HBA-JLV H.B. 2775 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2775 By: Deshotel Higher Education 4/8/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) was created in 1987 as an instructional program designed to ensure that students attending public institutions of higher education (institution) in Texas have the academic skills necessary to perform effectively in college-level work. Students not yet proficient in an academic area are required to participate in developmental education activities. Institutions have recently asked for more flexibility in applying TASP rules to their students. The institutions expressed concern that different students have different needs and the institutions would prefer to address those needs in alternative ways than current TASP rules allow. The TASP test often proves burdensome for students who graduated from a public high school before successful completion of the TASP test was a requirement of all students to enroll in an institution. House Bill 2775 provides an exemption from the TASP test for students who have graduated from a public high school in this state at least 10 years before the date of the student's enrollment at an institution. 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. ANALYSIS House Bill 2775 amends the Education Code to provide that a student is exempt from the Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) test if the student graduated from a public high school in this state at least 10 years before the date of the student's enrollment at an institution of higher education (institution). The institution is authorized to require the student to successfully complete developmental courses or other developmental programs, but is prohibited from requiring the student on successful completion of those courses or programs to take the TASP test. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001.