80R10644 CAS-D

By: Shapleigh S.B. No. 1573

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the affordability of enrollment in public institutions of higher education and the availability of certain financial and academic information to students enrolled in those institutions.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. (a) This Act may be cited as the "21st Century College Success Act."

(b) This state's master plan for higher education, "Closing the Gaps," calls for an additional 630,000 students to participate in higher education in this state by 2015. Student participation in higher education has been proven to correspond to higher levels of income, lower levels of unemployment and poverty, and higher levels of civic participation. Yet at the same time that this state needs more of the state's students to participate in higher education, institutions of higher education are being priced out of reach for many residents of this state. Since tuition deregulation began in the 2003 fall semester, the total amount paid by students for education at public institutions of higher education has increased by 40 percent statewide, and institutions have increased designated tuition charged to their students per academic year by $266,313,285. As a result, many students are forced to postpone higher education, take time off of school, or obtain high-cost student loans. In order to achieve the goals established by "Closing the Gaps," this state's leaders must provide financial relief for students enrolled at public institutions of higher education and assist those students in graduating quickly and joining the workforce.

SECTION 2. Subchapter Z, Chapter 51, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 51.970 to read as follows:

Sec. 51.970. STUDENT INTERNET ACCESS TO FINANCIAL AND ACADEMIC INFORMATION. In accordance with guidelines adopted by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and to the extent the institution has legally authorized access to relevant information, each institution of higher education shall provide a method by which each student enrolled in the institution may access, through the institution's Internet website:

(1) the student's current financial status, including:

(A) any amount of tuition or fees the student owes;

(B) any grant, loan, or other financial aid available specifically to the student, including the applicable amounts of aid; and

(C) any amount of money the student owes on a student financial aid loan the student received through the institution's financial aid office; and

(2) the student's current academic status, including:

(A) a list of the courses in which the student is currently enrolled;

(B) a list of the courses that the student has completed at the institution or at another institution for which the institution will grant the student course credit, and the grade assigned for each course; and

(C) information concerning the required and elective courses, including the number of semester credit hours, that the student must complete for the student's degree plan.

SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 54, Education Code, is amended by adding Sections 54.016 and 54.017 to read as follows:

Sec. 54.016. LIMITATION ON INCREASE IN TOTAL AMOUNT OF TUITION AND COMPULSORY FEES. (a) In this section, "compulsory fee" has the meaning assigned by Section 54.503.

(b) The total amount of tuition and compulsory fees charged by an institution of higher education to a student may not exceed the total amount of tuition and compulsory fees that the institution would have charged to a similarly situated student in the preceding academic year by more than five percent. For purposes of this subsection, students are similarly situated if they share the same residency status, degree program, course load, course level, tuition exemption status, and other circumstances affecting the tuition and compulsory fees charged to the student. This subsection does not ensure that the total amount of tuition and compulsory fees charged to an individual student will not increase by more than five percent if the increase is based on a change in the student's residency status, degree program, course load, course level, tuition exemption status, or other circumstance affecting the tuition and compulsory fees charged to the student.

(c) If as a result of a required statutory increase in tuition or a compulsory fee an institution of higher education would charge more in tuition and compulsory fees for an academic period than permitted under this section because the institution does not have sufficient time before the beginning of the academic period to adjust its tuition and compulsory fee charges:

(1) tuition for which rates are prescribed under Section 54.051 or another provision prescribing tuition rates shall be charged at those required rates; and

(2) the amount designated as tuition under Section 54.0513 or another provision authorizing an institution to establish tuition rates, and the amount of a compulsory fee that is not prescribed by law, must each be reduced by the same percentage as necessary to comply with this section, except that the institution is not required to reduce a fee in an amount that is approved by a majority vote of the institution's students participating in a general student election held for that purpose.

(d) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board may adopt rules as necessary to administer this section.

(e) Notwithstanding Subsection (b), for the 2007-2008 academic year, the 2008-2009 academic year, and the 2009-2010 academic year, the total amount of tuition and compulsory fees charged by an institution of higher education to a student may not exceed the total amount of tuition and compulsory fees that the institution would have charged to a similarly situated student in the 2006-2007 academic year. For purposes of this subsection, students are similarly situated if they share the same residency status, degree program, course load, course level, tuition exemption status, and other circumstances affecting the tuition and compulsory fees charged to the student. This subsection does not ensure that the total amount of tuition and compulsory fees charged to an individual student in an academic year in which tuition and fee increases are restricted under this subsection will not exceed the total amount of tuition and compulsory fees charged to the student in a prior academic year if the increase is based on a change in the student's residency status, degree program, course load, course level, or tuition exemption status or other circumstances affecting the tuition and compulsory fees charged to the student. This subsection expires September 1, 2010.

Sec. 54.017. NOTICE OF INCREASE IN AMOUNT OF COMPULSORY FEE. (a) In this section, "compulsory fee" has the meaning assigned by Section 54.503.

(b) An institution of higher education that proposes to increase the amount of a compulsory fee must, not later than the 60th day before the date the fee increase will take effect, provide written notice of the proposed increase:

(1) in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the institution is located; and

(2) to the state representative and state senator who represent the legislative districts in which the institution is located.

(c) Notice provided under Subsection (b) must:

(1) clearly identify the compulsory fee for which the increase in amount is proposed;

(2) state the current amount of the fee and the amount of the proposed increase; and

(3) state the semester or other term in which the amount of the fee was most recently increased, if applicable.

SECTION 4. Section 61.051(a-3), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a-3) The board shall 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 report to the legislature not later than 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 (a-1) and shall recommend legislative action to assist the state in meeting those goals, including recommendations concerning the amount of money that would be necessary for funding specific financial aid programs in order to meet relevant goals. The report must include the analyses performed in connection with the board's periodic review under Subsection (a-2).

SECTION 5. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall study methods, including funding methods, for expanding the number and type of work-study opportunities at public institutions of higher education in order to provide financially needy students with the employment opportunities necessary to support the students' attendance at those institutions. Not later than December 1, 2008, the coordinating board shall submit the results of the study, including the board's recommendations, to the governing board of each public institution of higher education and to the chair of each legislative standing committee or subcommittee with jurisdiction over higher education. This section expires January 1, 2009.

SECTION 6. (a) Not later than January 1, 2008, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall adopt guidelines as required by Section 51.970, Education Code, as added by this Act. Not later than August 1, 2008, each public institution of higher education shall provide a method by which the institution's students may access financial and academic information as required by that section.

(b) Section 54.016, Education Code, as added by this Act, does not affect tuition or compulsory fees charged under Chapter 54, Education Code, for a term or semester before the 2007-2008 academic year.

(c) Section 54.017, Education Code, as added by this Act, applies only to an increase in the amount of a compulsory fee that is proposed to take effect on or after January 1, 2008.

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, 2007.