| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to state university excess credit hours; |
| 3 | providing legislative intent; providing requirements for |
| 4 | additional payment by state university students for |
| 5 | certain credit hours exceeding degree program completion |
| 6 | requirements; providing criteria for calculating credit |
| 7 | hours; authorizing exceptions; requiring state |
| 8 | universities and community colleges to implement a process |
| 9 | for notifying students of certain information; providing |
| 10 | an effective date. |
| 11 |
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| 12 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 13 |
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| 14 | Section 1. Section 1009.286, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 15 | to read: |
| 16 | 1009.286 Additional student payment for hours exceeding |
| 17 | baccalaureate degree program completion requirements at state |
| 18 | universities.-- |
| 19 | (1) It is the intent of the Legislature to encourage each |
| 20 | undergraduate student who enrolls in a state university to |
| 21 | complete the student's respective baccalaureate degree program |
| 22 | in the most efficient way possible and, at the same time, |
| 23 | provide for access to additional college coursework. Therefore, |
| 24 | the Legislature intends to enact a policy that provides |
| 25 | incentives for efficient baccalaureate degree completion. |
| 26 | (2) State universities shall require a student to pay an |
| 27 | excess hour surcharge equal to 50 percent of the tuition rate |
| 28 | for each credit hour in excess of 120 percent of the number of |
| 29 | credit hours required to complete the baccalaureate degree |
| 30 | program in which the student is enrolled. |
| 31 | (3) Except as otherwise provided by law and for purposes |
| 32 | of this section, the following hours shall be included when |
| 33 | calculating the number of hours taken by a student: |
| 34 | (a) All credit hours for courses taken at the state |
| 35 | university from which a student is seeking a baccalaureate |
| 36 | degree, including: |
| 37 | 1. Failed courses. |
| 38 | 2. Courses that are dropped after the university's |
| 39 | advertised last day of the drop and add period. |
| 40 | 3. Courses from which a student withdraws, except as |
| 41 | provided in subsection (4). |
| 42 | 4. Repeated courses, except repeated courses for which a |
| 43 | student has paid the full cost of instruction as provided in s. |
| 44 | 1009.285. |
| 45 | (b) All credit hours earned at another institution and |
| 46 | accepted for transfer by a state university toward a student's |
| 47 | baccalaureate degree program. |
| 48 | (4) For purposes of this section, credit hours earned |
| 49 | under the following circumstances are not calculated as hours |
| 50 | required to earn a baccalaureate degree: |
| 51 | (a) College credit hours earned through an articulated |
| 52 | accelerated mechanism identified in s. 1007.27. |
| 53 | (b) Credit hours earned through internship programs. |
| 54 | (c) Credit hours required for certification, |
| 55 | recertification, or certificate programs. |
| 56 | (d) Credit hours in courses from which a student must |
| 57 | withdraw due to reasons of medical or personal hardship. |
| 58 | (e) Credit hours taken by active duty military personnel. |
| 59 | (f) Credit hours required to achieve a dual major |
| 60 | undertaken while pursuing a baccalaureate degree. |
| 61 | (g) Remedial and English as a Second Language credit |
| 62 | hours. |
| 63 | (h) Credit hours earned in military science courses that |
| 64 | are part of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program. |
| 65 | (5) Each state university and community college shall |
| 66 | implement a process for notifying students regarding the |
| 67 | provisions of this section. Notice must be provided by a state |
| 68 | university or a community college upon a student's initial |
| 69 | enrollment in the institution. Such notice must be provided a |
| 70 | second time by a state university when a student has earned the |
| 71 | credit hours required to complete the baccalaureate degree |
| 72 | program in which the student is enrolled. The notice must |
| 73 | include a recommendation that each student who intends to earn |
| 74 | credit hours at a state university beyond the credit hours |
| 75 | required for the baccalaureate degree program in which the |
| 76 | student is enrolled meet with his or her academic advisor. |
| 77 | (6) For purposes of this section, the term "state |
| 78 | university" means the institutions indentified in s. 1000.21(6) |
| 79 | and the term "community college" means the institutions |
| 80 | identified in s. 1000.21(3). |
| 81 | (7) The provisions of this section become effective for |
| 82 | students who enter a community college or a state university for |
| 83 | the first time in the 2009-2010 academic year and thereafter. |
| 84 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009. |