SB 521

relating to requiring the consideration of standardized test scores
as a factor in nonautomatic admissions decisions at certain public
institutions of higher education.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1.  Section 51.805(b), Education Code, is amended to
(b)  The general academic teaching institution, after
admitting students under Sections 51.803 and 51.804, shall admit
other applicants for admission as undergraduate students.  It is
the intent of the legislature that all institutions of higher
education pursue academic excellence by considering students'
academic achievements in decisions related to admissions.  In
making first-time freshmen admissions decisions, each [Because of
changing demographic trends, diversity, and population increases
in the state, each] general academic teaching institution shall
(1)  the applicant's performance on a standardized test
appropriate for undergraduate admissions; and
(2)  because of changing demographic trends,
diversity, and population increases in the state, all of, any of, or
a combination of the following socioeconomic indicators or factors
[in making first-time freshman admissions decisions]:
(A) [(1)]  the applicant's academic record;
(B) [(2)]  the socioeconomic background of the
applicant, including the percentage by which the applicant's family
is above or below any recognized measure of poverty, the
applicant's household income, and the applicant's parents' level of
(C) [(3)]  whether the applicant would be the
first generation of the applicant's family to attend or graduate
from an institution of higher education;
(D) [(4)]  whether the applicant has bilingual
(E) [(5)]  the financial status of the
(F) [(6)]  the performance level of the
applicant's school as determined by the school accountability
criteria used by the Texas Education Agency;
(G) [(7)]  the applicant's responsibilities while
attending school, including whether the applicant has been
employed, whether the applicant has helped to raise children, or
(H) [(8)]  the applicant's region of residence;
(I) [(9)]  whether the applicant is a resident of
a rural or urban area or a resident of a central city or suburban
(J) [(10)  the applicant's performance on
[(11)]  the applicant's performance on standardized
tests in comparison with that of other students from similar
(K) [(12)]  whether the applicant attended any
school while the school was under a court-ordered desegregation
(L) [(13)]  the applicant's involvement in
(M) [(14)]  the applicant's extracurricular
(N) [(15)]  the applicant's commitment to a
(O) [(16)]  the applicant's personal interview;
(P) [(17)]  the applicant's admission to a
comparable accredited out-of-state institution; and
(Q) [(18)]  any other consideration the
institution considers necessary to accomplish the institution's
SECTION 2.  Section 51.842, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsections (a-1) and (b-1) and amending Subsection (b) to
(a-1)  In making admissions decisions for the program, a
graduate or professional program of a general academic teaching
institution or medical or dental unit shall consider an applicant's
performance on a standardized test appropriate for the program,
except that the applicant's performance on the standardized test
may not be used as the sole criterion for consideration of the
applicant or as the primary criterion to end consideration of the
applicant.  The applicant's performance on the standardized test
must also be used to compare the applicant's test score with those
of other applicants from similar socioeconomic backgrounds to the
extent that those backgrounds can be properly determined and
identified by the general academic teaching institution or medical
and dental unit based on information provided in the institution's
(b)  An applicant's performance on a standardized test may
not be used in the [admissions or] competitive scholarship process
for a graduate or professional program as the sole criterion for
consideration of the applicant or as the primary criterion to end
consideration of the applicant.  If an applicant's performance on a
standardized test is used in the [admissions or] competitive
scholarship process, the applicant's performance must also be used
to compare the applicant's test score with those of other
applicants from similar socioeconomic backgrounds to the extent
that those backgrounds can be properly determined and identified by
the general academic teaching institution or medical and dental
unit based on information provided in the institution's or unit's
[admissions or] competitive scholarship process.
(b-1)  Subsections (a-1) and (b) do [This subsection does]
not apply to a standardized test used to measure the English
language proficiency of a student who is a graduate of a foreign
institution of higher education.
SECTION 3.  Sections 51.805 and 51.842, Education Code, as
amended by this Act, apply beginning with admissions for the 2026
fall semester.  Admissions for an academic period before the 2026
fall semester are governed by the law in effect immediately before
the effective date of this Act, and the former law is continued in
SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2025.