A bill by local Senator Kel Seliger is headed to the Texas House of Representatives.
Senator Seliger's SB19 bill, which sets a freeze of tuition at public universities for two years, passed the Senate today. The bill passed the Texas Senate in a 29-2 vote.
The bill, is passed, would ban public universities from raising tuition costs for the next two years following the 2017-2018 school year. After that, universities would be limited to increases of 1 percent, plus the rate of inflation. Those increases would also only be allowed if particular performance metrics, set by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, are met.
The legislation, which was called a priority for Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, this session, has been a priority for Seliger for some time. According to the Texas Tribune, Seliger pushed for a performance-based tuition bill in 2015, but the bill died in the House. This year, SB19 has passed the Texas Senate, and is now headed to the Texas House.
