 | 51 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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