By Ellis                                               S.B. No. 315
         76R271 JSA-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to authorizing certain prepaid tuition contracts to cover
 1-3     tuition for an additional period of attendance at an institution of
 1-4     higher education.
 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-6           SECTION 1.  Section 54.6252(a), Education Code, is amended to
 1-7     read as follows:
 1-8           (a)  The board may permit the purchaser of a prepaid tuition
 1-9     contract for a senior college plan or a private college plan at any
1-10     time during which the contract is in effect and before the
1-11     beneficiary graduates from high school to  enter into a
1-12     supplemental contract to prepay the tuition and required fees of
1-13     the beneficiary for a number of undergraduate credit hours, in
1-14     addition to the undergraduate credit hours included in the primary
1-15     contract, equal to the number of credit hours purchased for one
1-16     year under the primary contract.  The additional credit hours must
1-17     be for the same type of institution as the credit hours purchased
1-18     under the primary contract.
1-19           SECTION 2.  (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
1-20     section, the amendment made by this Act to Section 54.6252,
1-21     Education Code, does not apply to a prepaid tuition contract
1-22     entered into before the effective date of this Act.
1-23           (b)  The Prepaid Higher Education Tuition Board may permit
1-24     the purchaser of a prepaid tuition contract entered into before the
 2-1     effective date of this Act to amend the contract to conform to
 2-2     Section 54.6252, Education Code, as amended by this Act.  The board
 2-3     may require the purchaser to make increased or additional payments
 2-4     as necessary to compensate for any additional costs that the board
 2-5     estimates will be incurred under the contract because of the
 2-6     contract amendment.
 2-7           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
 2-8           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
 2-9     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-10     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-11     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-12     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.