BILL ANALYSIS

 

 

 

C.S.H.B. 5265

By: Wilson

Higher Education

Committee Report (Substituted)

 

 

 

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

 

The bill's author has informed the committee that Texas faces a declining health care workforce that is struggling to meet the demands of the state's growing population. The bill author has also informed the committee that dedicated funding for health care workforce education would enable academic institutions to increase the production of health care professional degrees in alignment with the governor's priority to invest millions in job training grants, aimed at equipping students for high-demand, well-paying jobs within the health care sector. C.S.H.B. 5265 seeks to address Texas' workforce needs by establishing the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Fund and the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Startup Fund.

 

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 2 of this bill.

 

ANALYSIS

 

C.S.H.B. 5265 amends the Education Code to establish the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Fund, as a fund outside the state treasury held by the comptroller of public accounts and administered by the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company, for the purpose of allocating appropriations from the fund to provide a dedicated, independent, and equitable source of funding to enable general academic teaching institutions to increase the production of health care professional degrees to meet workforce needs in Texas. The bill requires the trust company to do the following:

·       administer and invest the education fund in accordance with the constitutional amendment proposed by the 89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025, establishing the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Fund; and

·       determine the amount available for distribution from the education fund in accordance with a distribution policy adopted by the comptroller that is designed to:

o   preserve the purchasing power of the fund's assets over an economic cycle, subject to the liquidity needs of the fund; and

o   provide as nearly as practicable a stable and predictable stream of annual distributions.

The bill authorizes the comptroller to solicit and accept gifts, grants, or donations from any public or private source for the fund. The bill defines "health care professional degree" as a baccalaureate degree, a master's degree, a doctoral of professional practice degree, or a research doctorate degree listed under Code 51 as a health profession or related clinical science in the Classification of Instructional Programs adopted by the U.S. Department of Education.

 

C.S.H.B. 5265 makes eligible to receive distributions from the fund for a state fiscal year a general academic teaching institution that is designated as a comprehensive university, doctoral university, or master's university under the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) accountability system and that      awarded health care professional degrees during the preceding state fiscal year.

 

C.S.H.B. 5265 requires the comptroller, each state fiscal year, to distribute to eligible institutions in accordance with the bill's provisions money appropriated from the fund for that fiscal year. The bill caps the total amount appropriated from the fund for any state fiscal year at an amount equal to 7.0 percent of the average net market value of the investment assets of the fund, as determined by the comptroller, for a period set by comptroller policy. The amount appropriated from the fund for distribution in a state fiscal year must be allocated, as follows:

·       95 percent to the permanent endowment for health care workforce education provided by the bill's provisions; and

·       five percent to the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Startup Fund established by the bill's provisions.

 

C.S.H.B. 5265 entitles an eligible institution, for each state fiscal year, to a distribution of a portion of the total amount of the amount allocated to the permanent endowment for health care workforce education for that fiscal year and establishes that the portion to which an eligible institution is eligible is a fraction of that total amount equal to the quotient of:

·       the sum of:

o   the number of bachelor of science or bachelor of arts health care professional degrees awarded by the institution in the preceding three years;

o   three multiplied by the number of master of arts or master of science health care professional degrees awarded by the institution in the preceding three years; and

o   six multiplied by the number of doctor of professional practice or research doctorate health care professional degrees awarded by the institution in the preceding three years; and

·       the total of all such amounts calculated for eligible institutions.

 

C.S.H.B. 5265 requires the comptroller, before distributions are made, to reduce the amount eligible institutions are entitled to as necessary to ensure that no single eligible institution or university system receives more than 25 percent of the annual distribution from the fund for that state fiscal year and to reallocate any amounts by which one or more eligible institutions' distributions are reduced to each other eligible institution whose distribution was not reduced based on the institution's pro rata share, subject to the aforementioned limitation.

 

C.S.H.B. 5265 establishes the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Startup Fund and requires the THECB, each state fiscal year, to distribute the amount allocated from the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Fund to the startup fund to award grants to eligible institutions to start new or expand existing health care professional degree programs. The bill prohibits an eligible institution that has reached 25 percent of the annual distribution from the permanent endowment for that state fiscal year from receiving a grant under the startup fund.

 

C.S.H.B. 5265 restricts an eligible institution's use of the money from the education fund to supporting and maintaining educational and general activities that promote increased capacity to award health care professional degrees in a manner that aligns with the goals of the state's master plan for the coordination of public higher education under state law. For those purposes, the use of money is limited to the following permitted activities in health care professional degree programs:

·       increasing enrollment capacity;

·       providing faculty support and paying faculty salaries;

·       purchasing equipment or library materials;

·       awarding loan repayment guarantees to students enrolled in graduate health care professional degree programs who commit to teaching at general academic teaching institutions in Texas for at least four years after graduation;

·       investing in clinical facilities or administration for clinical placement programs that expand enrollment capacity of undergraduate health care professional degree programs; and

·       increasing the number of graduates from health care professional degree programs.

The bill authorizes the money received in a state fiscal year by an eligible institution that is not used in that fiscal year by the institution to be held and used by the institution in subsequent state fiscal years for such prescribed purposes.

 

C.S.H.B. 5265 requires the Legislative Budget Board, in consultation with the THECB, to do the following for each state fiscal biennium:

·       determine the amount of each distribution from the fund to which each eligible institution is entitled from the education fund; and

·       report such determinations to the legislature and the comptroller.

The bill authorizes the THECB to adopt rules as necessary to implement the education fund.

 

EFFECTIVE DATE

 

The bill takes effect September 1, 2026, but only if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025, establishing the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Fund to provide funding to eligible institutions of higher education to address Texas' health care workforce needs and drive the state economy is approved by the voters. If that amendment is not approved by the voters, the bill has no effect.

 

COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE

 

While C.S.H.B. 5265 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

 

Whereas the introduced established the health care professional education fund, the substitute establishes the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Fund. The substitute makes conforming changes to replace the introduced version's references to "health care professional education" with references to "health care workforce education."

 

Whereas the introduced established the health care professional education startup fund, the substitute establishes the Texas Health Care Workforce Education Startup Fund.