By:  Solis                                                        H.B. No. 3513



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the higher education coordinating board and higher 
education funding formulas.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Section 61.059, Education Code, is amended to 
read as follows:   
	(a)  To finance a system of higher education and to secure an 
equitable distribution of state funds deemed to be available for 
higher education, the board shall perform the functions described 
in this section.  Funding policies shall allocate resources 
efficiently and provide incentives for programs of superior quality 
and for institutional diversity while discouraging unnecessary 
duplication of course offerings between institutions as well as 
discouraging unnecessary construction on any campus.
	(b)  The board shall devise, establish, and periodically 
review and revise formulas for the use of the governor and the 
Legislative Budget Board in making appropriations recommendations 
to the legislature for all institutions of higher education, 
including the funding of postsecondary vocational-technical 
programs.  As a specific element of the periodic review, the board 
shall study and recommend changes in the funding formulas based on 
the role and mission statements of institutions of higher 
education. In carrying out its duties under this section, the board 
shall employ an ongoing process of committee review and expert 
testimony and analysis.
	(c)  Formulas for basic funding shall reflect the role and 
mission of each institution, shall emphasize funding elements that 
directly support faculty, and shall reflect both fixed and variable 
elements of cost.  In addition, the board shall reflect in its 
higher education funding formula recommendations to the governor 
and the Legislative Budget Board those factors relating to closing 
the gaps, including per capita income, employment rate, percentage 
age without college degrees, percentage of fall enrollment growth 
and projected enrollment growth in the region served.
	SECTION 2.  This act takes effect September 1, 2003.