83R8462 JRJ-F

By: Isaac H.B. No. 2236

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to tuition and fee exemptions for certain military personnel and their dependents.

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

SECTION 1. Section 54.341, Education Code, is amended by amending Subsections (c), (d), and (l) and adding Subsection (o) to read as follows:

(c) A person may not receive exemptions provided for by this section for more than a cumulative total of 120 [150] credit hours.

(d) The governing board of each institution of higher education granting an exemption under this section shall require each applicant claiming the exemption to submit to the institution an application for the exemption and satisfactory evidence that the applicant qualifies for the exemption not later than the 12th class day of the semester or term to which the exemption applies [one year after the earlier of the date the institution:

[(1) provides written notice to the applicant of the applicant's eligibility for the exemption; or

[(2) receives a written acknowledgement from the applicant evidencing the applicant's awareness of the applicant's eligibility for the exemption].

(l) To be eligible to receive an exemption under Subsection (k), the child must:

(1) be a student who is classified as a resident under Subchapter B when the child enrolls in an institution of higher education; and

(2) meet the [make] satisfactory academic progress requirements of this section [in a degree, certificate, or continuing education program as determined by the institution at which the child is enrolled in accordance with the policy of the institution's financial aid department, except that the institution may not require the child to enroll in a minimum course load].

(o) To receive an exemption provided by this section, a person otherwise eligible for the exemption must:

(1) meet the satisfactory academic progress requirements for federal student financial aid for the institution in which the person is enrolled; or

(2) be granted an exemption from those requirements in the manner permitted under the federal satisfactory academic progress policy.

SECTION 2. Section 54.341(h), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(h) The governing board of each institution of higher education shall electronically report to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board the information required by Section 61.0516 relating to each individual receiving an exemption from fees and charges under Subsection (a), (a-2), or (b). The institution shall report the information not later than December 31 of each year for the fall semester, May 31 of each year for the spring semester, and September 30 of each year for the summer session. The coordinating board shall at least annually evaluate the information reported under this subsection to ensure that a person receiving an exemption under this section is in compliance with Subsection (c).

SECTION 3. Section 9.01(b)(4), Chapter 1049 (S.B. 5), Acts of the 82nd Legislature, Regular Session, 2011, which would repeal Section 54.203(h), Education Code, effective September 1, 2013, is repealed and does not take effect, and Section 54.341(h), Education Code, which was redesignated from Section 54.203(h), Education Code, by Chapter 359 (S.B. 32), Acts of the 82nd Legislature, Regular Session, 2011, remains in effect as amended by this Act.

SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply beginning with tuition and fees for the 2013 fall semester. Tuition and fees for a term or semester before the 2013 fall semester are covered by the law in effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, 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 on the 91st day after the last day of the legislative session.