Relating to public higher education.

89(R) SB 1786 - Enrolled version - Bill Text

S.B. No. 1786

AN ACT

relating to public higher education.

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

SECTION 1. Section 28.0095(a), Education Code, is amended

by adding Subdivision (5) to read as follows:

(5)

"School district" includes the Windham School

District.

SECTION 2. Sections 28.0095(c), (e), and (f), Education

Code, are amended to read as follows:

(c) A student is eligible to enroll at no cost in a dual

credit course under the program if the student:

(1) is enrolled:

(A) in
a grade level from 9 through 12
[
high

school
] in a school district or charter school; and

(B) in a dual credit course at a participating

institution of higher education; and

(2) was educationally disadvantaged at any time

during
:

(A)

the school year in which the student enrolls

in the dual credit course described by Subdivision (1)(B); or

(B)
the four school years preceding the student's

enrollment in the dual credit course described by Subdivision

(1)(B).

(e) Each school district or charter school shall:

(1) on
the
[
a high school student's
] enrollment
of a

student in a grade level from 9 through 12
in a dual credit course,

determine whether the student meets the criteria for the program

under Subsection (c)(2); and

(2) notify the institution of higher education that

offers the dual credit course in which the student is enrolled of

the district's or school's determination under Subdivision (1).

(f) A school district or charter school may make the

determination under Subsection (e)(1) based on the district's or

school's records, the agency's records, or any other method

authorized by commissioner or coordinating board rule. If the

district or school bases the determination on a method other than

the agency's records, the district or school shall report the

method used and the data on which the method is based to the agency

for purposes of verification.
The agency shall make available to

school districts and charter schools any available and relevant

data for making the determination required under Subsection (e)(1).

SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 56, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 56.0035 to read as follows:

Sec.

56.0035.

RULES. (a)

The Texas Higher Education

Coordinating Board may adopt rules necessary to carry out the

purposes of this chapter, including any rules necessary to

administer federal financial aid or grant programs or provide

federal money to institutions of higher education under Title IV of

the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section 1070 et seq.) or

another federal law or program.

(b)

Notwithstanding Section 61.0331, the Texas Higher

Education Coordinating Board is not required to use negotiated

rulemaking to adopt rules necessary to administer federal financial

aid or grant programs or provide federal money to institutions of

higher education under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965

(20 U.S.C. Section 1070 et seq.) or another federal law or program.

SECTION 4. Section 61.003(2), Education Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(2) "Public junior college" means any junior college

associated with a junior college district described by Subchapter

J, Chapter 130
[
listed as a public junior college in accordance with

Section 61.063
].

SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 61, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 61.0275 to read as follows:

Sec.

61.0275.

ADOPTION BY REFERENCE. The board may adopt by

reference a manual or policy document as a rule.

SECTION 6. Section 130A.005, Education Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d)

The coordinating board may use the emergency rulemaking

procedures established under Section 2001.034, Government Code, to

adopt rules necessary to align the funding formulas under this

chapter with appropriations or other legislative action. The

coordinating board is not required to make the finding described by

Section 2001.034(a), Government Code, to adopt rules under this

subsection.

SECTION 7. Section 130A.101(c), Education Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(c) The measurable outcomes considered for purposes of

performance tier funding are:

(1) the number of credentials of value awarded, as

determined by the coordinating board based on analyses of wages and

costs associated with the credential, including degrees,

certificates, and other credentials from credit and non-credit

programs that equip students for continued learning and greater

earnings in the state economy, with an additional weight for

placement of students who earn that credential in a high-demand

occupation, as defined by coordinating board rule, or an

appropriate proxy determined by the coordinating board based on

available data;

(2) the number of students who earn at least 15

semester credit hours or the equivalent at the junior college

district and:

(A) subsequently transfer to
:

(i)
a general academic teaching

institution, as that term is defined by Section 61.003; or

(ii)

a private or independent institution

of higher education, as that term is defined by Section 61.003, that

offers four-year degree programs; or

(B) are enrolled in a structured co-enrollment

program, as authorized by coordinating board rule; and

(3) the number of students who complete a sequence of

at least 15 semester credit hours or the equivalent for dual credit

or dual enrollment courses, as defined by coordinating board rule,

that apply toward academic or workforce program requirements at the

postsecondary level.

SECTION 8. Subchapter C, Chapter 130A, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 130A.102 to read as follows:

Sec.

130A.102.

CREDENTIALS OF VALUE.

(a)

For purposes of

Section 130A.101(c)(1), the coordinating board shall designate a

credential as a credential of value if the credential:

(1)

provides a positive return on investment for a

student who received the credential, as measured by earning or

being expected to earn cumulative wages at least equal to the

cumulative median earnings for high school graduates in this state

and earning at least the individual self-sufficient wage, as

defined by coordinating board rule, during the period specified by

coordinating board rule but not more than 10 years after the date on

which the credential is received; and

(2)

allows a student who received the credential to

recoup the net cost of attendance at a public junior college,

including opportunity cost, where:

(A)

the net cost of attendance is the net cost of

attendance used for purposes of financial aid at the college less

any aid received by the student; and

(B)

opportunity cost is the difference between

cumulative median earnings for high school graduates in this state

and cumulative median earnings for students while enrolled in the

certificate or degree program leading to the credential for:

(i)

a period of two years for an associate

degree program;

(ii)

a period of four years for a

baccalaureate degree program; and

(iii)

a period determined by coordinating

board rule based on the program's design for a certificate or degree

program not described by Subparagraph (i) or (ii).

(b)

The coordinating board shall calculate the return on

investment for a credential under Subsection (a)(1) using the most

current data available to the coordinating board from:

(1)

the integrated postsecondary education data

system maintained by the National Center for Education Statistics;

(2)

wage records obtained from the Texas Workforce

Commission;

(3)

the American Community Survey by the United States

Census Bureau;

(4)

the coordinating board's data reporting systems;

or

(5)

other data sources selected by the coordinating

board.

(c)

In adopting a definition of individual self-sufficient

wage for purposes of Subsection (a)(1), the coordinating board

shall ensure the definition is correlated with the statewide median

of the self-sufficient wage determined under Section 2308A.012,

Government Code.

(d)

The coordinating board may designate a credential in

education or health care as a credential of value regardless of

whether the credential meets the criteria under Subsection (a) if

the coordinating board determines the designation is necessary to

ensure the workforce needs of this state are met in those fields.

(e)

The coordinating board shall adopt rules as necessary to

implement this section in alignment with the long-range master plan

for higher education in this state developed under Section

61.051(a-1).

SECTION 9. Chapter 2308A, Government Code, is amended by

adding Section 2308A.0115 to read as follows:

Sec.

2308A.0115.

COORDINATION OF GRANT PROGRAMS FOR

SECONDARY AND POSTSECONDARY CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION

PROGRAMS. (a) For the establishment, implementation, and expansion

of secondary and postsecondary career and technical education

programs that are aligned with the state workforce development

goals, the agency, coordinating board, and commission shall

coordinate the competitive grant programs for those programs,

including:

(1)

the Jobs and Education for Texans (JET) Grant

Program under Chapter 134, Education Code;

(2)

the grant program established under the Pathways

in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) program under

Section 29.556, Education Code;

(3)

the Texas Reskilling and Upskilling through

Education (TRUE) Program established under Subchapter T-2, Chapter

61, Education Code; and

(4)

federal career and technical education grant

programs, including grant programs under the Carl D. Perkins Career

and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. Section 2301 et

seq.).

(b)

In coordinating grant programs under Subsection (a),

the agency, coordinating board, and commission shall jointly:

(1)

address career and technical education program

startup and delivery costs by aligning two or more grant funding

streams;

(2)

identify and work to reduce duplication in grant

programs across the agency, coordinating board, and commission;

(3)

identify opportunities to structure grant funding

for career and technical education projects that support

secondary-to-postsecondary career pathways, including by providing

for career and technical education dual credit or the attainment of

postsecondary credentials by secondary students;

(4)

identify opportunities to structure grant funding

for career and technical education projects that are:

(A)

aligned with the attainment of credentials of

value, as designated by the coordinating board for purposes of

Section 130A.101(c)(1), Education Code; and

(B)

designed to meet state workforce needs in

high-demand fields; and

(5)

to the extent possible, prioritize comprehensive

funding of facilities, equipment, instructional materials, and

faculty and staff for program development and delivery to best meet

the state workforce development goals.

SECTION 10. Section 204.0025, Labor Code, is amended to

read as follows:

Sec. 204.0025. ADDITIONAL WORKFORCE DATA REPORTING.
The

commission shall
[
It is the intent of the legislature that the

commission, subject to the availability of federal funding or other

resources for the purpose,
] work with employers to enhance the

reporting of employment and earnings data by employers to the

commission as part of an employer's routine wage filings under this

subtitle or commission rule and consistent with federal law and

regulations. The enhanced wage filings must include information

related to
wage, industry, occupational field, full-time and

part-time status, county of primary employment, remote work status,

[
occupation
] and other important employment information
necessary

to conduct the assessment required under Section 302.0205
[
that

would improve the state's labor market information
].

SECTION 11. Subchapter A, Chapter 302, Labor Code, is

amended by adding Section 302.0205 to read as follows:

Sec.

302.0205.

REGIONAL LABOR DEMAND ASSESSMENT. (a) In

this section, "institution of higher education" has the meaning

assigned by Section 61.003, Education Code.

(b)

The commission shall conduct a biennial assessment of

available regional labor demands across this state using the best

available state and federal labor market data, as determined by the

commission, to allow institutions of higher education to better

align educational programs with workforce needs. The assessment

must:

(1)

analyze current and projected workforce needs in

each region of this state over a 10-year period, disaggregated to

the extent possible by wage, industry, occupational field,

full-time and part-time status, county of primary employment, and

remote work status; and

(2)

identify for each region and county of this state

the industries and occupations that lead to an individual

self-sufficient wage, as defined by Texas Higher Education

Coordinating Board rule in accordance with Section 130A.102,

Education Code.

(c)

The commission may coordinate with other state

agencies, including the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board

and the Texas Education Agency, to conduct the assessment under

this section.

(d)

In conducting the assessment under this section, the

commission may:

(1)

obtain any data the commission is authorized by

law to obtain from a state or federal agency or institution of

higher education at no cost to the commission;

(2)

obtain expedited access at no cost to the

commission to data available through a center for education

research established under Section 1.005, Education Code; and

(3)

contract with a state agency or institution of

higher education to conduct or assist in conducting the assessment.

(e)

If the commission contracts with an institution of

higher education to conduct or assist in conducting the assessment

under Subsection (d)(3), the Texas Higher Education Coordinating

Board and the Texas Education Agency shall enter into a data sharing

agreement with the institution to provide to the institution any

data necessary to conduct the assessment.

(f)

Not later than March 1 of each odd-numbered year, the

commission shall provide the results of the assessment to:

(1) the governor;

(2) the lieutenant governor;

(3) the speaker of the house of representatives;

(4)

the standing legislative committees with primary

jurisdiction over higher education;

(5) the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board;

(6) the Texas Education Agency;

(7) institutions of higher education; and

(8) public schools.

SECTION 12. Section 28.0095, Education Code, as amended by

this Act, applies beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.

SECTION 13. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board

may identify rules required by the passage of Section 56.0035,

Education Code, as added by this Act, that must be adopted on an

emergency basis for purposes of the 2025-2026 academic year and may

use the procedures established under Section 2001.034, Government

Code, for adopting those rules. The coordinating board is not

required to make the finding described by Section 2001.034(a),

Government Code, to adopt emergency rules under this section.

SECTION 14. Not later than December 1, 2026, the Texas

Higher Education Coordinating Board shall evaluate the data

available under Section 204.0025, Labor Code, as amended by this

Act, to identify the effects of transitioning to a county-by-county

definition of individual self-sufficient wage for purposes of

Section 130A.102, Education Code, as added by this Act.

SECTION 15. (a) Section 130A.102, Education Code, as added

by this Act, applies to associate degrees awarded by a public junior

college beginning with the 2025-2026 academic year. That section

applies to other degrees and certificates awarded by a public

junior college beginning with the 2027-2028 academic year.

(b) Not later than August 1, 2027, the Texas Higher

Education Coordinating Board, in consultation with the standing

advisory committee established under Section 130.001, Education

Code, shall adopt rules implementing Section 130A.102, Education

Code, as added by this Act, for each certificate program offered by

a public junior college.

SECTION 16. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this

section, 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, 2025.

(b) Section 130A.101(c), Education Code, as amended by this

Act, and Section 130A.102, Education Code, as added by this Act,

take effect September 1, 2025.

______________________________

______________________________

President of the Senate

Speaker of the House

I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1786 passed the Senate on

April 10, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0; and that

the Senate concurred in House amendment on May 12, 2025, by the

following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.

______________________________

Secretary of the Senate

I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1786 passed the House, with

amendment, on April 23, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 139,

Nays 7, one present not voting.

______________________________

Chief Clerk of the House

Approved:

______________________________

Date

______________________________

Governor