Senate Bill sb2862c1
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Florida Senate - 2007 CS for SB 2862
By the Committee on Higher Education; and Senator Constantine
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1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to tuition rates at state
3 colleges and universities; creating s.
4 1009.286, F.S.; providing legislative intent;
5 requiring students to pay 50 percent more than
6 the actual cost per credit hour for credit
7 hours in excess of a specified number for
8 community college credits and for overall
9 credits applied to a baccalaureate degree;
10 excluding certain credit hours from the
11 calculation of hours required to complete a
12 degree; providing for notification of students
13 by the postsecondary institution; requiring the
14 Office of Program Policy Analysis and
15 Government Accountability to provide a report
16 to the Governor and Legislature; providing an
17 effective date.
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19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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21 Section 1. Section 1009.286, Florida Statutes, is
22 created to read:
23 1009.286 Additional payment for credit hours exceeding
24 graduation requirements.--
25 (1) It is the intent of the Legislature to encourage
26 each undergraduate student in postsecondary education to
27 complete the student's respective degree program in the most
28 efficient way possible and, at the same time, provide access
29 to additional college coursework. The Legislature therefore
30 intends to enact a policy requiring a student to pay 50
31 percent more than the in-state tuition rate for any credit
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Florida Senate - 2007 CS for SB 2862
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1 hour that the student takes in excess of 120 percent of the
2 number of credit hours required to complete the degree program
3 in which he or she is enrolled.
4 (2) Beginning with the fall 2007 semester:
5 (a) Each community college board of trustees may
6 require a student who is enrolled for the first time in the
7 community college to pay 50 percent more than the in-state
8 tuition rate for credit hours that the student takes in excess
9 of 120 percent of the credit hours required to complete an
10 associate degree, except that a community college student who
11 has earned an associate degree may not be required to pay the
12 full cost for a maximum of 24 hours credit hours taken while
13 enrolled at a community college which apply to his or her
14 baccalaureate degree.
15 (b) An undergraduate student who is enrolled for the
16 first time in a university that is part of the State
17 University System must pay 50 percent more than the in-state
18 tuition rate for credit hours that the student takes in excess
19 of 120 percent of the credit hours required to complete the
20 degree program in which he or she is enrolled regardless of
21 whether those hours were taken while enrolled at a community
22 college, a state university, or any private postsecondary
23 institution if the student received state funds while enrolled
24 at the private postsecondary institution.
25 (c) An undergraduate student who is enrolled for the
26 first time in a baccalaureate degree program at a community
27 college must pay 50 percent more than the in-state tuition
28 rate for credit hours that the student takes in excess of 120
29 percent of the number of credit hours required to complete the
30 degree program in which he or she is enrolled, regardless of
31 whether those hours were taken while enrolled at a community
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Florida Senate - 2007 CS for SB 2862
589-2569-07
1 college, a state university, or any private postsecondary
2 institution if the student received state funds while enrolled
3 at the private postsecondary institution.
4 (3) Credit hours earned under the following
5 circumstances are not counted as hours required to complete a
6 degree for the purposes of this section:
7 (a) College credits earned through an accelerated
8 mechanism identified in s. 1007.27;
9 (b) Credit hours earned through internship programs;
10 (c) Credit hours required for certification,
11 recertification, or certificate degrees;
12 (d) Credit hours in courses from which a student must
13 withdraw due to a medical or personal hardship;
14 (e) Credit hours taken by active-duty military
15 personnel;
16 (f) Credit hours required to achieve a dual major
17 undertaken while pursuing a degree;
18 (g) Credit hours in remedial courses and English as a
19 Second Language; or
20 (h) Credit hours earned in military science courses
21 (ROTC).
22 (4) Each postsecondary institution shall implement a
23 process for notifying students regarding the requirements of
24 this section. The notice must be provided at the time of the
25 student's initial enrollment in the institution and again upon
26 the student's having earned the credit hours required to
27 complete the degree program in which he or she is enrolled.
28 The notice must include a recommendation that each student who
29 intends to earn credit hours at the institution beyond those
30 required for his or her enrolled degree program meet with his
31 or her academic advisor.
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1 Section 2. The Office of Program Policy Analysis and
2 Government Accountability shall conduct a review of students
3 taking credit hours in excess of 120 percent of the number of
4 credit hours required to complete degree programs in state
5 community colleges. The review shall determine the number and
6 percentage of community college students who take credit hours
7 in excess of 120 percent of graduation requirements and the
8 amount and percentage of credit hours that students take above
9 the 120 percent standard. The office shall provide three
10 annual reports, each of which shall compare data from the last
11 5 years beginning with the most recent year for which data is
12 available in order to determine whether students have begun
13 taking fewer excess hours. The office shall report its
14 findings by January 31, 2008, January 31, 2009, and January
15 31, 2010, to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and
16 the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
17 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.
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Florida Senate - 2007 CS for SB 2862
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1 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
2 Senate Bill 2862
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4 The committee substitute:
5 Allows, rather than requires, a community college board of
trustees to impose the same 120 percent excess credit hour
6 threshold that is imposed on students in state universities
and students enrolled in a baccalaureate degree program at a
7 community college;
8 Provides that the 120 percent excess credit hour threshold
applies to students enrolled in a postsecondary institution
9 for the first time in the fall of 2007;
10 Requires the Office of Program Policy and Analysis and
Government Accountability (OPPAGA) to conduct a three-year
11 review of students taking credit hours in excess of 120
percent of the number of credit hours required to complete
12 degree programs in state community colleges; and
13 Requires OPPAGA to provide annual reports to the Governor and
the presiding officers of the Legislature based on the
14 findings from the review of excess credit hours at community
colleges.
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