Bill Text: TX SB28 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Comm Sub
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to eligibility for a TEXAS grant and to administration of the TEXAS grant program.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2011-06-17 - Effective on 9/1/11 [SB28 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB28-Comm_Sub.html
Bill Title: Relating to eligibility for a TEXAS grant and to administration of the TEXAS grant program.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2011-06-17 - Effective on 9/1/11 [SB28 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB28-Comm_Sub.html
By: Zaffirini, Wentworth | S.B. No. 28 | |
(In the Senate - Filed November 8, 2010; January 31, 2011, | ||
read first time and referred to Committee on Higher Education; | ||
March 28, 2011, reported adversely, with favorable Committee | ||
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 0; March 28, 2011, | ||
sent to printer.) | ||
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 28 | By: Zaffirini |
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relating to eligibility for a TEXAS grant and to administration of | ||
the TEXAS grant program. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. This Act shall be known as the TEXAS Grant | ||
College Readiness Reform Act. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 56.303, Education Code, is amended by | ||
amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsections (d-1), (e), and (f) | ||
to read as follows: | ||
(d) From money appropriated by the legislature for the | ||
purposes of this subchapter, the coordinating board annually shall | ||
determine the allocation of money available for TEXAS grants among | ||
general academic teaching institutions and other eligible | ||
institutions and shall distribute the money accordingly. | ||
(d-1) In allocating among general academic teaching | ||
institutions money available for initial TEXAS grants for an | ||
academic year, the coordinating board shall ensure that each of | ||
those institutions' percentage share of the total amount of money | ||
for initial grants that is allocated to general academic teaching | ||
institutions under this subsection for that year does not, as a | ||
result of the number of students who establish eligibility at the | ||
institution for an initial grant under Section 56.3041(2)(A), | ||
change from the institution's percentage share of the total amount | ||
of money for initial grants that is allocated to those institutions | ||
under this subsection for the preceding academic year. | ||
(e) In determining who should receive a TEXAS grant, the | ||
coordinating board and the eligible institutions shall give | ||
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demonstrate the greatest financial need and whose expected family | ||
contribution, as determined according to the methodology used for | ||
federal student financial aid, does not exceed 60 percent of the | ||
average statewide amount of tuition and required fees described by | ||
Section 56.307(a). | ||
(f) Beginning with TEXAS grants awarded for the 2013-2014 | ||
academic year, in determining who should receive an initial TEXAS | ||
grant, each general academic teaching institution, in addition to | ||
giving priority as provided by Subsection (e), shall give highest | ||
priority to students who meet the eligibility criteria described by | ||
Section 56.3041(2)(A). If there is money available in excess of the | ||
amount required to award an initial TEXAS grant to all students | ||
meeting those criteria, a general academic teaching institution | ||
shall make awards to other students who meet the eligibility | ||
criteria described by Section 56.304(a)(2)(A), provided that the | ||
institution continues to give priority to students as provided by | ||
Subsection (e). | ||
SECTION 3. Subsection (h), Section 56.304, Education Code, | ||
is amended to read as follows: | ||
(h) The coordinating board shall adopt rules to allow a | ||
person who is otherwise eligible to receive a TEXAS grant, in the | ||
event of a hardship or for other good cause shown, including a | ||
showing of a severe illness or other debilitating condition that | ||
may affect the person's academic performance or that the person is | ||
responsible for the care of a sick, injured, or needy person and | ||
that the person's provision of care may affect the person's academic | ||
performance, to receive a TEXAS grant while enrolled in a number of | ||
semester credit hours that is less than the number of semester | ||
credit hours required under Subsection (a)(5) or Section | ||
56.3041(5), as applicable. The coordinating board may not allow a | ||
person to receive a TEXAS grant while enrolled in fewer than six | ||
semester credit hours. | ||
SECTION 4. Subchapter M, Chapter 56, Education Code, is | ||
amended by amending Section 56.3041 and adding Section 56.3042 to | ||
read as follows: | ||
Sec. 56.3041. INITIAL ELIGIBILITY OF PERSON GRADUATING FROM | ||
HIGH SCHOOL ON OR AFTER MAY 1, 2013, AND ENROLLING IN A GENERAL | ||
ACADEMIC TEACHING INSTITUTION. Notwithstanding Section 56.304(a), | ||
to be eligible initially for a TEXAS grant, a person graduating from | ||
high school on or after May 1, 2013, and enrolling in a general | ||
academic teaching institution must: | ||
(1) be a resident of this state as determined by | ||
coordinating board rules; | ||
(2) meet the academic requirements prescribed by | ||
Paragraph (A), (B), or (C) as follows: | ||
(A) be a graduate of a public or accredited | ||
private high school in this state who completed the recommended | ||
high school program established under Section 28.025 or its | ||
equivalent and have accomplished any two or more of the following: | ||
(i) graduation under the advanced high | ||
school program established under Section 28.025 or its equivalent, | ||
successful completion of the course requirements of the | ||
international baccalaureate diploma program, or earning of the | ||
equivalent of at least 12 semester credit hours of college credit in | ||
high school through courses described in Sections 28.009(a)(1), | ||
(2), and (3); | ||
(ii) satisfaction of the Texas Success | ||
Initiative (TSI) college readiness benchmarks prescribed by the | ||
coordinating board under Section 51.3062(f) on any assessment | ||
instrument designated by the coordinating board under Section | ||
51.3062(c) or (e) or qualification for an exemption as described by | ||
Section 51.3062(p), (q), or (q-1); | ||
(iii) graduation in the top one-third of | ||
the person's high school graduating class or graduation from high | ||
school with a grade point average of at least 3.0 on a four-point | ||
scale or the equivalent; or | ||
(iv) completion for high school credit of | ||
at least one advanced mathematics course following the successful | ||
completion of an Algebra II course, as permitted by Section | ||
28.025(b-3), or at least one advanced career and technical course, | ||
as permitted by Section 28.025(b-2); | ||
(B) have received an associate degree from a | ||
public or private institution of higher education; or | ||
(C) if sufficient money is available, meet the | ||
eligibility criteria described by Section 56.304(a)(2)(A); | ||
(3) meet financial need requirements established by | ||
the coordinating board; | ||
(4) be enrolled in an undergraduate degree or | ||
certificate program at the general academic teaching institution; | ||
(5) except as provided under rules adopted under | ||
Section 56.304(h), be enrolled as: | ||
(A) an entering undergraduate student for at | ||
least three-fourths of a full course load, as determined by the | ||
coordinating board, not later than the 16th month after the | ||
calendar month in which the person graduated from high school; | ||
(B) an entering undergraduate student who | ||
entered military service not later than the first anniversary of | ||
the date the person graduated from high school and who enrolled for | ||
at least three-fourths of a full course load, as determined by the | ||
coordinating board, at the general academic teaching institution | ||
not later than 12 months after being honorably discharged from | ||
military service; or | ||
(C) a continuing undergraduate student for at | ||
least three-fourths of a full course load, as determined by the | ||
coordinating board, not later than the 12th month after the | ||
calendar month in which the person received an associate degree | ||
from a public or private institution of higher education; | ||
(6) have applied for any available financial aid or | ||
assistance; and | ||
(7) comply with any additional nonacademic | ||
requirements adopted by the coordinating board under this | ||
subchapter. | ||
Sec. 56.3042. INITIAL QUALIFICATION [ |
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PERSON ON TRACK TO MEET ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS [ |
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eligible institution awards TEXAS grants to initial recipients for | ||
an academic year an applicant has not completed high school or the | ||
applicant's final high school transcript is not yet available to | ||
the institution, the student is considered to have satisfied the | ||
eligibility requirements of Section 56.304(a)(2)(A) or | ||
56.3041(2)(A) if the student's available high school transcript | ||
indicates that at the time the transcript was prepared the student | ||
was on schedule to graduate from high school and to meet the | ||
eligibility requirements [ |
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student, in time to be eligible for a TEXAS grant for the academic | ||
year. | ||
(a-1) If at the time an eligible institution awards TEXAS | ||
grants to initial recipients for an academic year an applicant who | ||
is an associate degree candidate has not completed that degree or | ||
the applicant's final college transcript is not yet available to | ||
the institution, the student is considered to have satisfied the | ||
associate degree requirement of Section 56.304(a)(2)(B) or | ||
56.3041(2)(B) if the student's available college transcript | ||
indicates that at the time the transcript was prepared the student | ||
was on schedule to complete the associate degree in time to be | ||
eligible for a TEXAS grant for the academic year. | ||
(b) The coordinating board or the eligible institution may | ||
require the student to forgo or repay the amount of an initial TEXAS | ||
grant awarded to the student as described by Subsection (a) or (a-1) | ||
if the student fails to meet the eligibility requirements of | ||
Section 56.304(a)(2)(A), 56.3041(2)(A), 56.304(a)(2)(B), or | ||
56.3041(2)(B), as applicable to the student, [ |
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after the issuance of the available high school or college | ||
transcript. | ||
(c) A person who is required to forgo or repay the amount of | ||
an initial TEXAS grant under Subsection (b) may subsequently become | ||
eligible to receive an initial TEXAS grant under Section 56.304 or | ||
56.3041 by satisfying the associate degree requirement prescribed | ||
by Section 56.304(a)(2)(B) or 56.3041(2)(B) and the other | ||
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person [ |
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grant. | ||
(d) A person who receives an initial TEXAS grant under | ||
Subsection (a) or (a-1) and is not required to forgo or repay the | ||
amount of the grant under Subsection (b) may become eligible to | ||
receive a subsequent TEXAS grant under Section 56.305 only by | ||
satisfying the associate degree requirement prescribed by Section | ||
56.304(a)(2)(B) or 56.3041(2)(B), as applicable to the person, in | ||
addition to the requirements of Section 56.305 at the time the | ||
person applies for the subsequent grant. | ||
SECTION 5. The change in law made to Subchapter M, Chapter | ||
56, Education Code, by this Act applies beginning with TEXAS grants | ||
awarded for the 2013 fall semester. Grants awarded for a semester | ||
or term before the 2013 fall semester are governed by the applicable | ||
law in effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and | ||
the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. | ||
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