LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE
74th Regular Session
March 28, 1995
TO: Honorable Irma Rangel, Chair IN RE: House Bill No. 2467
Committee on Higher Education By: Coleman
House of Representatives
Austin, Texas
FROM: John Keel, Director
In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on House Bill No.
2467 (Relating to tuition and fees at public institutions of
higher education.) this office has determined the following:
The bill would have an impact on several tuition rates at public
institutions of higher education. The bill would increase law
school tuition from $60 per hour for Texas resident students and
$150 per hour for nonresident students to $75 and $200
respectively. The bill would allow institutions offering
optometry programs to charge a tuition rate up to three times the
statutory undergraduate tuition rate. It would allow
institutions to raise undergraduate pharmacy tuition to twice the
amount of general undergraduate tuition. Beginning in Fiscal Year
1997, the bill would increase the undergraduate tuition rate of
$32 per hour at all public institutions by $2 per hour,
increasing $2 per year until Fiscal Year 2001 when tuition would
reach $40 per hour. Finally, the bill would raise the
competitive academic scholarship amount needed to qualify for a
waiver of nonresident tuition from the current $200 per year to
$500 per year.
Estimated savings to general revenue assume continuation of the
current policy of supplanting general revenue funding with gains
in tuition revenue. The estimates also assume that current
enrollment projections would not be significantly effected by
increased tuition.
It is estimated that the law school tuition increase would
generate $2.1 million per year in savings to general revenue.
Undergraduate tuition increases are estimated to generate general
revenue savings of $15.6 million in FY1998, increasing to $63.4
million in FY2001. The change in the scholarship nonresident
tuition waive is estimated to cause 724 students to drop out of
school and for 180 to continue to enroll paying full nonresident
tuition. The net impact of the scholarship waiver change is
estimated at $2.8 million per year. The increase in pharmacy and
optometry tuition would have no impact on general revenue since
these increases are exempt by statute from effecting general
revenue appropriations. They would, however, represent an
estimated increase in local income of $2.5 million per year.
The probable fiscal implication of implementing the provisions of
the bill during each of the first five years following passage
is estimated as follows:
Fiscal Probable Savings Probable Gain to
Year to Local Funds
General Revenue
Fund 001
1996 $5,100,000 $2,300,000
1997 5,100,000 2,500,000
1998 20,700,000 2,600,000
1999 36,500,000 2,800,000
2000 52,400,000 2,900,000
2001 68,500,000 3,000,000
Similar annual fiscal implications would continue as long as the
provisions of the bill are in effect.
Source: Higher Education Coordinating Board
LBB Staff: JK, MK, DF