HB 7105

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to postsecondary distance learning;
3creating s. 1004.09, F.S.; establishing the Florida
4Distance Learning Consortium; requiring the consortium to
5contract with the Department of Education or a public
6postsecondary education institution for certain
7administrative services; providing for a type two transfer
8of certain duties, records, personnel, property,
9unexpended funds, and contracts to the consortium;
10requiring the consortium to be governed by a board and
11providing membership and terms thereof; providing for the
12reimbursement of per diem and travel expenses; requiring
13the board to establish procedures governing its operations
14and responsibilities; providing for the appointment of an
15executive director; providing consortium duties and
16responsibilities; requiring a report and specifying
17information be included in such report; providing for
18future expiration of provisions relating to certain duties
19of the consortium; creating s. 1004.091, F.S.;
20establishing the Florida Higher Education Distance
21Learning Catalog; requiring the consortium to be
22responsible for the catalog and to establish operational
23guidelines and procedures; requiring that the catalog
24include a tool for data analysis; amending ss. 1009.23 and
251009.24, F.S.; revising provisions relating to community
26college and state university student fees; authorizing the
27State Board of Education to adopt rules; authorizing a
28community college and state university to assess a per-
29credit-hour distance learning course user fee; requiring a
30community college or state university to assess the fee
31only for courses listed in the catalog; requiring a
32website link to the catalog; requiring annual reports;
33providing an effective date.
34
35Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
36
37     Section 1.  Section 1004.09, Florida Statutes, is created
38to read:
39     1004.09  Florida Distance Learning Consortium.--
40     (1)(a)  The Florida Distance Learning Consortium is
41established to advocate and facilitate access to distance
42learning resources that enable public postsecondary education
43institutions to fulfill their missions while contributing to and
44sharing in the distance learning resources of the consortium.
45     (b)  The consortium is created as an adjunct to the
46Department of Education but is not subject to control,
47supervision, or direction by the department. The consortium
48shall contract with the department or a public postsecondary
49education institution for the provision of administrative
50services to include, but not be limited to, payroll,
51procurement, and legal counsel.
52     (c)  All duties, functions, records, personnel, and
53property; unexpended balances of appropriations, allocations,
54and other funds; pending issues; and existing contracts of the
55Florida Community College Distance Learning Consortium and the
56Florida Virtual Campus are transferred by a type two transfer
57pursuant to s. 20.06(2) to the consortium.
58     (2)(a)  The consortium shall be governed by a board
59comprised of nine members who shall be appointed by the Governor
60subject to confirmation by the Senate and who shall be appointed
61to 4-year staggered terms. The membership of the board shall
62consist of:
63     1.  Four members from the State University System, with one
64member being a state university president, one member having
65experience in academic affairs or student affairs, one member
66having experience in finance or business services, and one
67member being from the Chancellor's Office of the Board of
68Governors and having experience in distance learning education.
69     2.  Four members from the community college system, with
70one member being a community college president, one member
71having experience in academic affairs or student affairs, one
72member having experience in finance or business services, and
73one member being from the Chancellor's Office of the Division of
74Community Colleges and having experience in distance learning
75education.
76     3.  One member who is a private citizen having experience
77in distance learning education.
78     (b)  The board shall appoint a chair and vice chair from
79among its members to serve 1-year terms.
80     (c)  Members of the board shall serve without compensation
81but are entitled to be reimbursed for per diem and travel
82expenses pursuant to s. 112.061.
83     (d)1.  The board shall establish procedures governing its
84operations and the completion of its responsibilities which
85shall comply with the requirements of s. 20.052, unless
86otherwise authorized by law, and which shall include the
87establishment of standing committees or work groups comprised of
88faculty, professional staff, and distance learning students from
89the postsecondary educational system.
90     2.  The board shall meet at least two times each year upon
91the call of the chair or at the request of a majority of the
92members. Meetings of the board may be held via teleconference or
93other electronic means.
94     3.  A majority of the board members constitutes a quorum,
95and the affirmative vote of a majority of a quorum is necessary
96to take action.
97     4.  The board shall appoint an executive director, who
98shall serve at the pleasure of the board.
99     (3)  The consortium shall have the following duties and
100responsibilities:
101     (a)  Develop, operate, and promote the Florida Higher
102Education Distance Learning Catalog to help increase student
103access to distance learning courses and degree programs and, in
104particular, access for students seeking accelerated completion
105of their degrees.
106     (b)  Serve as a central content repository for
107instructional resources that can be used by faculty in their
108development, evaluation, and enhancement of distance learning
109courses and degree programs.
110     (c)  Assess, in collaboration with public postsecondary
111education institutions, the potential use of distance learning
112as a means to address critical educational needs of the state.
113     (d)  Coordinate the evaluation and promotion of new and
114proven instructional methods, emerging technologies, and quality
115distance learning courses and degree programs.
116     (e)  Coordinate and support educational programs and other
117training opportunities for faculty and professional staff in
118developing, evaluating, and enhancing distance learning courses
119and degree programs.
120     (f)  Coordinate on behalf of participating public
121postsecondary education institutions the negotiation of
122statewide licensing and pricing agreements for distance learning
123resources and enter into agreements with distance learning
124resource providers when such negotiations and agreements result
125in cost savings for the participating institutions.
126     (g)  Assist in building partnerships among educational
127institutions, businesses, and communities.
128     (4)  The consortium shall annually submit to the Governor,
129the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of
130Representatives, the State Board of Education, and the Board of
131Governors a detailed report that includes, but is not limited
132to:
133     (a)  An operational plan that summarizes the activities and
134accomplishments of the consortium, identifies opportunities for
135partnerships, and recommends methods that will improve student
136access to and completion of distance learning courses and degree
137programs.
138     (b)  Recommended policies that address ways to increase
139access to, and cost-effectiveness in the development and
140delivery of, distance learning courses and degree programs. Such
141recommendation shall consider the cost variations that exist
142within the delivery systems and identify best practices that
143minimize costs of the development and delivery of distance
144learning courses while enhancing the effectiveness of
145instruction.
146     (c)  Recommendations regarding an accountability mechanism
147to assess the effectiveness of the services provided by the
148consortium.
149     (d)  A detailed summary and analysis of the data collected
150by the Florida Higher Education Distance Learning Catalog.
151     (5)(a)  The consortium, in collaboration with public
152postsecondary education institutions, shall:
153     1.  Recommend the definition of a distance learning course.
154     2.  Recommend revenue-sharing models for distance learning
155fee revenues generated when a student enrolls in a distance
156learning course that is offered by a public postsecondary
157education institution that is not the student's degree-granting
158or home institution.
159     3.  Recommend a plan for developing and implementing an
160online system that streamlines and automates the registration
161process for students who have been admitted to a public
162postsecondary education institution and who want to enroll in a
163course or courses listed in the Florida Higher Education
164Distance Learning Catalog. The consortium shall work in
165partnership with the institutions to identify and address the
166applicable administrative, program, and technical issues and
167protocols necessary to ensure that the implementation of such a
168system as an alternative to the standard registration process of
169each institution complies with the academic policies and
170procedures of the institution offering the course. At a minimum,
171the system should:
172     a.  Allow a qualified student to register for any course
173listed in the catalog, including courses offered by an
174institution that is not the student's degree-granting or home
175institution.
176     b.  Allow for the expedited transfer of the distance
177learning course credit awarded by the institution offering the
178distance learning course to the student's degree-granting or
179home institution upon the student's successful completion of the
180distance learning course or courses.
181     c.  Be accessible from the catalog.
182     d.  Comply with all applicable technology security
183standards and guidelines established by the Agency for
184Enterprise Information Technology to ensure the secure
185transmission of student information.
186     4.  Submit its recommended definition, models, and plan as
187required under this paragraph to the Governor, the President of
188the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the
189State Board of Education, and the Board of Governors no later
190than March 1, 2009.
191     (b)  This subsection expires July 1, 2009.
192     Section 2.  Section 1004.091, Florida Statutes, is created
193to read:
194     1004.091  Florida Higher Education Distance Learning
195Catalog.--
196     (1)  The Florida Higher Education Distance Learning Catalog
197is established as an interactive, central point of access to
198distance learning courses, degree programs, and resources
199offered by public postsecondary education institutions and is
200intended to assist in the coordination and collaboration of
201articulation and access pursuant to part II of chapter 1007.
202     (2)  The Florida Distance Learning Consortium shall be
203responsible for the catalog and shall establish its operational
204guidelines and procedures, which shall include, but are not
205limited to:
206     (a)  Requiring participating institutions to be responsible
207for providing clear, complete, and timely information on the
208distance learning course and degree program requirements; type
209of technology and technical equipment requirements; any
210prerequisite courses or technology competencies and skills;
211availability of academic support services; identification of
212financial aid resources; and all cost, fee, and payment
213information and policies.
214     (b)  Requiring that all distance learning courses and
215degree programs meet all applicable and appropriate
216accreditation standards and criteria.
217     (c)  Requiring that, at a minimum, the catalog is reviewed
218at the start of each academic semester to ensure that all
219distance learning courses and degree programs comply with the
220operational guidelines and procedures established by the
221governing board of the consortium.
222     (3)  The catalog shall include a web-based analytic tool
223that allows for the collection and analysis of data to include:
224     (a)  Number and type of students who use the catalog to
225search for distance learning courses and degree programs.
226     (b)  Number and type of requests for information on
227distance learning courses and degree programs not listed in the
228catalog.
229     (c)  Comparison of distance learning course and degree
230program cost data.
231     (d)  Summary of specific requests by course type or course
232number, delivery method, offering institution, and semester.
233     (e)  Other types of data as determined by the consortium.
234     Section 3.  Subsection (12) of section 1009.23, Florida
235Statutes, is amended, subsection (16) is renumbered as
236subsection (17), and a new subsection (16) is added to that
237section, to read:
238     1009.23  Community college student fees.--
239     (12)(a)  In addition to tuition, out-of-state, financial
240aid, capital improvement, student activity and service, and
241technology fees authorized in this section, each community
242college board of trustees is authorized to establish fee
243schedules for the following user fees and fines: laboratory
244fees, which shall not apply to a distance learning course;
245parking fees and fines; library fees and fines; fees and fines
246relating to facilities and equipment use or damage; access or
247identification card fees; duplicating, photocopying, binding, or
248microfilming fees; standardized testing fees; diploma
249replacement fees; transcript fees; application fees; graduation
250fees; and late fees related to registration and payment. Such
251user fees and fines shall not exceed the cost of the services
252provided and shall only be charged to persons receiving the
253service. A community college may not charge any fee except as
254authorized by law or rules of the State Board of Education.
255Parking fee revenues may be pledged by a community college board
256of trustees as a dedicated revenue source for the repayment of
257debt, including lease-purchase agreements and revenue bonds with
258terms not exceeding 20 years and not exceeding the useful life
259of the asset being financed. Community colleges shall use the
260services of the Division of Bond Finance of the State Board of
261Administration to issue any revenue bonds authorized by the
262provisions of this subsection. Any such bonds issued by the
263Division of Bond Finance shall be in compliance with the
264provisions of the State Bond Act. Bonds issued pursuant to the
265State Bond Act shall be validated in the manner established in
266chapter 75. The complaint for such validation shall be filed in
267the circuit court of the county where the seat of state
268government is situated, the notice required to be published by
269s. 75.06 shall be published only in the county where the
270complaint is filed, and the complaint and order of the circuit
271court shall be served only on the state attorney of the circuit
272in which the action is pending.
273     (b)  The State Board of Education may adopt rules pursuant
274to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to administer this subsection.
275     (16)(a)  Each community college may assess a student who
276enrolls in a course listed in the Florida Higher Education
277Distance Learning Catalog, established pursuant to s. 1004.091,
278a per-credit-hour distance learning course user fee.
279     (b)  The amount of the distance learning course user fee
280shall not exceed the additional costs of the services provided
281that are attributable exclusively to the development and
282delivery of the distance learning course or program. In the
283event that the distance learning course user fee is assessed by
284a community college, the institution shall not assess any other
285fees to cover the same additional costs. By September 1 of each
286year, each board of trustees shall report to the Division of
287Community Colleges the total amount of revenue generated by the
288distance learning course user fee for the prior academic year
289and how the revenue was expended.
290     (c)  The community college may assess the distance learning
291course user fee only for courses that are listed in the catalog.
292     (d)  The link for the catalog shall be prominently
293displayed on the institution's website informing students of the
294catalog.
295     Section 4.  Paragraph (k) of subsection (13) of section
2961009.24, Florida Statutes, is amended, subsection (17) is
297renumbered as subsection (18), and a new subsection (17) is
298added to that section, to read:
299     1009.24  State university student fees.--
300     (13)  Each university board of trustees is authorized to
301establish the following fees:
302     (k)  A fee for off-campus course offerings when the
303location results in specific, identifiable increased costs to
304the university, except that such a fee shall not apply to a
305distance learning course.
306     (17)(a)  A state university may assess a student who
307enrolls in a course listed in the Florida Higher Education
308Distance Learning Catalog, established pursuant to s. 1004.091,
309a per-credit-hour distance learning course user fee.
310     (b)  The amount of the distance learning course user fee
311shall not exceed the additional costs of the services provided
312that are attributable exclusively to the development and
313delivery of the distance learning course or program. In the
314event that the distance learning course user fee is assessed by
315a state university, the institution shall not assess any other
316fees to cover the same additional costs. By September 1 of each
317year, each board of trustees shall report to the Board of
318Governors the total amount of revenue generated by the distance
319learning course user fee for the prior academic year and how the
320revenue was expended.
321     (c)  The state university may assess the distance learning
322course user fee only for courses that are listed in the catalog.
323     (d)  The link for the catalog shall be prominently
324displayed on the institution's website informing students of the
325catalog.
326     Section 5.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2008.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.