By: Truan S.B. No. 158 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to counseling public school students regarding higher 1-3 education. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 33, Education Code, is 1-6 amended by adding Section 33.007 to read as follows: 1-7 Sec. 33.007. COUNSELING REGARDING HIGHER EDUCATION. 1-8 (a) Each counselor at an elementary, middle, or junior high 1-9 school, including an open-enrollment charter school offering those 1-10 grades, shall advise students and their parents or guardians 1-11 regarding the importance of higher education, coursework designed 1-12 to prepare students for higher education, and financial aid 1-13 availability and requirements. 1-14 (b) During the first school year a student is enrolled in a 1-15 high school or at the high school level in an open-enrollment 1-16 charter school, and again during a student's senior year, a 1-17 counselor shall provide information about higher education to the 1-18 student and the student's parent or guardian. The information must 1-19 include information regarding: 1-20 (1) the importance of higher education; 1-21 (2) the advantages of completing the recommended or 1-22 advanced high school program adopted under Section 28.025(a); 1-23 (3) financial aid eligibility; 1-24 (4) instruction on how to apply for federal financial 1-25 aid; 2-1 (5) the center for financial aid information 2-2 established under Section 61.0776; 2-3 (6) the automatic admission of certain students to 2-4 general academic teaching institutions as provided by Section 2-5 51.803; and 2-6 (7) the eligibility and academic performance 2-7 requirements for the TEXAS Grant as provided by Subchapter M, 2-8 Chapter 56, as added by Chapter 1590, Acts of the 76th Legislature, 2-9 Regular Session, 1999. 2-10 SECTION 2. Section 33.001, Education Code, is amended to 2-11 read as follows: 2-12 Sec. 33.001. APPLICABILITY OF SUBCHAPTER. This subchapter 2-13 applies only to a school district that receives funds as provided 2-14 by Section 42.152(i), except that Section 33.007 applies to all 2-15 school districts and open-enrollment charter schools. 2-16 SECTION 3. Section 33.007, Education Code, as added by this 2-17 Act, applies beginning with the 2001-2002 school year. The 2-18 commissioner of education shall adopt rules regarding the provision 2-19 of counseling regarding higher education as required by Subsection 2-20 (b), Section 33.007, Education Code, as added by this Act, to high 2-21 school students or open-enrollment charter school students other 2-22 than those for whom the 2001-2002 school year is the first or 2-23 senior year of high school. 2-24 SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives 2-25 a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as 2-26 provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this 3-1 Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this 3-2 Act takes effect September 1, 2001.