85R28010 JRJ-F
 
  By: Lozano, Blanco H.B. No. 3766
 
  Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3766:
 
  By:  Lozano C.S.H.B. No. 3766
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to tuition and fee exemptions or waivers at public
  institutions of higher education.
 
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subchapter D, Chapter 54, Education Code, is
  amended by adding Section 54.201 to read as follows:
         Sec. 54.201.  CERTAIN FINANCIAL AID ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION
  REQUIRED. (a) Notwithstanding any other law and subject to
  Subsection (b), to qualify for an exemption, waiver, or other
  benefit authorized under this subchapter for enrollment at an
  institution of higher education during an academic year, a person
  must:
               (1)  complete a free application for federal student
  aid (FAFSA) for that academic year and:
                     (A)  submit the person's FAFSA student aid report
  to the institution; or
                     (B)  designate the institution as a preferred
  institution to receive the report from the United States Department
  of Education; or
               (2)  if the person is not eligible to receive federal
  student aid, complete and submit to the institution the Texas
  Application for State Financial Aid (TASFA) or a similar
  application for state student financial assistance.
         (b)  Subsection (a) does not apply to a person who receives a
  waiver under Section 54.216.
         SECTION 2.  Sections 54.341(l) and (n), Education Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (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;
               (2)  be [as] a graduate or undergraduate student[,
  maintain a grade point average that satisfies the grade point
  average requirement for making satisfactory academic progress in a
  degree, certificate, or continuing education program as determined
  by the institution at which the child is enrolled in accordance with
  the institution's policy regarding eligibility for financial aid];
  [and]
               (3)  maintain:
                     (A)  a course load of at least 24 semester credit
  hours per academic year; and
                     (B)  a cumulative grade point average of at least
  2.5 on a four-point scale or the equivalent;
               (4)  be 25 years of age or younger on the first class
  date [day] of the semester or other academic term for which the
  exemption is claimed; and
               (5)  if eligible, have exhausted all benefits available
  to the child under the federal Post-9/11 Veterans Educational
  Assistance Act of 2008 (38 U.S.C. Section 3301 et seq.) or any other
  federal law authorizing educational benefits for veterans.
         (n)  The Texas Veterans Commission by rule shall prescribe
  procedures by which a child assigned an exemption under Subsection
  (k) who suffered from a severe illness or other debilitating
  condition that affected the child's ability to use the exemption
  before reaching the age described by Subsection (l)(4) [(l)(3)] may
  be granted additional time to use the exemption corresponding to
  the time the child was unable to use the exemption because of the
  illness or condition.
         SECTION 3.  Section 434.00791(b), Government Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (b)  The commission shall ensure a system to electronically
  monitor the use of tuition and fee exemptions at institutions of
  higher education under Section 54.341, Education Code, is
  developed.  The system must allow the commission to electronically
  receive, for each semester, the following information from
  institutions of higher education:
               (1)  the name of the institution;
               (2)  the name, identification number, and date of birth
  of each individual attending the institution and receiving benefits
  for the semester under Section 54.341, Education Code;
               (3)  for each individual receiving benefits, the number
  of credit hours for which the individual received an exemption for
  the semester;
               (4)  for each individual receiving benefits at the
  institution during the semester, the total cumulative number of
  credit hours for which the individual has received an exemption at
  the institution; [and]
               (5)  for each individual receiving benefits, the length
  of service of the person eligible for an exemption under Section
  54.341(a), Education Code, as indicated by official documentation
  from the United States Department of Defense; and
               (6)  any other information required by the commission.
         SECTION 4.  (a)  Except as otherwise provided by this
  section, the changes in law made by this Act apply beginning with
  tuition and fees charged for the 2017 fall semester. Tuition and
  fees charged for a term or semester before the 2017 fall semester
  are governed by the law in effect immediately before the effective
  date of this Act, and the former law is continued in effect for that
  purpose.
         (b)  Section 54.201, Education Code, as added by this Act,
  applies to a person's eligibility for an exemption or waiver from
  the payment of all or part of tuition or other fees beginning with
  tuition and fees charged for the 2018 fall semester.
         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 September 1, 2017.