BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 655

By: Clardy

Higher Education

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Interested parties have reported the cost of excess credit hours at public institutions of higher education and suggest that requiring students to file a degree plan by a certain point will improve completion rates and help students stay on track to graduate on time. H.B. 655 seeks to provide for the filing of a degree plan by students at public junior colleges.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 655 amends the Education Code to require a student enrolled in an associate or bachelor's degree program at a public junior college to file a degree plan with the college not later than the end of the second regular semester or term immediately following the semester or term in which the student earned a cumulative total of 30 or more semester credit hours of course credit for courses successfully completed by the student or, if the student begins the student's first semester or term at the college with 30 or more semester credit hours of course credit for such courses, the end of the student's second regular semester or term at the college. This requirement applies beginning with students who initially enroll in a public junior college for the 2018 fall semester.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2017.