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79R916 KEL-D

By:  Howard                                                       H.B. No. 530



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to prohibiting discrimination in awarding state 
scholarships or other financial aid for higher education based on a 
person's high school attendance or achievement.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 56, Education Code, is 
amended by adding Section 56.005 to read as follows:
	Sec. 56.005.  NONDISCRIMINATION IN FINANCIAL AID AWARDS 
BASED ON HIGH SCHOOL ATTENDANCE OR ACHIEVEMENT.  (a)  An 
institution of higher education or state agency that awards 
financial aid of any kind to students to attend public or private 
institutions of higher education may not require a person to have 
attended a public high school or an accredited private high school 
to be eligible for any form of financial aid the institution or 
agency awards.  A requirement that a person have graduated from high 
school to be eligible for financial aid must treat a person who 
presents evidence that the person graduated from an unaccredited 
private high school or successfully completed a secondary school 
program in a home school setting the same as a person who graduated 
from a public high school.
	(b)  An institution of higher education or state agency may 
not award a scholarship or other financial aid based on a person's 
high school grade point average or other measure of a person's 
academic performance before attending an institution of higher 
education, other than the person's score on the Scholastic 
Assessment Test (SAT) or the American College Test (ACT), or a 
separately scored portion of one of those tests.  An institution of 
higher education or state agency that awards scholarships or other 
financial aid based on those test scores must consider a person's 
score on either of those tests, or on comparable portions of either 
of those tests, and may not limit eligibility or consideration to 
persons who have test scores for only one of those tests.
	SECTION 2.  Section 56.304(a), Education Code, is amended to 
read as follows:
	(a)  To be eligible initially for a TEXAS grant, a person 
must:              
		(1)  be a resident of this state as determined by 
coordinating board rules; 
		(2)  meet either of the following academic 
requirements:                    
			(A)  be a graduate of a public high school or an
accredited or unaccredited private high school, including a home 
school, in this state who graduated not earlier than the 1998-1999 
school year [and who completed the recommended or advanced high 
school curriculum established under Section 28.002 or 28.025 or its 
equivalent]; or
			(B)  have received an associate degree from an 
eligible institution not earlier than May 1, 2001;
		(3)  meet financial need requirements as defined by the 
coordinating board; 
		(4)  be enrolled in an undergraduate degree or 
certificate program at an eligible institution;
		(5)  be enrolled as:                                                          
			(A)  an entering undergraduate student for at 
least three-fourths of a full course load for an entering 
undergraduate student, as determined by the coordinating board, not 
later than the 16th month after the date of the person's graduation 
from high school; or
			(B)  an entering student for at least 
three-fourths of a full course load for an undergraduate student as 
determined by the coordinating board, not later than the 12th month 
after the month the person receives an associate degree from an 
eligible institution;
		(6)  have applied for any available financial aid or 
assistance;  and       
		(7)  comply with any additional nonacademic 
requirement adopted by the coordinating board under this 
subchapter.
	SECTION 3.  Section 56.304(f), Education Code, is repealed.                    
	SECTION 4.  The change in law made by this Act applies 
beginning with student financial aid awarded for the 2006-2007 
academic year.  The change in law does not affect student financial 
aid awarded for an academic period before that academic year, and 
the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
	SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives 
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as 
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this 
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this 
Act takes effect September 1, 2005.