| 1 | 1 | | By: Paxton S.B. No. 1424 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 7 | 7 | | AN ACT |
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| 8 | 8 | | relating to authorization by the Texas Higher Education |
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| 9 | 9 | | Coordinating Board for certain public junior colleges to offer |
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| 10 | 10 | | certain baccalaureate degree programs. |
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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. Section 130.303(b), Education Code, is amended to |
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| 13 | 13 | | read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (b) The coordinating board may authorize baccalaureate |
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| 15 | 15 | | degree programs at one or more public junior colleges if the public |
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| 16 | 16 | | junior college: |
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| 17 | 17 | | (1) offers [thatoffer] a degree program in one of the |
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| 18 | 18 | | following: |
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| 19 | 19 | | (A) the field of applied science, including a |
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| 20 | 20 | | degree program in the field of applied science with an emphasis in |
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| 21 | 21 | | early childhood education, applied technology, or nursing; or |
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| 22 | 22 | | (B) the field of education; and |
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| 23 | 23 | | (2) demonstrates [have dcmonstratcd] a workforce need |
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| 24 | 24 | | for the program. |
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| 25 | 25 | | SECTION 2. Section 130.306(a), Education Code, is amended |
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| 26 | 26 | | to read as follows: |
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| 27 | 27 | | (a) A public junior college offering a baccalaureate degree |
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| 28 | 28 | | program under this subchapter may not offer more than eight [fivc] |
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| 29 | 29 | | baccalaureate degree programs at any time. |
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| 30 | 30 | | SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies |
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| 31 | 31 | | beginning with the 2025-2026 academic year. |
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| 32 | 32 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 33 | 33 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 34 | 34 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 35 | 35 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 36 | 36 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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