BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3382

By: Pacheco

Higher Education

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The State of Texas currently provides specialized financial assistance programs, often through the form of loan repayment assistance, to students in degree programs in certain targeted employment fields. Concerns have been raised that these programs are not available to certain nonprofit, tax-exempt, regionally accredited colleges or universities operating in accordance with a memorandum of understanding with the state. C.S.H.B. 3382 seeks to make certain loan repayment assistance programs available to students at such colleges or universities.

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 rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in SECTION 6 of this bill.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3382 amends the Education Code to make a student at a nonprofit, tax-exempt, regionally accredited college or university operating in accordance with a memorandum of understanding with the state under an executive order issued by the governor eligible for loan repayment assistance as part of the following programs provided by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board:

· the program to provide for the repayment of certain mental health professional education loans;

· the nursing faculty loan repayment assistance program; and

· the math and science scholars loan repayment program.

The bill makes a hospital-based nursing education partnership that includes a nursing program offered by such a college or university eligible for a grant under the Texas hospital-based nursing education partnership grant program if that nursing program is comparable to the undergraduate or graduate professional nursing programs currently eligible for grants under the program. The bill requires the coordinating board to adopt any rules necessary to administer the bill's changes to law.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2019.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 3382 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute does not include provisions making financial assistance under the Teach for Texas loan repayment assistance program, the professional nursing shortage reduction program, or the Texas armed services scholarship program available to students at a nonprofit, tax-exempt, regionally accredited college or university operating in accordance with a memorandum of understanding with this state under an executive order issued by the governor.