This website will be unavailable from Friday, April 26, 2024 at 6:00 p.m. through Monday, April 29, 2024 at 7:00 a.m. due to data center maintenance.
78R906 KEL/JRJ-D
By: Shapleigh S.B. No. 286
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the continuation and functions of the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 61.0211, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 61.0211. SUNSET PROVISION. The Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board is subject to Chapter 325, Government Code
(Texas Sunset Act). Unless continued in existence as provided by
that chapter, the board is abolished and this chapter expires
September 1, 2015 [2003].
SECTION 2. Section 61.022, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 61.022. MEMBERS OF BOARD; APPOINTMENT; TERMS OF
OFFICE. (a) The board shall consist of 15 [18] members appointed
by the governor so as to provide representation from all areas of
the state with the advice and consent of the senate, and as the
constitution provides. Members of the board serve staggered
six-year terms. The terms of one-third of the members expire August
31 of each odd-numbered year [Of the initial appointments to the
board six shall be for terms which shall expire August 31, 1967, six
for terms which shall expire August 31, 1969, and six for terms
which shall expire on August 31, 1971, or at such time as their
successors are appointed and have qualified. Thereafter, the
governor shall appoint members for terms of six years. Members of
the Texas Commission on Higher Education are eligible for
appointment to the board].
(b) A board [No] member may not be employed professionally
for remuneration in the field of education during the member's
[his] term of office.
SECTION 3. Sections 61.0222(b), (c), (d), and (e),
Education Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) A person may not be a member of the board and may not be a
board employee employed in a "bona fide executive, administrative,
or professional capacity," as that phrase is used for purposes of
establishing an exemption to the overtime provisions of the federal
Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. Section 201 et seq.),
and its subsequent amendments, if:
(1) the person is an officer, employee, or paid
consultant of a Texas trade association in the field of higher
education; or
(2) the person's spouse is an officer, manager, or paid
consultant of a Texas trade association in the field of higher
education. [An officer, employee, or paid consultant of a Texas
trade association in the field of higher education may not be a
member or employee of the board if the person is compensated at or
above the amount prescribed by the General Appropriations Act for
step 1, salary group 17, of the position classification salary
schedule.]
(c) [A person who is the spouse of an officer, manager, or
paid consultant of a Texas trade association in the field of higher
education may not be a board member and may not be a board employee
who is compensated at or above the amount prescribed by the General
Appropriations Act for step 1, salary group 17, of the position
classification salary schedule.
[(d)] A person may not be [serve as] a member of the board or
act as the general counsel to the board if the person is required to
register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305, Government Code, because
of the person's activities for compensation on behalf of a
profession related to the operation of the board.
(d) In [(e) For the purposes of] this section, "Texas trade
association" means a [Texas trade association is a nonprofit,]
cooperative[,] and voluntarily joined statewide association of
business or professional competitors in this state designed to
assist its members and its industry or profession in dealing with
mutual business or professional problems and in promoting their
common interest.
SECTION 4. Sections 61.0223(a) and (c), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) It is a ground for removal from the board that [if] a
member:
(1) does not have at the time of taking office
[appointment] the qualifications required by Section 61.0222(a)
[of this code];
(2) does not maintain during service on the board the
qualifications required by Section 61.0222(a) [of this code];
(3) is ineligible for membership under [violates a
prohibition established by] Section 61.022 or 61.0222 [Section
61.0222(b), (c), or (d) of this code];
(4) cannot, because of illness or disability,
discharge the member's duties for a substantial part of the member's
term [for which the member is appointed because of illness or
disability]; or
(5) is absent from more than half of the regularly
scheduled board meetings that the member is eligible to attend
during a calendar year without an excuse approved [unless the
absence is excused] by a majority vote of the board.
(c) If the commissioner of higher education has knowledge
that a potential ground for removal exists, the commissioner shall
notify the presiding officer [chairman] of the board of the
potential ground. The presiding officer [chairman] shall then
notify the governor and the attorney general that a potential
ground for removal exists. If the potential ground for removal
involves the presiding officer, the commissioner shall notify the
next highest ranking officer of the board, who shall then notify the
governor and the attorney general that a potential ground for
removal exists.
SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 61.0224 to read as follows:
Sec. 61.0224. TRAINING OF BOARD MEMBERS. (a) A person who
is appointed to and qualifies for office as a member of the board
may not vote, deliberate, or be counted as a member in attendance at
a meeting of the board until the person completes a training program
that complies with this section.
(b) The training program must provide the person with
information regarding:
(1) the legislation that created the board;
(2) the programs operated by the board;
(3) the role and functions of the board;
(4) the rules of the board, with an emphasis on the
rules that relate to disciplinary and investigatory authority;
(5) the current budget for the board;
(6) the results of the most recent formal audit of the
board;
(7) the requirements of:
(A) the open meetings law, Chapter 551,
Government Code;
(B) the public information law, Chapter 552,
Government Code;
(C) the administrative procedure law, Chapter
2001, Government Code; and
(D) other laws relating to public officials,
including conflict-of-interest laws; and
(8) any applicable ethics policies adopted by the
board or the Texas Ethics Commission.
(c) A person appointed to the board is entitled to
reimbursement, as provided by the General Appropriations Act, for
the travel expenses incurred in attending the training program
regardless of whether the attendance at the program occurs before
or after the person qualifies for office.
SECTION 6. Sections 61.028(f) and (g), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(f) The commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall
prepare and maintain a written policy statement that implements [to
assure implementation of] a program of equal employment opportunity
to ensure that [under which] all personnel decisions [transactions]
are made without regard to race, color, disability [handicap], sex,
religion, age, or national origin. The policy statement must
include:
(1) personnel policies, including policies relating
to recruitment, evaluation, selection, [appointment,] training,
and promotion of personnel, that show the intent of the board to
avoid the unlawful employment practices described by Chapter 21,
Labor Code; and
(2) an [a comprehensive] analysis of the extent to
which the composition of the board's personnel is in accordance
with state and federal law and a description of reasonable methods
to achieve compliance with state and federal law [work force that
meets federal and state guidelines;
[(3) procedures by which a determination can be made
of significant underuse in the board's work force of all persons for
whom federal or state guidelines encourage a more equitable
balance; and
[(4) reasonable methods to appropriately address
those areas of significant underuse].
(g) The [A] policy statement [prepared under Subsection (f)
of this section] must:
(1) [cover an annual period,] be updated [at least]
annually;
(2) be reviewed by the state Commission on Human
Rights for compliance with Subsection (f)(1); [,] and
(3) be filed with the governor's office.
SECTION 7. Subchapter B, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 61.0281 to read as follows:
Sec. 61.0281. STATE EMPLOYEE INCENTIVE PROGRAM. The
commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall provide to board
employees information and training on the benefits and methods of
participation in the state employee incentive program.
SECTION 8. Section 61.031, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 61.031. PUBLIC INTEREST INFORMATION AND COMPLAINTS.
(a) The board shall maintain a file on each written complaint filed
with the board. The file must include:
(1) the name of the person who filed the complaint;
(2) the date the complaint is received by the board;
(3) the subject matter of the complaint;
(4) the name of each person contacted in relation to
the complaint;
(5) a summary of the results of the review or
investigation of the complaint; and
(6) an explanation of the reason the file was closed,
if the agency closed the file without taking action other than to
investigate the complaint [prepare information of public interest
describing the functions of the board and the board's procedures by
which complaints are filed with and resolved by the board. The
board shall make the information available to the public and
appropriate state agencies].
(b) The board shall provide to the person filing the
complaint and to each person who is a subject of the complaint a
copy of the board's policies and procedures relating to complaint
investigation and resolution [keep an information file about each
complaint filed with the board that the board has authority to
resolve].
(c) The [If a written complaint is filed with the board that
the board has authority to resolve, the] board, at least quarterly
[and] until final disposition of the complaint, shall notify the
person filing [parties to] the complaint and each person who is a
subject of the complaint of the status of the investigation
[complaint] unless the notice would jeopardize an undercover
investigation.
SECTION 9. Subchapter B, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 61.033 to read as follows:
Sec. 61.033. NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING; ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE
RESOLUTION. (a) The board shall develop and implement a policy to
encourage the use of:
(1) negotiated rulemaking procedures under Chapter
2008, Government Code, for the adoption of board rules; and
(2) appropriate alternative dispute resolution
procedures under Chapter 2009, Government Code, to assist in the
resolution of internal and external disputes under the board's
jurisdiction.
(b) The board's procedures relating to alternative dispute
resolution must conform, to the extent possible, to any model
guidelines issued by the State Office of Administrative Hearings
for the use of alternative dispute resolution by state agencies.
(c) The board shall designate a trained person to:
(1) coordinate the implementation of the policy
adopted under Subsection (a);
(2) serve as a resource for any training needed to
implement the procedures for negotiated rulemaking or alternative
dispute resolution; and
(3) collect data concerning the effectiveness of those
procedures, as implemented by the board.
SECTION 10. Subchapter B, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 61.034 to read as follows:
Sec. 61.034. EFFECTIVE USE OF TECHNOLOGY. The board shall
develop and implement a policy that requires the commissioner of
higher education and the staff of the board to research and propose
appropriate technological solutions to improve the ability of the
agency to perform its mission. The technological solutions must
include measures to ensure that the public is able to easily find
information about the board through the Internet and that persons
who have a reason to use the board's services are able to use the
Internet to interact with the board and to access any services that
can be provided effectively through the Internet. The policy shall
also ensure that proposed technological solutions are cost
effective and developed through the board's planning processes.
SECTION 11. Section 61.051, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (i) and adding Subsections (a-1),
(a-2), and (i-1) to read as follows:
(a) The board shall represent the highest authority in the
state in matters of public higher education and is charged with the
duty to take an active part in promoting quality education in the
various regions of the state. The board shall be responsible for
assuring that there is no discrimination in the distribution of
programs and resources throughout the state on the basis of race,
national origin, or sex.
(a-1) The board shall develop a five-year master plan for
higher education in this state and update the plan annually. The
five-year plan shall take into account the resources of private
institutions of higher education in this state.
(a-2) The board shall[:
[(1)] inform the legislature on matters pertaining to
higher education, including the state's activities in the Board of
Control for Southern Regional Education,[;] and shall
[(2)] report to the legislature not later than [in]
January 1 of each odd-numbered year on the state of higher education
in Texas. In the biennial report, the board shall assess the
state's progress in meeting the goals stated in the plan developed
under Subsection (i) and shall recommend legislative action to
assist the state in meeting those goals. The report must include
the analyses performed in connection with the board's periodic
review under Subsection (i-1).
(i) The board shall develop [and periodically revise] a
long-range statewide plan to provide information and guidance to
policy makers to ensure that institutions of higher education meet
the current and future needs of each region of this state for higher
education services and that adequate higher education services at
all levels are reasonably and equally available to the residents of
each region of this state. The board in developing the plan shall
examine existing undergraduate, graduate, professional, and
research programs provided by institutions of higher education and
identify the geographic areas of this state that, as a result of
current population or projected population growth, distance from
other educational resources, economic trends, or other factors,
have or are reasonably likely to have in the future significantly
greater need for higher education services than the services
currently provided in the area by existing institutions of higher
education. The board shall also consider the higher education
services provided by private and independent institutions of higher
education in developing the plan. The board shall identify as
specifically as practicable the programs or fields of study for
which an area has or is projected to have a significant unmet need
for services. In determining the need for higher educational
services in an area, the board shall consider the educational
attainment of the current population and the extent to which
residents from the area attend institutions of higher education
outside of the area or do not attend institutions of higher
education. The board shall include in the plan specific
recommendations, including alternative recommendations, for
administrative or legislative action to address an area's unmet
need for higher educational services as efficiently as possible.
Not later than November 1 of each even-numbered year, the board
shall deliver to the governor, lieutenant governor, and legislature
a report of the current long-range plan developed under this
section.
(i-1) The board shall periodically review and revise the
long-range statewide plan developed under Subsection (i). As a
specific element of its review, the board shall identify and
analyze the degree to which the plan reflects the continuing higher
education needs of each region of this state, as well as any policy
changes necessary to improve overall implementation of the plan and
the fiscal impact of those changes. The board shall establish
procedures for monitoring the board's implementation of the plan,
including an analysis of the degree to which its current activities
support implementation of the plan and any change in board rules or
practices necessary to improve implementation of the plan. The
board shall identify additional strategies necessary to achieve the
goals of the plan, emphasizing implementation by institutions of
higher education and specific recommendations for the different
regions of the state. The board shall notify each institution of
higher education of all strategies for implementing the plan.
SECTION 12. Section 61.059, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (i) and adding Subsection (i-1) 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:
(1) allocate resources efficiently and provide
incentives for programs of superior quality and for institutional
diversity;
(2) provide incentives for supporting the long-range
statewide plan developed and revised under Section 61.051; and
(3) discourage [while discouraging] unnecessary
duplication of course offerings between institutions and [as well
as discouraging] unnecessary construction on any campus.
(i) The board shall make continuing studies on its own
initiative, on [or upon] the request of the governor or the
Legislative Budget Board, and as otherwise provided by Subsection
(i-1) of the financial needs of public higher education and all
services and activities of the institutions of higher education and
issue reports to the governor and the Legislative Budget Board that
result from its studies.
(i-1) Not later than January 1 of each odd-numbered year,
the board shall make and submit to the legislature findings and
recommendations regarding the degree to which the current higher
education funding system, including formula funding and any other
transfers of legislative appropriations to institutions of higher
education, supports the implementation of the long-range statewide
plan developed and revised under Section 61.051. The board may
include its findings and recommendations in the biennial report
submitted to the legislature under Section 61.051. In its
findings, the board must:
(1) identify funding incentives that would encourage
implementation of the plan by institutions of higher education;
and
(2) assess the accountability of institutions of
higher education with respect to legislative appropriations to
evaluate institutional allocation of financial resources in
accordance with the plan.
SECTION 13. Section 61.066, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) The board shall conduct a study and make findings and
recommendations regarding methods for reducing administrative
burdens and increasing participation in student financial aid
programs to maximize the value of those programs to the state. In
conducting the study, the board shall seek input from financial aid
officers and student groups at institutions of higher education.
Not later than November 1, 2004, the board shall report to the
standing committee of each house of the legislature with primary
jurisdiction over higher education the board's findings and
recommendations for legislative action necessary to consolidate,
expand, or otherwise modify existing student financial aid
programs. This subsection expires January 1, 2005.
SECTION 14. Section 61.076, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 61.076. COOPERATION BETWEEN STATE AGENCIES OF
EDUCATION. (a) It is the policy of the State of Texas that the
entire system of education supported with public funds be
coordinated to provide the citizens with efficient, effective, and
high quality educational services and activities. The board and
the State Board of Education, in conjunction with such other
agencies as may be appropriate, shall ensure that long-range plans
and educational programs established by the boards complement the
functioning of the entire system of public education, extending
from early childhood education through postgraduate study. In
assuring that plans and programs are coordinated, the boards shall
use the P-16 Council [Joint Advisory Committee] established under
Section 61.077 [of this code].
(b) The P-16 Council [Joint Advisory Committee] shall
coordinate plans and programs of the two boards, including
curricula, instructional programs, research, and other functions
as appropriate. This coordination shall include the following
areas:
(1) equal educational opportunity for all Texans;
(2) college recruitment, with special emphasis on the
recruitment of minority students;
(3) preparation of high school students for further
study at colleges and universities;
(4) reduction of the dropout rate and dropout
prevention;
(5) teacher education, recruitment, and retention;
[and]
(6) testing and assessment; and
(7) adult education programs.
SECTION 15. Section 61.077, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 61.077. P-16 COUNCIL [JOINT ADVISORY COMMITTEE]. (a)
The P-16 Council [A joint advisory committee] shall advise the
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and the State Board of
Education in coordinating postsecondary career and technology
activities, career and technology teacher education programs
offered or proposed to be offered in the colleges and universities
of this state, and other relevant matters, including those listed
in Section 61.076 [of this code].
(b) The council is [committee shall be] composed of the
commissioner of education, the commissioner of higher education,
the executive director of the Texas Workforce Commission, and the
executive director of the State Board for Educator Certification
[three members from the State Board of Education, appointed by the
chairman of the board and three members from the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board, appointed by the chairman of the
board, one member designated by the presiding officer of the
Council on Workforce and Economic Competitiveness, and one member
representing business designated by the chair of the Texas
Partnership for Economic Development]. The position of presiding
officer rotates among the members of the council in the order the
members are listed in this subsection, with each member serving as
the presiding officer for one two-year term [A member of the board
shall be designated as chairman of the joint advisory committee by
the chairman of the board].
(c) The council shall meet at least once each calendar
quarter and may hold other meetings as necessary at the call of the
presiding officer [committee shall hold regular annual meetings as
called by the chairman]. Each member of the council or the member's
designee shall make a report of the council's activities at least
twice annually to the governing body of the member's agency or, in
the case of the commissioner of education, to the State Board of
Education.
(d) [(b)] The purposes of this council [committee] shall
include the following:
(1) to advise the two boards on the coordination of
postsecondary career and technology education and the articulation
between postsecondary career and technology education and
secondary career and technology education;
(2) to facilitate the transfer of responsibilities for
the administration of postsecondary career and technology
education from the State Board of Education to the board in
accordance with Section 111(a)(I) of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational
Education Act, Public Law 98-524;
(3) to advise the State Board of Education, when it
acts as the State Board for Career and Technology Education, on the
following:
(A) the transfer of federal funds to the board
for allotment to eligible public postsecondary institutions of
higher education;
(B) the career and technology education funding
for projects and institutions as determined by the board when the
State Board for Career and Technology Education is required by
federal law to endorse such determinations;
(C) the development and updating of the state
plan for career and technology education and the evaluation of
programs, services, and activities of postsecondary career and
technology education and such amendments to the state plan for
career and technology education as may relate to postsecondary
education;
(D) other matters related to postsecondary
career and technology education; and
(E) the coordination of curricula, instructional
programs, research, and other functions as appropriate, including
areas listed in Section 61.076 of this code, school-to-work and
school-to-college transition programs, and professional
development activities; [and]
(4) to advise the Council on Workforce and Economic
Competitiveness on educational policy issues related to workforce
preparation; and
(5) to examine and make recommendations regarding the
alignment of secondary and postsecondary education:
(A) curricula; and
(B) testing and assessment.
(e) Subsection (d)(5) does not require the council to
establish curriculum or testing or assessment standards.
SECTION 16. Section 61.532(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) To be eligible to receive repayment assistance, a
physician must apply to the coordinating board and have completed
at least one year of medical practice:
(1) in private practice in an economically depressed
or rural medically underserved area of the state;
(2) for one of the following state agencies:
(A) Texas Department of Health;
(B) Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
Retardation;
(C) Texas Department of Corrections; or
(D) Texas Youth Commission; or
(3) for an approved family practice residency training
program established under Subchapter I [of this chapter] as a[:
[(A)] clinical faculty member and have completed
training in an approved family practice residency training program
on or after July 1, 1994[; or
[(B) resident].
SECTION 17. Subchapter J, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 61.540 to read as follows:
Sec. 61.540. SERVICE AGREEMENTS ENTERED INTO UNDER FORMER
LAW; SAVING PROVISION. (a) This section applies only to a person
who entered into a written agreement to perform service as a
physician in exchange for loan repayment assistance under this
subchapter before September 1, 2003.
(b) The agreement continues in effect and this subchapter,
as it existed when the person entered into the agreement, is
continued in effect for purposes of that agreement until the person
satisfies all the conditions of the agreement or repays all amounts
due under the agreement if the person does not satisfy the
conditions of the agreement.
SECTION 18. Section 61.822(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) Each institution of higher education shall adopt a core
curriculum of no less than 42 semester credit hours, including
specific courses comprising the curriculum. The core curriculum
shall be consistent with any [the] common course numbering
[course-numbering] system adopted by the board and with the
statement, recommendations, and rules issued by the board. An
institution may have a core curriculum of other than 42 semester
credit hours only if approved by the board.
SECTION 19. Section 61.830, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 61.830. PUBLICATION OF GUIDELINES ADDRESSING TRANSFER
PRACTICES. In its course catalogs and on its website, each
institution of higher education shall publish guidelines
addressing the practices of the institution regarding the transfer
of course credit. In the guidelines, the institution must identify
a course by using the [any] common course numbering system adopted
by the board.
SECTION 20. Subchapter S, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 61.832 to read as follows:
Sec. 61.832. COMMON COURSE NUMBERING SYSTEM. (a) The board
shall adopt a common course numbering system to promote consistency
in the designation and identification of courses among institutions
of higher education.
(b) In developing the common course numbering system, the
board shall consider common course numbering systems already
developed or in common use in this state or any other state.
(c) The board may appoint a committee of the board to
oversee the development of the common course numbering system,
including the taxonomy to be used, and of rules for the
administration and applicability of the system.
(d) An institution of higher education shall use the common
course numbering system adopted by the board under this section.
For good cause, the board may grant to an institution of higher
education an exemption from the requirements of this subsection.
SECTION 21. Sections 61.873 and 61.876, Education Code, as
added by Chapter 833, Acts of the 76th Legislature, Regular
Session, 1999, are amended to read as follows:
Sec. 61.873. ELIGIBILITY FOR ASSISTANCE. To be eligible to
receive loan repayment assistance under this subchapter, a person
must:
(1) hold an associate, baccalaureate, or graduate
degree in early childhood development or the equivalent from a
public or private institution of higher education accredited by a
recognized accrediting agency; and
(2) have served for at least one year [enter into an
agreement to serve] as, and be currently serving as, an early
childhood child-care worker [as provided by Section 61.875].
Sec. 61.876. AMOUNT OF REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE; LIMITATIONS.
(a) For each year that a qualified person serves as an early
childhood child-care worker in this state [under an agreement under
Section 61.875], the person may receive loan repayment assistance
in an amount not to exceed 15 percent of the total amount of the
person's outstanding student loans, including scheduled interest
payments that would become due if the loan is not prepaid, as of the
date [when] the person begins to receive repayment assistance under
this subchapter [enters into the agreement].
(b) The amount of repayment assistance paid for a year may
not exceed the lesser of:
(1) the actual amount of the loan payments the person
receiving the assistance is required to make for that year; or
(2) an amount set by the board equal to the maximum
amount of resident tuition and required fees paid by a person
enrolled as a full-time student at a general academic teaching
institution for the most recent academic year, excluding summer
sessions.
(c) [(b) The board may enter into an agreement to provide
loan repayment assistance under Section 61.875 only to the extent
money in the trust fund established by Section 61.878 or money
appropriated to the trust fund for future deposit to the trust fund
will be sufficient to provide the repayment assistance as it
becomes payable.] If [that] money will not be sufficient to provide
repayment assistance to each eligible applicant, the board shall
select persons to receive repayment assistance from the eligible
applicants according to financial need or on another basis the
board considers reasonable to further the purposes of this
subchapter.
(d) [(c)] The board may determine the manner in which the
loan repayment assistance is to be paid [and shall include
provisions governing the manner of repayment in the agreement].
The board may provide for the payment of a portion of the repayment
assistance in one or more installments before the person completes
a full year of service as an early childhood child-care worker and
for the payment of the remainder of the repayment assistance for
that year after the completion of the full year of service.
SECTION 22. Subchapter T, Chapter 61, Education Code, as
added by Chapter 833, Acts of the 76th Legislature, Regular
Session, 1999, is amended by adding Section 61.879 to read as
follows:
Sec. 61.879. SERVICE AGREEMENTS ENTERED INTO UNDER FORMER
LAW; SAVING PROVISION. (a) This section applies only to a person
who was awarded loan repayment assistance under this subchapter and
entered into a written agreement to perform service as an early
childhood child-care worker in exchange for that assistance under
this subchapter before September 1, 2003.
(b) The agreement continues in effect and this subchapter,
as it existed when the person entered into the agreement, is
continued in effect for purposes of that agreement until the person
satisfies all the conditions of the agreement or repays all amounts
due under the agreement if the person does not satisfy the
conditions of the agreement.
SECTION 23. Sections 61.952 and 61.954, Education Code, as
added by Chapter 1403, Acts of the 77th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2001, are amended to read as follows:
Sec. 61.952. ELIGIBILITY. To be eligible to receive
repayment assistance, an attorney must:
(1) apply to the board; and
(2) have been [be] employed for at least one year by,
and be currently employed by, [or have been offered employment
with] the office of the attorney general at the time the attorney
applies for the assistance[; and
[(3) enter into an agreement to serve as an attorney
with the office of the attorney general as provided by Section
61.953].
Sec. 61.954. MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE
[LIMITATIONS]. (a) For each year that an attorney serves as an
attorney with the office of the attorney general [under an
agreement under Section 61.953], the attorney may receive repayment
assistance under this subchapter in an amount not to exceed $6,000.
(b) An attorney may not receive repayment assistance under
this subchapter for more than three years.
SECTION 24. Section 7.005, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 7.005. COOPERATION BETWEEN STATE AGENCIES OF
EDUCATION. The State Board of Education and the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board, in conjunction with other
appropriate agencies, shall ensure that long-range plans and
educational programs established by each board provide a
comprehensive education for the students of this state under the
jurisdiction of that board, extending from early childhood
education through postgraduate study. In assuring that programs
are coordinated, the boards shall use the P-16 Council [joint
advisory committee] established under Section 61.077.
SECTION 25. Section 52.34, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 52.34. PAYMENTS TO STUDENT. (a) No payment may be
made to any student until the student [he] has executed a note
payable to the Texas Opportunity Plan Fund for the full amount of
the authorized loan plus interest.
(b) For the purposes of this chapter, a student has the
capacity to contract and is bound by any contract executed by the
student [him], and the defense that the student [he] was a minor at
the time the student [he] executed the note is not available to the
student [him] in any action arising on the note.
(c) Payments to students executing notes may be made
annually, semiannually, quarterly, monthly, or for each semester as
the board may determine, depending on the demonstrated capacity of
the student to manage the student's [his] financial affairs.
(d) Disbursements may be made by the board or by the
participating institution pursuant to a contract between the board
and the institution executed in conformity with this chapter.
(e) Money [No funds] may be distributed to a participating
institution only [except] to make payments to a student under a loan
authorized by this chapter.
(f) The board shall distribute money to a participating
institution through the electronic funds transfer system
maintained by the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation for
disbursing loan funds from commercial lenders participating in the
guaranteed student loan program under Chapter 57. The board shall
enter into a contract with the corporation for the use of the
system, and the corporation shall make the system available to the
board as necessary to carry out this subsection.
SECTION 26. Subchapter C, Chapter 52, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 52.41 to read as follows:
Sec. 52.41. RESTRICTION ON ISSUANCE OF CERTAIN FEDERALLY
INSURED STUDENT LOANS. (a) The board may issue student loans under
the Federal Family Education Loan Program (20 U.S.C. Section 1071
et seq.), as amended, only to a person who applied for and was
issued a student loan under this chapter before October 1, 2003, but
who is not yet required to make payments on the loan as of that date,
according to the terms of the loan.
(b) The board may continue to service outstanding student
loans issued by the board under the Federal Family Education Loan
Program.
SECTION 27. The heading to Subchapter O, Chapter 56,
Education Code, as added by Chapter 1261, Acts of the 77th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2001, is amended to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER O. TEACH FOR TEXAS
LOAN REPAYMENT [FINANCIAL] ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
SECTION 28. Subchapter O, Chapter 56, Education Code, as
added by Chapter 1261, Acts of the 77th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2001, is amended by amending Sections 56.351, 56.352,
56.353, 56.354, and 56.355 and adding Sections 56.3575 and 56.359
to read as follows:
Sec. 56.351. DEFINITION [DEFINITIONS]. In this subchapter,
"coordinating [:
[(1) "Coordinating] board" means the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board.
[(2) "Eligible institution of higher education"
means:
[(A) an institution of higher education; or
[(B) a private or independent institution of
higher education as defined by Section 61.003.]
Sec. 56.352. PURPOSE OF PROGRAM; LOAN REPAYMENT AUTHORIZED.
(a) The purpose of this subchapter is to attract to the teaching
profession persons who have expressed interest in teaching and to
support the employment [certification] of those persons as
classroom teachers by providing student loan repayment assistance
for service [a grant on the condition that the recipient serve] as a
classroom teacher in the public schools of this state [for a
specified period].
(b) The coordinating board shall provide, in accordance
with this subchapter and board rules, assistance in the repayment
of eligible student loans for persons who apply and qualify for the
assistance.
Sec. 56.353. ELIGIBILITY [FOR GRANT; TEACHING AGREEMENT].
(a) [A] Teach for Texas repayment assistance [grant] is available
only to a person who applies for the assistance [a grant] and who:
(1) is certified [seeking educator certification;
[(2) is enrolled in an eligible institution of higher
education in this state:
[(A) as a junior or senior in a baccalaureate
degree program; or
[(B) in the person's first academic year in an
educator certification program after receiving a baccalaureate
degree;
[(3) makes satisfactory progress toward completion of
the person's educator certification program; and
[(4) satisfies one of the following:
[(A) the person is seeking educator
certification] in a teaching field identified [certified] by the
commissioner of education as experiencing a critical shortage of
teachers in this state in the year in which the person receives the
assistance [grant] and has for at least one year taught full-time
at, and is currently teaching [agrees to teach] full-time [for five
years] at, the preschool, primary, or secondary level in a public
school in this state in that teaching field; or
(2) is a certified educator who has for at least one
year taught full-time at, and is currently teaching [(B) the person
agrees to teach] full-time [for five years] at, the preschool,
primary, or secondary level in a public school in this state in a
community identified [, which is not required to be specifically
designated at the time the person receives the grant, certified] by
the commissioner of education as experiencing a critical shortage
of teachers in the [any] year in which the person receives the
assistance [a grant under this subchapter or in any subsequent year
in which the person fulfills the teaching obligation].
(b) The coordinating board in awarding repayment assistance
[Teach for Texas grants] shall give priority to applicants who
demonstrate financial need.
(c) [If the money available for grants in a period for which
grants are awarded exceeds the amount needed to provide grants to
all eligible applicants described by Subsection (b), the
coordinating board shall award grants from the remaining money to
additional eligible applicants. The coordinating board shall
prescribe by rule the eligibility requirements for these applicants
based on the factors that the coordinating board considers
appropriate to further the purposes of this subchapter.
[(d)] If the money available for loan repayment assistance
[grants] in a period for which assistance is [grants are] awarded is
insufficient to provide assistance [grants] to all eligible
applicants described by Subsection (b), the coordinating board
shall establish priorities for awarding repayment assistance to
address the most critical teacher shortages described by Subsection
(a) [give the highest priority to applicants who demonstrate the
greatest financial need].
(d) [(e)] A person may not receive loan repayment
assistance [a Teach for Texas tuition grant] for more than five
[three academic] years [or the equivalent].
[(f) A person is not eligible to receive a Teach for Texas
grant if the person has been convicted of a felony or an offense
under Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code (Texas Controlled
Substances Act), or under the law of another jurisdiction involving
a controlled substance, as defined by Chapter 481, Health and
Safety Code, unless the person has met the other applicable
eligibility requirements under this subchapter and has:
[(1) received a certificate of discharge by the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice or a correctional facility or
completed a period of probation ordered by a court, and at least two
years have elapsed from the date of the receipt or completion; or
[(2) been pardoned, had the record of the offense
expunged from the person's record, or otherwise has been released
from the resulting ineligibility to receive a grant under this
subchapter.
[(g) For the purpose of this section, a person makes
satisfactory academic progress toward completion of an educator
certification program if the person:
[(1) completes at least 75 percent of the semester
credit hours attempted in the student's most recent academic year;
and
[(2) earns an overall grade point average of at least
2.5 on a four-point scale or the equivalent on coursework
previously attempted at institutions of higher education.]
Sec. 56.354. ELIGIBLE LOANS. (a) A person may receive
Teach for Texas loan repayment assistance under this subchapter for
the repayment of any student loan for education at any public or
private institution of higher education through any lender. If the
loan is not a state or federal guaranteed student loan, the note or
other writing governing the terms of the loan must require the loan
proceeds to be used for expenses incurred by a person to attend a
public or private institution of higher education.
(b) The coordinating board may not provide loan repayment
assistance for a student loan that is in default at the time of the
person's application. [AMOUNT OF GRANT; PAYMENT OF GRANT. (a) The
amount of a Teach for Texas grant is equal to four times the current
amount of a TEXAS grant under Subchapter M for a student enrolled in
a general academic teaching institution.
[(b) The coordinating board shall pay the amount of a Teach
for Texas grant in installments, with a substantially equal amount
paid in each semester or term based on the number of semesters in
which a typical full-time student would complete the recipient's
educator certification program. The coordinating board may adjust
the amount of a grant for a semester or term, or award a
supplemental grant, to ensure that a grant recipient who completes
the educator certification program receives the total amount of the
recipient's grant.]
Sec. 56.355. PAYMENT OF ASSISTANCE. (a) The coordinating
board may determine the manner in which Teach for Texas loan
repayment assistance is to be paid. The coordinating board may
provide for the payment of a portion of the repayment assistance in
one or more installments before the person completes a full year of
service as a teacher and for the payment of the remainder of the
repayment assistance for that year after the completion of the full
year of service.
(b) Loan repayment assistance received under this
subchapter may be applied to the principal amount of the loan and to
interest that accrues [ELIGIBILITY FOR TEXAS GRANT NOT AFFECTED. A
person may receive both a TEXAS grant under Subchapter M and a Teach
for Texas grant under this subchapter for the same semester or
term].
Sec. 56.3575. ADMINISTRATION; RULES. (a) The coordinating
board shall adopt rules necessary for the administration of this
subchapter.
(b) The coordinating board shall distribute a copy of the
rules adopted under this section and pertinent information relating
to this subchapter to each public or private institution of higher
education in this state that offers an educator certification
program, including an alternative educator certification program
or another equivalent program.
Sec. 56.359. GRANTS AND SERVICE AGREEMENTS ENTERED INTO
UNDER FORMER LAW; SAVING PROVISION. (a) This section applies only
to a person who was awarded a Teach for Texas grant and entered into
a written agreement to perform service as a public school teacher in
this state in order to receive the grant under this subchapter
before September 1, 2003.
(b) A person to whom this section applies may receive any
unpaid installments of the grant as provided by the agreement and in
accordance with this subchapter as it existed when the grant was
awarded. The agreement continues in effect and this subchapter, as
it existed when the person entered into the agreement, is continued
in effect for purposes of that agreement until the person satisfies
all the conditions of the agreement or repays all amounts due under
the agreement if the person does not satisfy the conditions of the
agreement.
SECTION 29. Subchapter Q, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
repealed.
SECTION 30. (a) Section 56.356, Education Code, as added by
Chapter 1261, Acts of the 77th Legislature, Regular Session, 2001,
is repealed.
(b) Section 61.875, Education Code, as added by Chapter 833,
Acts of the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999, is repealed.
(c) Section 61.953, Education Code, as added by Chapter
1403, Acts of the 77th Legislature, Regular Session, 2001, is
repealed.
SECTION 31. (a) Of the six positions on the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board that have terms scheduled to expire on
August 31, 2003, one of the positions is abolished on September 1,
2003. On or before September 1, 2003, the governor shall designate
which of the six positions shall be abolished and shall appoint five
persons to fill the other positions for terms expiring August 31,
2009.
(b) Of the six positions on the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board that have terms scheduled to expire on August
31, 2005, one of the positions is abolished on September 1, 2003.
On or before September 1, 2003, the members whose terms are
scheduled to expire on August 31, 2005, shall determine by
unanimous agreement or by lot which of the six positions shall be
abolished and shall inform the presiding officer of the Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board of that determination.
(c) Of the six positions on the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board that have terms scheduled to expire on August
31, 2007, one of the positions is abolished on September 1, 2003.
On or before September 1, 2003, the members whose terms are
scheduled to expire on August 31, 2007, shall determine by
unanimous agreement or by lot which of the six positions shall be
abolished and shall inform the presiding officer of the Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board of that determination.
SECTION 32. The changes in law made by this Act in the
prohibitions or qualifications applying to members of the Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board do not affect the entitlement
of a member serving on the board immediately before the effective
date of this Act to continue to serve and function as a member of the
board for the remainder of the member's term. Those changes in law
apply only to a member appointed on or after the effective date of
this Act.
SECTION 33. On the effective date of this Act:
(1) the P-16 Council replaces the Joint Advisory
Committee as the advisory board for the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board and the State Board of Education;
(2) all functions and activities performed by the
Joint Advisory Committee are transferred to the P-16 Council to the
extent consistent with the functions and duties of the P-16 Council
provided by law; and
(3) a reference in law to the Joint Advisory Committee
that relates to providing advisory functions to the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board and the State Board of Education means
the P-16 Council.
SECTION 34. (a) Not later than June 1, 2004, the Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board shall:
(1) adopt the common course numbering system required
by Section 61.832, Education Code, as added by this Act; and
(2) establish for each public institution of higher
education a timetable for phasing in full compliance with the
common course numbering system consistent with the institution's
individual course catalog system.
(b) Each public institution of higher education may retain
all or part of its preexisting course catalog system as permitted by
the timetable established by the board under this section until the
institution is required by the timetable to be in full compliance
with the common course numbering system.
SECTION 35. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
shall enter into a contract with the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan
Corporation to use the corporation's electronic funds transfer
system, as required by Section 52.34, Education Code, as amended by
this Act, not later than January 1, 2004.
SECTION 36. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.