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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to authorization by the Texas Higher Education |
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Coordinating Board for certain public junior colleges to offer |
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baccalaureate degree programs. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 130.0012, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsections (b) and (g) and adding Subsection (g-1) to |
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read as follows: |
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(b) The coordinating board shall authorize baccalaureate |
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degree programs at: |
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(1) each public junior college that previously |
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participated in a pilot project to offer baccalaureate degree |
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programs; and |
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(2) one or more public junior colleges that offer a |
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degree program in the field of nursing if the public junior college |
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is located in a county with a population greater than 3.3 million at |
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the time the degree is initially offered. |
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(g) Except as provided by Subsection (g-1), in [In] its |
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recommendations to the legislature relating to state funding for |
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public junior colleges, the coordinating board shall recommend that |
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a public junior college receive substantially the same state |
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support for junior-level and senior-level courses offered under |
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this section as that provided to a general academic teaching |
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institution for substantially similar courses. In determining the |
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contact hours attributable to students enrolled in a junior-level |
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or senior-level course offered under this section used to determine |
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a public junior college's proportionate share of state |
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appropriations under Section 130.003, the coordinating board shall |
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weigh those contact hours as necessary to provide the junior |
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college the appropriate level of state support to the extent state |
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funds for those courses are included in the appropriations. This |
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subsection does not prohibit the legislature from directly |
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appropriating state funds to support junior-level and senior-level |
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courses offered under this section. |
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(g-1) A degree program created under Subsection (b)(2) may |
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be funded solely by a public junior college's proportionate share |
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of state appropriations under Section 130.003, local funds, and |
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private sources. This subsection does not require the legislature |
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to appropriate state funds to support a degree program created |
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under Subsection (b)(2). |
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SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2013. |