87R8682 KJE-D

By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 1394

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to eliminating certain restrictions on eligibility for certain state student financial assistance programs.

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

SECTION 1. Section 54.633(b), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) A scholarship awarded under this section terminates if the student to whom the scholarship is awarded is[:

[(1) convicted of, or adjudicated as having engaged in delinquent conduct constituting, an offense under Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code; or

[(2)] convicted of, or adjudicated as having engaged in delinquent conduct constituting, a felony or Class A misdemeanor.

SECTION 2. Section 56.304(b), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) A person is not eligible to receive a TEXAS grant if the person has been convicted of a felony [or an offense under Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code (Texas Controlled Substances Act), or under the law of another jurisdiction involving a controlled substance as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code], unless the person has met the other applicable eligibility requirements under this subchapter and has:

(1) received a certificate of discharge by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice or a correctional facility or completed a period of probation ordered by a court, and at least two years have elapsed from the date of the receipt or completion; or

(2) been pardoned, had the record of the offense expunged from the person's record, or otherwise has been released from the resulting ineligibility to receive a grant under this subchapter.

SECTION 3. Section 56.305(b), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) A person is not eligible to continue to receive a TEXAS grant under this section if the person has been convicted of a felony [or an offense under Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code (Texas Controlled Substances Act), or under the law of another jurisdiction involving a controlled substance as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code], unless the person has met the other applicable eligibility requirements under this subchapter and has:

(1) received a certificate of discharge by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice or a correctional facility or completed a period of probation ordered by a court, and at least two years have elapsed from the date of the receipt or completion; or

(2) been pardoned, had the record of the offense expunged from the person's record, or otherwise has been released from the resulting ineligibility to receive a grant under this subchapter.

SECTION 4. Section 56.357(c), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(c) A person is not eligible to receive a grant under the program if the person has been convicted of a felony [or an offense under Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code (Texas Controlled Substances Act), or under the law of another jurisdiction involving a controlled substance, as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code], unless the person has met the other applicable eligibility requirements under this section and has:

(1) received a certificate of discharge by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice or a correctional facility or completed a period of probation ordered by a court, and at least two years have elapsed from the date of the receipt or completion; or

(2) been pardoned, had the record of the offense expunged from the person's record, or otherwise has been released from the resulting ineligibility to receive a grant under the program.

SECTION 5. Section 56.404(b), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) A person is not eligible to receive a grant under this subchapter if the person has been convicted of a felony [or an offense under Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code (Texas Controlled Substances Act), or under the law of another jurisdiction involving a controlled substance as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code], unless the person has met the other applicable eligibility requirements under this subchapter and has:

(1) received a certificate of discharge by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice or a correctional facility or completed a period of probation ordered by a court and at least two years have elapsed from the date of the receipt or completion; or

(2) been pardoned, had the record of the offense expunged from the person's record, or otherwise been released from the resulting ineligibility to receive a grant under this subchapter.

SECTION 6. Section 56.405(b), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) A person is not eligible to continue to receive a grant under this section if the person has been convicted of a felony [or an offense under Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code (Texas Controlled Substances Act), or under the law of another jurisdiction involving a controlled substance as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code], unless the person has met the other applicable eligibility requirements under this subchapter and has:

(1) received a certificate of discharge by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice or a correctional facility or completed a period of probation ordered by a court and at least two years have elapsed from the date of the receipt or completion; or

(2) been pardoned, had the record of the offense expunged from the person's record, or otherwise been released from the resulting ineligibility to receive a grant under this subchapter.

SECTION 7. 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, 2021.