Amend CSHB 1 (house committee printing) in Article III of the bill, following the appropriations to the Higher Education Coordinating Board, by striking Rider 26, Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program (page III-59), and substituting the following:
26. Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program. (a) Out of money appropriated above for Strategy D.1.6, Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program, the Higher Education Coordinating Board may not allocate more than 5 percent of the funds for each state fiscal year for administrative expenses. The board shall reduce proportionately the amounts allocated in Subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this rider based on the amount of funds the board allocates for program administration.
(b) Growth Tier. Out of money appropriated above in Strategy D.1.6, Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program, the Higher Education Coordinating Board shall allocate 60 percent of the funds for the state fiscal biennium ending August 31, 2025, to be distributed in an equitable manner to institutions of higher education with educational programs related to nursing, including institutions graduating their first nursing class, based on increases in the numbers of students graduating from programs at the institutions with degrees in nursing. Students graduating with degrees in nursing include graduates who are seeking initial licensure and have completed a bachelor's degree or a registered nurse to bachelor of science in nursing degree program. The board shall apply a weight of 1.5 for increased graduates in nursing educator programs identified with a Classification of Instructional Program code of 51.3808 and 51.3817. The board shall allocate up to 50 percent of the amounts allocated under this subsection of this rider in each fiscal year of the biennium and any unexpended amounts resulting at the end of a fiscal year to community colleges.
(c) Production Tier. Out of funds appropriated above in Strategy D.1.6, Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program, the Higher Education Coordinating Board shall allocate 10 percent of the funds for the state fiscal year ending August 31, 2024, and 10 percent of the funds for the state fiscal year ending August 31, 2025, to be distributed in an equitable manner to institutions of higher education with educational programs related to nursing based on the total number of students graduating each year from programs at the institutions with degrees in nursing. Students graduating with degrees in nursing include graduates who are seeking initial licensure and have completed a bachelor's degree or a registered nurse to bachelor of science in nursing degree program.
(d) Faculty Tier. Out of funds appropriated above in Strategy D.1.6, Professional Nursing Shortage Reduction Program, the Higher Education Coordinating Board shall allocate 10 percent of the funds for the state fiscal year ending August 31, 2024, and 10 percent of the funds for the state fiscal year ending August 31, 2025, to be distributed in an equitable manner to institutions of higher education with educational programs related to nursing based on the total number of students graduating each year from programs at the institutions with doctoral-level degrees in nursing.
(e) In the allocations distributed under Subsections (b) (Growth Tier) and (c) (Production Tier) of this rider, the Higher Education Coordinating Board shall apply the following weights to students graduating with degrees in nursing that are counted for purposes of the formula calculations for purposes of each respective subsection:
(1) 2.5 for prelicensure graduates of Bachelor's of Science in Nursing programs;
(2) 2.0 for graduates of Associate's Degree in Nursing Programs;
(3) 1.5 for graduates of Registered Nurse to Bachelor's of Science in Nursing, Master's of Science in Nursing Education, and Doctor of Philosophy programs (CIP codes 51.3808 and 51.3817);
(4) 0.5 for Advanced Practice Registered Nursing graduate degree programs; and
(5) 1.0 for all other nursing graduates.
(f) For purposes of Higher Education Coordinating Board expenditures, any funds not expended in the state fiscal year ending August 31, 2024, may be expended in the state fiscal year ending August 31, 2025, for the same purposes. If an institution spends funds on non-qualifying expenditures or does not spend the funds within the designated time frame determined by the board, the institution shall return the unexpended funds to the board by the date specified by board rule. The board shall reallocate any unexpended funds returned to the board under this subsection of this rider to other qualified programs. Each institution of higher education that receives funds allocated under this rider shall submit to the board a detailed accounting of funds received, obligated, or expended by the institution.
(g) The Higher Education Coordinating Board may not include nonresident students who are enrolled in online professional nursing programs while residing outside of the state in methodologies used to calculate program awards described in Subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this rider.