HBA-JEK C.S.H.B. 1187 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 1187 By: Olivo Human Services 3/30/2001 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The current Parents as Scholars pilot program requires participants to have completed the recommended or advanced high school curriculum and graduated from high school no earlier than the 1998-1999 school year to qualify for a Toward EXcellence, Access, & Success (TEXAS) grant. Texas could expand its current incentive program to encourage more low-income parents to obtain a postsecondary degree. As there is often a correlation between educational attainment and income level, a postsecondary degree program for low-income parents might help these parents increase their incomes and become self-sufficient. C.S.H.B. 1187 requires the Texas Workforce Commission to establish a new Parents as Scholars pilot program with less stringent eligibility criteria that allows program participants to fulfill the work or employment activities required for financial assistance by engaging in educational activities designed to result in receipt of a postsecondary degree. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Workforce Commission in SECTION 1 (Section 31.072, Human Resources Code) of this bill. ANALYSIS C.S.H.B. 1187 amends the Human Resources Code to require the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) to establish by rule a Parents as Scholars pilot program (program) under which recipients of financial assistance participating in the program are allowed to fulfill the required work or employment activities by engaging in educational activities designed to result in receipt of a postsecondary degree (Sec. 31.072). C.S.H.B. 1187 provides that a recipient of financial assistance is eligible for consideration for the program if the person is certified as eligible to receive financial assistance on behalf of a dependent child for not more than 12 months, is the parent of at least one dependent child under the age of 18, is not exempt from the work activities required for receipt of financial assistance, and has a high school diploma, high school equivalency certificate, or an associate degree. The bill requires TWC to conduct an education assessment of each recipient eligible for the program unless there are not positions in the program available, and sets forth assessment guidelines (Sec. 31.073). The bill prohibits TWC from allowing more than 100 recipients to participate in the program at one time, and requires TWC to select program participants on a first-come, first-served basis (Sec. 31.074). C.S.H.B. 1187 requires TWC to develop an individual education plan for each program participant and sets forth requirements for the education plans (Sec. 31.075). The bill provides that a recipient remains subject to the work requirements for receipt of financial assistance until the recipient begins attending an institution of higher education, regardless of whether financial assistance is provided using federal or state funds. The bill specifies that the number of hours a recipient spends on education plan activities are included in determining the recipient's compliance with the work requirements. If the number of hours the recipient spends on education plan activities is less than the number of hours required, the recipient must also participate in permissible work or employment activities to complete the remaining number of hours (Sec. 31.076). C.S.H.B. 1187 requires a recipient to notify TWC when the recipient receives an offer of admission and to enroll in a higher education institution during the first semester for which admission is offered. The bill provides that a recipient must take at least 12 credit hours a semester, make satisfactory academic progress, and maintain eligibility for any applicable student financial aid (Sec. 31.077). C.S.H.B. 1187 sets forth that, beginning on the date TWC determines that a program participant has received an offer of admission the recipient intends to accept or as soon after that date as practical, a program recipient will cease to receive financial assistance from the Texas Department of Human Services and will instead begin to receive monthly cash assistance in the amount necessary to ensure that the recipient's household receives the same benefits and total amount of money as before the recipient ceased to receive financial assistance (Sec. 31.078). C.S.H.B. 1187 sets forth provisions regarding time limits on the participation of a recipient in the program and on the receipt of cash assistance and child-care services under the program. The bill authorizes a program participant who obtains an associate degree to subsequently pursue a baccalaureate degree and sets forth time limits for such a participant (Sec. 31.079). C.S.H.B. 1187 requires TWC to fund monthly cash assistance and child-care services for program participants from state funds specifically appropriated for that purpose. The bill also requires TWC to use the state money in such a manner that money spent under the program is included in determining the state's compliance with federal maintenance of effort requirements for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program (Sec. 31.078). The bill requires TWC to report to the legislature about the program no later than January 15, 2007 (Sec. 31.080). The program expires September 1, 2007 (Sec. 31.081). C.S.H.B. 1187 repeals provisions regarding the current parents as scholars pilot program (SECTION 2). EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE C.S.H.B. 1187 differs from the original by repealing the existing Parents as Scholars pilot program and requiring the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) to establish a new Parents as Scholars pilot program that allows program participants to fulfill applicable work or employment activities requirements by engaging in educational activities designed to result in receipt of a postsecondary degree (Sec. 31.072). The original modified the existing Parents as Scholars pilot program established by the Texas Department of Human Services by modifying the eligibility criteria and providing participants with a package of benefits designed to assist recipients in obtaining a post-secondary degree or certificate from an institution of higher education instead of traditional financial assistance. The substitute changes the expiration date for the program from September 1, 2005 to September 1, 2007 (Sec. 31.081).