86R8236 KSD-D

By: Ortega H.B. No. 1407

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the eligibility requirements for receiving distributions from the national research university fund.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 62.145(a), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) A general academic teaching institution becomes eligible to receive an initial distribution of money appropriated under this subchapter for a state fiscal year if:

(1) the institution is designated as an emerging research university under the coordinating board's accountability system;

(2) in each of the two state fiscal years preceding the state fiscal year for which the appropriation is made, the institution expended at least $45 million in restricted research funds; and

(3) the institution:

(A) satisfies at least four of the following criteria:

(i) [(A)] the value of the institution's endowment funds is at least $400 million in each of the two state fiscal years preceding the state fiscal year for which the appropriation is made;

(ii) [(B)] the institution awarded at least 200 doctor of philosophy degrees during each of the two academic years preceding the state fiscal year for which the appropriation is made;

(iii) [(C)] the entering freshman class of the institution for each of those two academic years demonstrated high academic achievement, as determined according to standards prescribed by the coordinating board by rule, giving consideration to the future educational needs of the state as articulated in the coordinating board's "Closing the Gaps" report;

(iv) [(D)] the institution is designated as a member of the Association of Research Libraries or has a Phi Beta Kappa chapter or has received an equivalent recognition of research capabilities and scholarly attainment as determined according to standards prescribed by the coordinating board by rule;

(v) [(E)] the faculty of the institution for each of those two academic years was of high quality, as determined according to coordinating board standards based on the professional achievement and recognition of the institution's faculty, including the election of faculty members to national academies; and

(vi) [(F)] for each of those two academic years, the institution has demonstrated a commitment to high-quality graduate education, as determined according to standards prescribed by the coordinating board by rule, including standards relating to the number of graduate-level programs at the institution, the institution's admission standards for graduate programs, and the level of institutional support for graduate students; or

(B) satisfies at least one of the criteria listed in Paragraph (A) and is classified as an R1 doctorate-granting university, or an equivalent designation if those classifications are revised, under the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.

SECTION 2. 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, 2019.