Bill Text: TX SB543 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to performance-based tuition limitations for certain public institutions of higher education and a temporary tuition limitation for those institutions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-03-29 - Co-author authorized [SB543 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-SB543-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Relating to performance-based tuition limitations for certain public institutions of higher education and a temporary tuition limitation for those institutions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-03-29 - Co-author authorized [SB543 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-SB543-Introduced.html
85R2519 KSD-D | ||
By: Seliger | S.B. No. 543 |
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relating to performance-based tuition limitations for certain | ||
public institutions of higher education and a temporary tuition | ||
limitation for those institutions. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 54, Education Code, is | ||
amended by adding Sections 54.05131 and 54.05132 to read as | ||
follows: | ||
Sec. 54.05131. PERFORMANCE-BASED DESIGNATED TUITION | ||
LIMITATIONS. (a) In this section: | ||
(1) "Administrative costs" means the percentage of an | ||
institution's operating budget expended on institutional expenses, | ||
as designated in an institution's annual financial reports in the | ||
subcategories of executive management, fiscal operations, general | ||
administrative and logistical services, administrative computing | ||
support, and public relations/development. | ||
(2) "Coordinating board" means the Texas Higher | ||
Education Coordinating Board. | ||
(3) "General academic teaching institution" and | ||
"public state college" have the meanings assigned by Section | ||
61.003. | ||
(4) "Performance measure" means a performance measure | ||
defined by coordinating board rule under Subsection (b). | ||
(b) The coordinating board, using the negotiated rulemaking | ||
procedures under Chapter 2008, Government Code, shall define the | ||
following performance measures to be used for purposes of this | ||
section: | ||
(1) the total number of undergraduate degrees awarded | ||
by the institution; | ||
(2) the total number of undergraduate degrees awarded | ||
by the institution, adjusted by the institution's six-year | ||
graduation rate under Subdivision (10); | ||
(3) the total number of undergraduate degrees awarded | ||
by the institution per 100 undergraduate full-time student | ||
equivalents; | ||
(4) the total number of undergraduate degrees awarded | ||
by the institution to at-risk students; | ||
(5) the total number of undergraduate students at the | ||
institution having successfully completed at least 25 percent of | ||
the student's degree requirements or having earned at least 30 | ||
credit hours toward a 120-credit-hour degree; | ||
(6) the total number of undergraduate students at the | ||
institution having successfully completed at least 50 percent of | ||
the student's degree requirements or having earned at least 60 | ||
credit hours toward a 120-credit-hour degree; | ||
(7) the total number of undergraduate students having | ||
successfully completed at least 75 percent of the student's degree | ||
requirements or having earned at least 90 credit hours toward a | ||
120-credit-hour degree; | ||
(8) the average length of a student's enrollment, by | ||
number of semesters, for undergraduate degree completion; | ||
(9) the four-year graduation rate of first-time, | ||
full-time, bachelor's degree-seeking students who enrolled in at | ||
least 12 semester credit hours in the student's first fall semester | ||
at the institution and who graduated from the institution or from | ||
any other institution of higher education or private or independent | ||
institution of higher education; | ||
(10) the six-year graduation rate of first-time, | ||
full-time, bachelor's degree-seeking students who enrolled in at | ||
least 12 semester credit hours in the student's first fall semester | ||
at the institution and who graduated from the institution or from | ||
any other institution of higher education or private or independent | ||
institution of higher education; and | ||
(11) the institution's administrative costs. | ||
(c) This section applies only to a general academic teaching | ||
institution other than a public state college. | ||
(d) Not later than October 1 of each even-numbered year, the | ||
coordinating board shall: | ||
(1) in consultation with the governing board and | ||
president of each institution to which this section applies, | ||
establish a target level for each performance measure applicable to | ||
the institution for each of the two next academic years to encourage | ||
the institution to maintain, or make reasonable progress toward, | ||
appropriate performance in each performance measure, taking into | ||
account the mission, resources, and circumstances of the particular | ||
institution; and | ||
(2) submit to the legislative standing committee of | ||
each house of the legislature with primary jurisdiction over higher | ||
education and to each institution to which this section applies a | ||
report that includes the target levels established by the | ||
coordinating board under Subdivision (1) for each institution. | ||
(e) The coordinating board, using the negotiated rulemaking | ||
procedures under Chapter 2008, Government Code, by rule shall | ||
develop standards to be considered by the coordinating board in | ||
establishing an institution's target levels for performance | ||
measures under Subsection (d). In developing the standards, the | ||
negotiated rulemaking committee established for purposes of this | ||
subsection and the coordinating board shall consider institutional | ||
improvement on target levels. The coordinating board shall | ||
reconvene the negotiated rulemaking committee to assist the | ||
coordinating board whenever the coordinating board modifies or | ||
updates the standards. | ||
(f) As soon as practicable after each academic year, the | ||
coordinating board shall determine whether an institution has | ||
achieved the applicable target levels for that academic year. | ||
Using the negotiated rulemaking procedures under Chapter 2008, | ||
Government Code, the coordinating board by rule shall establish the | ||
process by which an institution's achievement on a performance | ||
measure is submitted to and verified by the coordinating board. | ||
(g) After the coordinating board makes a determination for | ||
an institution under Subsection (f), the coordinating board shall | ||
notify the governing board of the institution that Subsection (h) | ||
or (i), as applicable, applies to the tuition charged by the | ||
institution for the second academic year following the academic | ||
year for which the determination is made and of the limitation | ||
prescribed by the applicable subsection on the amount of tuition | ||
that may be charged by the institution for that academic year. | ||
(h) This subsection applies to tuition charged for an | ||
academic year by an institution to which this section applies only | ||
if the institution did not achieve, in the second academic year | ||
preceding that academic year, the target level assigned by the | ||
coordinating board for the administrative costs performance | ||
measure as applicable to the institution for that preceding | ||
academic year and a majority of the target levels assigned to the | ||
remaining performance measures by the coordinating board as | ||
applicable to the institution for that preceding academic year. | ||
For an academic year in which this subsection applies to the tuition | ||
charged by an institution, unless the institution has been granted | ||
an exception under Subsection (l) for that year, the amount of | ||
tuition the governing board of the institution charges under | ||
Section 54.0513 to a student for that academic year may not exceed | ||
the total amount of tuition that the governing board would have | ||
charged under that section to a similarly situated student in the | ||
preceding academic year, as that amount is adjusted for each | ||
academic year for inflation as determined under Subsection (k). | ||
The governing board may not increase the amount of tuition charged | ||
under this subsection to a student more than once in any academic | ||
year. | ||
(i) This subsection applies to tuition charged for an | ||
academic year by an institution to which this section applies only | ||
if the institution achieved, in the second academic year preceding | ||
that academic year, the target level assigned by the coordinating | ||
board for the administrative costs performance measure as | ||
applicable to the institution for that preceding academic year and | ||
a majority of the target levels assigned to the remaining | ||
performance measures by the coordinating board as applicable to the | ||
institution for that preceding academic year. For an academic year | ||
in which this subsection applies to the tuition charged by an | ||
institution, the amount of tuition the governing board of the | ||
institution charges under Section 54.0513 to a student for that | ||
academic year may not exceed by more than three percent the total | ||
amount of tuition that the governing board would have charged under | ||
that section to a similarly situated student in the preceding | ||
academic year, as that amount is adjusted for each academic year for | ||
inflation as determined under Subsection (k). The governing board | ||
may not increase the amount of tuition charged under this | ||
subsection to a student more than once in any academic year. | ||
(j) For purposes of this section: | ||
(1) an institution is considered to have achieved a | ||
target level assigned to a performance measure if the institution | ||
has achieved at least 98 percent of the target level; and | ||
(2) students are similarly situated if they share the | ||
same residency status, degree program, course load, course level, | ||
tuition exemption status, and other circumstances affecting the | ||
tuition charged to the student. | ||
(k) Not later than January 31 of each year, or as soon | ||
thereafter as practicable, the Legislative Budget Board shall | ||
publish and certify to the governing board of each institution to | ||
which this section applies the inflation rate to be used for | ||
purposes of this section for the next academic year. The inflation | ||
rate is the percentage increase, if any, as expressed in decimal | ||
form rounded to the nearest thousandth of one percent, in the | ||
consumer price index, as defined by Section 341.201, Finance Code, | ||
for the preceding calendar year as compared to the consumer price | ||
index for the year preceding that year. | ||
(l) The coordinating board, using the negotiated rulemaking | ||
procedures under Chapter 2008, Government Code, by rule shall | ||
establish an exception to the application of Subsection (h) for an | ||
institution to which that subsection would otherwise apply for an | ||
academic year in the event of a natural disaster or other | ||
extraordinary circumstance affecting the institution's achievement | ||
on performance measures. In an academic year for which an | ||
institution is granted an exception under this subsection, | ||
Subsection (i) applies to the institution. | ||
Sec. 54.05132. TEMPORARY LIMITATION ON TOTAL AMOUNT OF | ||
TUITION. (a) In this section: | ||
(1) "General academic teaching institution" and | ||
"public state college" have the meanings assigned by Section | ||
61.003. | ||
(2) "Tuition" includes: | ||
(A) tuition for which the rates are prescribed by | ||
this chapter; and | ||
(B) tuition charged by an institution of higher | ||
education under Section 54.0513 or another law authorizing an | ||
institution to establish tuition rates. | ||
(b) Notwithstanding Section 54.0513, the total amount of | ||
tuition charged by a general academic teaching institution other | ||
than a public state college to a student for the 2018-2019 or | ||
2019-2020 academic year may not exceed by more than one percent the | ||
total amount of tuition that the institution would have charged | ||
under this chapter to a similarly situated student for the | ||
preceding academic year, as that amount is adjusted for each | ||
academic year for inflation as determined under Subsection (c). | ||
For purposes of this subsection, students are similarly situated if | ||
they share the same residency status, degree program, course load, | ||
course level, tuition exemption status, and other circumstances | ||
affecting the tuition charged to the student. This subsection does | ||
not ensure that the total amount of tuition charged to an individual | ||
student does not increase based on a change in the student's | ||
residency status, degree program, course load, course level, | ||
tuition exemption status, or other circumstance affecting the | ||
tuition charged to the student. | ||
(c) Not later than January 31 of each year, or as soon | ||
thereafter as practicable, the Legislative Budget Board shall | ||
publish and certify to the governing board of each institution to | ||
which this section applies the inflation rate to be used for | ||
purposes of this section for the next academic year. The inflation | ||
rate is the percentage increase, if any, as expressed in decimal | ||
form rounded to the nearest thousandth of one percent, in the | ||
consumer price index, as defined by Section 341.201, Finance Code, | ||
for the preceding calendar year as compared to the consumer price | ||
index for the year preceding that year. | ||
(d) This section expires September 1, 2020. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 54.05131, Education Code, as added by | ||
this Act, applies beginning with tuition charged by a general | ||
academic teaching institution to which that section applies for the | ||
2020-2021 academic year. | ||
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |