Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB521 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R3030 CXP-D
2	2	By: Kolkhorst S.B. No. 521
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to requiring the consideration of standardized test scores
10	10	as a factor in nonautomatic admissions decisions at certain public
11	11	institutions of higher education.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Section 51.805(b), Education Code, is amended to
14	14	read as follows:
15	15	(b) The general academic teaching institution, after
16	16	admitting students under Sections 51.803 and 51.804, shall admit
17	17	other applicants for admission as undergraduate students. It is
18	18	the intent of the legislature that all institutions of higher
19	19	education pursue academic excellence by considering students'
20	20	academic achievements in decisions related to admissions. In
21	21	making first-time freshmen admissions decisions, each [Because of
22	22	changing demographic trends, diversity, and population increases
23	23	in the state, each] general academic teaching institution shall
24	24	also consider:
25	25	(1) the applicant's performance on a standardized test
26	26	appropriate for undergraduate admissions; and
27	27	(2) because of changing demographic trends,
28	28	diversity, and population increases in the state, all of, any of, or
29	29	a combination of the following socioeconomic indicators or factors
30	30	[in making first-time freshman admissions decisions]:
31	31	(A) [(1)] the applicant's academic record;
32	32	(B) [(2)] the socioeconomic background of the
33	33	applicant, including the percentage by which the applicant's family
34	34	is above or below any recognized measure of poverty, the
35	35	applicant's household income, and the applicant's parents' level of
36	36	education;
37	37	(C) [(3)] whether the applicant would be the
38	38	first generation of the applicant's family to attend or graduate
39	39	from an institution of higher education;
40	40	(D) [(4)] whether the applicant has bilingual
41	41	proficiency;
42	42	(E) [(5)] the financial status of the
43	43	applicant's school district;
44	44	(F) [(6)] the performance level of the
45	45	applicant's school as determined by the school accountability
46	46	criteria used by the Texas Education Agency;
47	47	(G) [(7)] the applicant's responsibilities while
48	48	attending school, including whether the applicant has been
49	49	employed, whether the applicant has helped to raise children, or
50	50	other similar factors;
51	51	(H) [(8)] the applicant's region of residence;
52	52	(I) [(9)] whether the applicant is a resident of
53	53	a rural or urban area or a resident of a central city or suburban
54	54	area in the state;
55	55	(J) [(10) the applicant's performance on
56	56	standardized tests;
57	57	[(11)] the applicant's performance on standardized
58	58	tests in comparison with that of other students from similar
59	59	socioeconomic backgrounds;
60	60	(K) [(12)] whether the applicant attended any
61	61	school while the school was under a court-ordered desegregation
62	62	plan;
63	63	(L) [(13)] the applicant's involvement in
64	64	community activities;
65	65	(M) [(14)] the applicant's extracurricular
66	66	activities;
67	67	(N) [(15)] the applicant's commitment to a
68	68	particular field of study;
69	69	(O) [(16)] the applicant's personal interview;
70	70	(P) [(17)] the applicant's admission to a
71	71	comparable accredited out-of-state institution; and
72	72	(Q) [(18)] any other consideration the
73	73	institution considers necessary to accomplish the institution's
74	74	stated mission.
75	75	SECTION 2. Section 51.842, Education Code, is amended by
76	76	adding Subsections (a-1) and (b-1) and amending Subsection (b) to
77	77	read as follows:
78	78	(a-1) In making admissions decisions for the program, a
79	79	graduate or professional program of a general academic teaching
80	80	institution or medical or dental unit shall consider an applicant's
81	81	performance on a standardized test appropriate for the program,
82	82	except that the applicant's performance on the standardized test
83	83	may not be used as the sole criterion for consideration of the
84	84	applicant or as the primary criterion to end consideration of the
85	85	applicant. The applicant's performance on the standardized test
86	86	must also be used to compare the applicant's test score with those
87	87	of other applicants from similar socioeconomic backgrounds to the
88	88	extent that those backgrounds can be properly determined and
89	89	identified by the general academic teaching institution or medical
90	90	and dental unit based on information provided in the institution's
91	91	or unit's admissions process.
92	92	(b) An applicant's performance on a standardized test may
93	93	not be used in the [admissions or] competitive scholarship process
94	94	for a graduate or professional program as the sole criterion for
95	95	consideration of the applicant or as the primary criterion to end
96	96	consideration of the applicant. If an applicant's performance on a
97	97	standardized test is used in the [admissions or] competitive
98	98	scholarship process, the applicant's performance must also be used
99	99	to compare the applicant's test score with those of other
100	100	applicants from similar socioeconomic backgrounds to the extent
101	101	that those backgrounds can be properly determined and identified by
102	102	the general academic teaching institution or medical and dental
103	103	unit based on information provided in the institution's or unit's
104	104	[admissions or] competitive scholarship process.
105	105	(b-1) Subsections (a-1) and (b) do [This subsection does]
106	106	not apply to a standardized test used to measure the English
107	107	language proficiency of a student who is a graduate of a foreign
108	108	institution of higher education.
109	109	SECTION 3. Sections 51.805 and 51.842, Education Code, as
110	110	amended by this Act, apply beginning with admissions for the 2026
111	111	fall semester. Admissions for an academic period before the 2026
112	112	fall semester are governed by the law in effect immediately before
113	113	the effective date of this Act, and the former law is continued in
114	114	effect for that purpose.
115	115	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
116	116	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
117	117	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
118	118	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
119	119	Act takes effect September 1, 2025.