HBA-BSM H.B. 3124 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3124 By: Garcia Higher Education 4/1/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, some public colleges and universities in Texas may put too much emphasis upon a student's Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) scores and American College Test (ACT) scores in making undergraduate admissions decisions and not enough emphasis on the student's high school performance. The fact that such emphasis is being placed on test results may lead to a socioeconomic disparity. Children from families with a low amount of disposable income may be at a disadvantage, as they may not be able to afford extra coaching for the tests. House Bill 3124 provides that any state funded higher education academic institution is prohibited from excluding an applicant based solely on the applicant's performance or score or an admission test and from not taking other academic achievements into consideration. 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 3124 amends the Education Code to prohibit a general academic teaching institution or medical and dental unit from including an applicant's score on an admission test in any index or formula for ranking applicants or for determining whether an applicant is eligible for admission in a manner in which the applicant's score or performance accounts for more than 20 percent of the applicant's total score on the index or formula. The bill prohibits the exclusion of an applicant from consideration for admission based solely on the applicant's performance or score on an admission test, or an applicant's performance or score on an admission test from being considered without considering all other relevant factors available from the application and accompanying materials that relate to the applicant's academic aptitude, skills, and achievements. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001.