79R1086 CAS-D
By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 151
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to students enrolled in courses for which students may
receive both high school and higher education academic credit.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 54, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 54.2161 to read as follows:
Sec. 54.2161. PILOT PROJECT FOR CERTAIN STUDENTS ENROLLED
IN COURSES FOR CONCURRENT HIGH SCHOOL AND HIGHER EDUCATION ACADEMIC
CREDIT. (a) Notwithstanding Section 54.216, the governing board
of an institution of higher education shall waive the tuition and
mandatory fees charged by the institution for a student who:
(1) is a high school junior or senior in a school
district that is eligible for guaranteed yield allotments under
Subchapter F, Chapter 42; and
(2) is enrolled in a course for which the student is
entitled to simultaneously receive both:
(A) course credit toward the student's high
school academic requirements; and
(B) course credit toward a degree offered by the
institution.
(b) A student described by Subsection (a) is entitled to
free textbooks required for a course described by Subsection (a)(2)
in accordance with Section 31.031.
(c) The commissioner of higher education shall conduct an
ongoing evaluation of the effectiveness of the pilot project
established under this section in encouraging students to graduate
from institutions of higher education in a timely manner and of any
other benefits or any problems that result from the pilot project.
In making that evaluation, the commissioner of higher education
shall consult with the commissioner of education. The commissioner
of higher education shall report the results of the evaluation to
the legislature not later than December 31, 2006, and December 31,
2008.
(d) The governing board of an institution of higher
education may not waive tuition and fees under this section and a
student is not entitled to free textbooks under this section for a
semester or session before the 2005 fall semester.
(e) This section expires August 15, 2009.
SECTION 2. Section 31.021, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) In addition to the amount set aside under Subsection
(b), the State Board of Education shall annually set aside out of
the available school fund an amount sufficient for each school
district with one or more students entitled to free textbooks under
the pilot project established by Section 54.2161 to provide those
textbooks as required by Section 31.031 for the following school
year. The board shall determine the amount of the available school
fund to set aside for the state textbook fund for purposes of this
subsection based on the commissioner's estimate of the amount that
will be necessary to provide textbooks required under Section
31.031. This subsection expires August 15, 2009.
SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 31, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 31.031, Education Code, to read as
follows:
Sec. 31.031. TEXTBOOKS FOR STUDENTS ENROLLED IN COURSES FOR
CONCURRENT HIGH SCHOOL AND HIGHER EDUCATION ACADEMIC CREDIT UNDER
PILOT PROJECT. (a) From the amount set aside by the State Board of
Education under Section 31.021(c), the school district that a
student entitled to free textbooks under the pilot project
established by Section 54.2161 attends shall provide each textbook
the student requires for a course described by Section
51.2161(a)(2).
(b) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for the
provision of textbooks under this section. The rules may provide
for a school district to purchase a textbook for a student or for
the student to purchase the textbook with money set aside under
Section 31.021(c) and provided to the student by the district. If
the rules allow for the student to purchase the textbook with money
provided by the district, the rules must provide for ensuring that
money provided to the student under this subsection is used only to
pay for a textbook required for a course described by Subsection
54.2161(a)(2).
(c) Section 31.102(c) does not apply to a textbook provided
under this section, except that the board of trustees of the school
district in which a student is enrolled is the legal custodian of a
textbook provided under this section.
(d) This section expires August 15, 2009.
SECTION 4. Section 42.005, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
(g) If a student may receive course credit toward the
student's high school academic requirements and toward the
student's higher education academic requirements for a single
course, the time during which the student attends the course shall
be counted as part of the minimum number of instructional hours
required for a student to be considered a full-time student in
average daily attendance for purposes of this section.
SECTION 5. Section 51.3062(r), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(r) This section does not apply to:
(1) a student who has graduated with an associate or
baccalaureate degree from an institution of higher education;
(2) a student who transfers to an institution of
higher education from a private or independent institution of
higher education or an accredited out-of-state institution of
higher education and who has satisfactorily completed
college-level coursework;
(3) a student who is enrolled in a certificate program
of one year or less at a public junior college, a public technical
institute, or a public state college;
(4) a student who is serving on active duty as a member
of:
(A) the armed forces of the United States; or
(B) the Texas National Guard;
(5) a student who is currently serving as and, for at
least the three-year period preceding enrollment, has served as a
member of a reserve component of the armed forces of the United
States; [or]
(6) a student who on or after August 1, 1990, was
honorably discharged, retired, or released from:
(A) active duty as a member of the armed forces of
the United States or the Texas National Guard; or
(B) service as a member of a reserve component of
the armed forces of the United States; or
(7) a student who is enrolled in a course for which the
student is entitled to simultaneously receive both:
(A) course credit toward the student's high
school academic requirements; and
(B) course credit toward a degree offered by an
institution of higher education.
SECTION 6. (a) Section 31.021(c), Education Code, as added
by this Act, applies to funding for textbooks beginning with
textbooks provided for the 2005-2006 school year and the 2005 fall
semester.
(b) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules under
Section 31.031, Education Code, as added by this Act, as soon as
practicable after this Act takes effect. For that purpose, the
State Board of Education may adopt the initial rules in the manner
provided by law for adoption of emergency rules.
(c) Section 42.005(g), Education Code, as added by this Act,
applies beginning with the 2005-2006 school year.
(d) The change in law made by this Act to Section
51.3062(r), Education Code, applies to a student enrolling in a
course at an institution of higher education beginning with the
2005 fall semester. A student enrolling in a course at an
institution of higher education before the 2005 fall semester is
governed by the applicable law in effect at the time the student
enrolls, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 7. 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.