89R8910 RDR-D     By: Hickland H.B. No. 3148       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to the automatic admission of students to general academic   teaching institutions.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Sections 51.803(a-1), (a-2), and (a-6),   Education Code, are amended to read as follows:          (a-1)  Beginning with admissions for the 2029-2030   [2011-2012] academic year, a general academic teaching institution   [The University of Texas at Austin] is not required to offer   admission to applicants who qualify for automatic admission under   Subsection (a) in excess of the number required to fill 50 [75]   percent of the institution's [university's] enrollment capacity   designated for first-time resident undergraduate students in an   academic year.  If the number of applicants who qualify for   automatic admission to the institution [The University of Texas at   Austin] under Subsection (a) for an academic year exceeds 50 [75]   percent of the institution's [university's] enrollment capacity   designated for first-time resident undergraduate students for that   academic year, the institution [university] may elect to offer   admission to those applicants as provided by this subsection and   not as otherwise required by Subsection (a).  If the institution   [university] elects to offer admission under this subsection, the   institution [university] shall offer admission to those applicants   by percentile rank according to high school graduating class   standing based on grade point average, beginning with the top   percentile rank, until the applicants qualified under Subsection   (a) have been offered admission in the number estimated in good   faith by the institution [university] as sufficient to fill 50 [75]   percent of the institution's [university's] enrollment capacity   designated for first-time resident undergraduate students, except   that the institution [university] must offer admission to all   applicants with the same percentile rank.  After the applicants   qualified for automatic admission under Subsection (a) have been   offered admission under this subsection in the number estimated in   good faith as sufficient to fill at least 50 [75] percent of the   designated enrollment capacity described by this subsection, the   institution [university] shall consider any remaining applicants   qualified for automatic admission under Subsection (a) in the same   manner as other applicants for admission as first-time   undergraduate students in accordance with Section 51.805.          (a-2)  If the number of applicants who apply to a general   academic teaching institution during the current academic year for   admission in the next academic year and who qualify for automatic   admission to a general academic teaching institution under   Subsection (a) exceeds 50 [75] percent of the institution's   enrollment capacity designated for first-time resident   undergraduate students for that next academic year and the   institution plans to offer admission under Subsection (a-1) during   the next school year, the institution shall, in the manner   prescribed by the Texas Education Agency and not later than   September 15, provide to each school district, for dissemination of   the information to high school junior-level students and their   parents, notice of which percentile ranks of high school   senior-level students who qualify for automatic admission under   Subsection (a) are anticipated by the institution to be offered   admission under Subsection (a-1) during the next school year.          (a-6)  Not later than December 31 of each academic year in   which a general academic teaching institution [The University of   Texas at Austin] offers admission under Subsection (a-1), the   institution [university] shall deliver a written report to the   governor, the lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of   representatives regarding the institution's [university's]   progress in each of the following matters:                (1)  increasing geographic diversity of the entering   freshman class;                (2)  counseling and outreach efforts aimed at students   qualified for automatic admission under this section;                (3)  recruiting Texas residents who graduate from other   institutions of higher education to the institution's   [university's] graduate and professional degree programs;                (4)  recruiting students who are members of   underrepresented demographic segments of the state's population;   and                (5)  assessing and improving the institution's   [university's] regional recruitment efforts [centers].          SECTION 2.  The changes in law made by this Act apply   beginning with admissions to a general academic teaching   institution for the 2029-2030 academic year. Admissions to a   general academic teaching institution for an academic period before   that academic year are governed by the law in effect immediately   before the effective date of this Act, and the former law is   continued in effect for that purpose.          SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.