E NE-Y GENERAL 

~OFTEXAS 

March 11, 1953 

Hon. C. H. Cavness 

State Auditor 

Capitol Station 

Austin, Texas 

Dear Sir: 

Opinion No. S-17 

Re: Legality of treating funds the 

United States Government is 

obligated to pay for student 

tuitions as being moneys collected for the purpose of determining public junior college 

appropriations. 

You have requested an opinion of this office on three questions involving the construction of Sections 3(a) and 4 of Article IV of 

House Bill Number 426 of the 52nd Legislature. This bill was enacted 

as Chapter 499, Acts of the 52nd Legislature, 1951, page 1228. You ask 

in substance the following questions: 

1. In view of the provisions of Sections 3(a) and 4 of Article IV, Chapter 499, Acts of the 52nd Legislature, may the semester 

hours taken by military enlisted personnel be counted in arriving at 

the per capita apportionment for the colleges attended by such personnel? The tuition and fee expenses of military enlisted personnel are 

paid in part by the. student and in part by the Government, in payments 

made directly to the school. 

2. In view of the provisions of Sections 3(a) and 4 of Article IV, Chapter 499, Acts of the 52nd Legislature, are military enlisted 

personnel who are non-residents of Texas eligible to have their semester 

hours counted in determining the apportionment due the junior college 

from the State per capita appropriation? Such students pay a part of 

their tuition and fee expenses when they enroll. The remaining expenses 

are paid to the school directly by the Government at the conclusion of 

each semester. 
Hon. C. H. Cavness, page 2 (S-17) 

3. Some of the non-resident students attending Statesupported junior colleges pay their non-resident tuition fees in periodic installments through the semester. May the non-resident tuition 

fees be counted in proportion to the amount paid prior to November 1st 

in determining the school’s per capita apportionment 1 

The, applicable portions of Sections 3(a) and 4 of Article 

IV, Chapter 499, Acts of the 52nd Legislature, 1951, page 1228 at pages 

1444-1445, provide as follows: 

“Sec. 3. It is further provided that to be eligible 

for and to receive a prbportionate share of this appropriation, a Public Junior College shall: 

“(a) Prior to November 1st of each year, 

collect matriculation and other session fees not 

less than the amounts provided for by law for 

State-supported institutions of higher learning 

(for full-time and for part-time students) from 

each enrolled student, except this shall not apply 

to any student who may be exempt from the payment of such fees by State law; 

“Sec. 4. . . . The term ‘full-time student equivalent’ 

as herein used shall be defined as a student taking fifteen 

(15) semester hours of approved courses; and the number of 

full-time student equivalents for any Junior College to be 

benefited by this Article shalI be determined by dividing by 

fifteen (15) the total number of semester hours of approved 

courses carried by all eligible students as of fiovember 1st 

in each fiscal year, except that not more than eighteen (18) 

semester hours being carried on that date by any individual 

student shall be counted, nor shall the semester hours carried 

by any student in excess of a total of sixty-six (66) semester 

credit hours earned in a Public Junior College be counted; 

and provided further that the count of semester hours shall 

not include those being carried by any students who have not 

made timely compliance with the requirements of Section 3(a) 

above, nor those being carried by any students (except Voca- 
.-. - 

Hon. C. H. Cavness, page 3 (S-17) 

tionai Rehabilitants) whose tuition and fee expenses are 

paid by the United States Government.” 

It is evident from a reading of Article IV of Ghapter 499, 

Acts of the 52nd Legislature, 1951, together with Section 4 of Article 

2654b-1, Vernon’s Civil Statutes, that it was the legislative, intent to 

provide a per capita apportionment for each student enrolled in a junior 

college. The State would pay the apportionment directly to the school, 

except in certain instances in which the government would pay directly 

to the school the cost of instruction for particular students. Att’y. Gen. 

Op. V-1507 (1952). The present question covers an instance where the 

government pays the tuition and fee expenses, in part; of certainmilitary enlisted personnel, such payments being made directly to the school. 

By express words in the appropriation act students who have their tuition and fee expenses paid by the United States Government, cannot have 

their semester hours considered in determining the per capita apportionment to be paid to the school. The fact situation differs from that 

discussed in Attorney General’s Opinion No. V-1507 (1952)inthat the 

present payments by the Government are directly to the school, while 

the payments by the Government under the “G. I.” (Teague) Bill, discussed in Attorney General’s Opinion ho. V-1507 (1952) were made 

directly to the student. It would seem that the legislature intended that 

each student should receive a per capita apportionment to’the school to 

cover his costs of instruction. It also appears to be the legislative intent that in certain circumstances the costs of such instruction were not 

to be paid by the State. One of those circumstances is when, the tuition 

and fee expenses of a student are paid directly to the school by the United 

States Government. 

Since we have answered the first question in the negative, 

the same reasons compel the answer to the second question,in the negative. 

’ The third question involves dvilian non-residemstudents 

attending State-supported junior’ colleges. Section 3(a) of the Appropriation Act provides that.a Public Junior College shall, prio,r to November 

1st of each year, collect matriculation and other session fees not less 

than the amounts provided for by la& (Art. 2654c, V.C.S.) from each en- 

&led student (with certain exceptions not here involved.) Section 4 of 
‘Hon. C. H. Cavness, page 4 (S-17) 

. 

the Appropriation Act provides that in determining the per capita apportionment to which each school is entitled the semester hours carried 

by eligible students as of November 1st will be counted (emphasis added), 

and this limitation is repeated in a negative proviso in the conclusion of 

the same section, “. . . provided further that the count of semester hours 

shall not include those being carried by any students who have not made 

timely compliance with the requtrements of Section 3(a) above . . .” A 

non-resident student such as you inquire about is not an “eligible” student 

until his enrollment is completed. His enrollment is not completed until 

his fees are paid. If the fees are not paid prior to November 1st the student is not eligible to have his semester hours considered in determining 

the credit hours earned by his school. Until the student becomes “eligible” 

by paying all of his fees, none of his hours may be counted as hours of an 

eligible student. 

SUMMARY 

The semester hours carried by a student in a Public 

Junior College who has his tuition and fee expenses paid directly to the school by the United States may not be considered 

in determining the semester credit hours earned by the school. 

A non-resident student whose matriculation and other 

session fees are not paid in full prior to November 1st his not an 

eligible student whose semester hours may be considered in determintng the credit hours earned by his school. 

APPROVED: Yours very truly, 

J. ~G Q@yis, Jr. 

County Affairs Division 

C. K. Richards 

Reviewer 

Robert S. Trotti 

First Assistant 

JOHN BEN SHEPPERD 

Attorney General 

BY 

Billy E. l%e 

Assistant 

John Ben Shepperd 

Attorney General 

BEL:da