Relating to the determination of resident status of students by public institutions of higher education.
Summary
HB 1815 revises the rules public institutions of higher education use to determine whether a student qualifies as a Texas resident for tuition and other education purposes. The bill narrows the residency pathways in Section 54.052 of the Education Code by removing the current high-school-graduation-based route to resident status and leaving residency to be established primarily through a person’s own domicile in Texas for at least one year, or through a parent’s Texas domicile for dependent students. It also clarifies that a person who is not authorized under federal law to be present in the United States may not be treated as a Texas resident for purposes of this title.
The bill also updates the documentation students must provide to prove residency under the remaining pathways, focusing on statements about dates of residence and intent to establish domicile. In addition, it authorizes public institutions to reclassify certain students as nonresidents before a term begins, including students who had previously qualified under the now-removed high-school-based residency provision and students who are not authorized to be present in the United States. The act would take effect September 1, 2025.
Impact
HB 1815 would amend Chapter 54 of the Education Code, changing how public colleges and universities determine resident status for tuition classification and related benefits. It would eliminate the existing statutory residency option for students who graduated from a Texas high school and lived in the state for the required period, while preserving domicile-based residency for adults and dependents of Texas-domiciled parents. The bill would also add an express statutory bar on classifying undocumented individuals as Texas residents for higher education purposes and would allow institutions to reclassify some currently resident students as nonresidents before future terms begin.
Sentiment
The available record shows the bill was referred to the House Higher Education Committee and there are no recorded votes or committee transcripts in the provided materials, so there is no formal legislative debate to measure. Based on the bill’s text, the measure appears to be framed as a tightening of residency eligibility and a clarification of institutional authority, which would likely draw support from those favoring stricter tuition-residency standards and opposition from those concerned about access and affordability for Texas high school graduates and immigrant students.
Contention
The main points of contention are likely to be the removal of the high-school-graduation residency pathway and the explicit exclusion of persons not authorized under federal law from resident status. Supporters may argue the bill prevents misuse of in-state tuition and aligns residency rules more closely with domicile. Opponents are likely to focus on the impact on students who have long lived and studied in Texas but would no longer qualify through graduation from a Texas high school, as well as the potential effect on undocumented students and other noncitizen students who could be reclassified as nonresidents.
Relating to the resident status, tuition rates, certain financial support, and certain documentation requirements for students enrolled at public institutions of higher education, including students not lawfully present in the United States.
Relating to the enrollment, including resident status and tuition rates, of certain persons, including persons not authorized to be present in the United States, in public institutions of higher education.
Relating to the maximum number of nonresident scholarship students permitted to pay resident tuition and fees at certain public institutions of higher education.
Relating to the maximum number of nonresident scholarship students permitted to pay resident tuition and fees at certain public institutions of higher education.