HBA-KMH C.S.H.B. 2011 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 2011 By: Cuellar Higher Education 4/16/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) was developed after the 1987 legislative session. It is a test that contains three sections: reading, writing, and mathematics. While one testing session last five hours, the individual sections are not timed and students may work on the sections in any order they choose. C.S.H.B. 2011 requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and the Texas Education Agency to give priority to the payment of the cost of administering the TASP test to an eligible high school student shown to be financially needy under the criteria established by the board when developing a mechanism for payment of the cost of the test if funds are appropriated for that purpose. This bill also provides that authorization from the student is necessary before the TASP test score is reported to a school administrator. Additionally, this bill requires administering TASP in a time period that allows a student to complete the test while working at the student's own pace. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 51.306(w), Education Code, requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (board) and the Texas Education Agency to give priority to the payment of the cost of administering the Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) test to an eligible high school student shown to be financially needy under the criteria established by the board when developing a mechanism for payment of the cost of the test if funds are appropriated for that purpose. Provides that authorization from the student is necessary before the TASP test score is reported to a school administrator. SECTION 2. Amends Section 51.306, Education Code, by adding Subsection (x) to provide that the test required by this section must be administered in a time period that allows a student to complete the test while working at the student's own reasonable pace. Requires the board to prescribe the time period for administering the test. SECTION 3. Provides that the change in law made by Act take effect beginning with the 1999 fall semester. SECTION 4. Emergency clause. Effective date: upon passage. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE C.S.H.B. 2011 modifies the original in SECTION 1 (Section 51.306(w), Education Code) by requiring the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (board) and Texas Education Association to give priority to the payment of the cost of administering the Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) test to an eligible high school student shown to be financially needy under the criteria established, by the board when developing a mechanism for payment of the cost of the test if funds are appropriated for that purpose. The original required the board to bear the cost for a student shown to be financially needy. The substitute also provides that authorization from the student is necessary before the TASP test score is reported to a school administrator.