BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 49
	By: Zaffirini
	Higher Education
	5/30/2017
	Enrolled

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

The Texas Armed Services Scholarship Program (TASSP) was created to support and encourage students who participate in higher education ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corp) programs and who contract with a service branch to serve after graduation. To be awarded a scholarship, a student must meet certain criteria and be appointed by the governor, lieutenant (lt.) governor, or his or her member of the legislature. The governor and lt. governor may appoint two students, and members may appoint one student, meaning that a total of only 185 students may receive initial awards each year.

Because only 185 students may be appointed to receive an award, sometimes there are more qualified students requesting apopintment from a legislator than that legislator is able to appoint. If one student is appointed by an elected official but does not meet the initial eligibility to receive the award, currently there is no mechanism by which the elected official can instead choose a replacement appointment. Indeed, over the last three years 71 students who were appointed did not qualify for an initial award, which means that 71 scholarship opportunities were wasted. Because the governor and lt. governor may only appoint two students per year, and each legislator may only appoint one student per year, there should be a mechanism by which an elected official can designate an alternate appointment should an original appointment not qualify for his or her award.

S.B. 49 would allow an elected official who appointed a student to receive a Texas Armed Services Scholarship to appoint an alternate student who could receive the award if the original student fails to meet initial eligibility. (Original Author's / Sponsor's Statement of Intent)

S.B. 49 amends current law relating to the appointment by certain elected officials of students to receive a Texas Armed Services Scholarship.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 61.9772(b), Education Code, as follows:

(b) Authorizes the governor and lieutenant governor, in each year, to each appoint two students and two alternates and authorizes each state senator and each state representative to appoint one student and one alternate to receive an initial scholarship. Requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, if a student appointed to receive a scholarship fails to initially meet eligibility or otherwise meet the requirements to initially receive the scholarship, to notify the alternate on file of their nomination.

SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 2017.