By Isett                                              H.B. No. 3562

         75R9418 JSA-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to providing a tax-exempt benefit plan to cover

 1-3     educational expenses to school district employees.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 22, Education Code, is

 1-6     amended by adding Section 22.006 to read as follows:

 1-7           Sec. 22.006.  EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE PLAN.  (a)  Each school

 1-8     district must provide to its employees as an optional benefit the

 1-9     right to participate in a plan to allow the exclusion from the

1-10     gross income for federal income tax purposes of a school district

1-11     employee amounts paid through the plan to cover eligible higher

1-12     education expenses of the employee.  To the extent permitted under

1-13     federal law, the plan must permit a participating employee to

1-14     include eligible higher education expenses of an immediate family

1-15     member of the employee in the plan.  The plan may be established as

1-16     an educational assistance program under 26 U.S.C. Section 127 or

1-17     other applicable federal law.

1-18           (b)  A school district may offer the plan in connection with

1-19     its employees health care plan or group insurance plan or as a

1-20     separate benefit.

1-21           (c)  In this section, "eligible higher education expenses"

1-22     means the following expenses incurred by a person attending an

1-23     accredited public or private institution of higher education or

1-24     other accredited postsecondary educational institution, including a

 2-1     technical or vocational institution:

 2-2                 (1)  tuition and fees charged by the institution; and

 2-3                 (2)  costs for books, supplies, and equipment required

 2-4     for a course of instruction at the institution.

 2-5           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997, except

 2-6     that a school district is not required to offer an educational

 2-7     assistance plan to its employees under Section 22.006, Education

 2-8     Code, as added by this Act, before January 1, 1998.

 2-9           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-10     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-11     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-12     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-13     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.