| (a) In accordance with Texas Education Code (TEC), §28.0256,
beginning with students enrolled in Grade 12 during the 2021-2022
school year, a student shall complete and submit a free application
for federal student aid (FAFSA) or a Texas application for state financial
aid (TASFA) as a requirement for receiving a high school diploma.
(b) A student may opt out of the financial aid application
requirement in subsection (a) of this section under one of the following
conditions:
(1) the student's parent or other person standing in
parental relation submits a signed form indicating that the parent
or other person authorizes the student to decline to complete and
submit the financial aid application;
(2) the student signs and submits the form described
by paragraph (1) of this subsection on the student's own behalf if
the student is 18 years of age or older or is emancipated under the
Texas Family Code, Chapter 31; or
(3) a school counselor signs and submits the form described
by paragraph (1) of this subsection indicating that the school counselor
authorizes the student to decline to complete and submit the financial
aid application for good cause, as determined by the school counselor.
(c) The board of trustees for each school district
and open-enrollment charter school shall adopt the standard opt-out
form provided by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for the purpose
of the exceptions under subsection (b) of this section.
(1) The opt-out form shall be available in English,
Spanish, and any other language spoken by a majority of the students
enrolled in a bilingual education or special language program under
TEC, Chapter 29, Subchapter B, in the district or charter school.
Districts and charter schools are responsible for translations not
provided by TEA.
(2) The opt-out form must include the student's signature
of intent to decline to complete a financial aid application prior
to the student's anticipated graduation date.
(d) Each school district and open-enrollment charter
school shall provide students with the following notifications regarding
the financial aid application requirement.
(1) Standard information regarding the financial aid
requirement and the exceptions under subsection (b) of this section
shall be provided at the time a student first registers for one or
more classes required for high school graduation.
(2) Detailed information regarding instructions for
the completion and submission of a financial aid application shall
be provided to a student at the beginning of Grade 12 or at the time
a student in Grade 12 transfers into a high school from a non-public
school or a public school outside of Texas. The instructions shall
include:
(A) an explanation of the FAFSA and TASFA and the difference
between the two;
(B) instructions for how to access the FAFSA and TASFA,
including key dates and deadlines for completion and submission;
(C) resources available to support completion and submission
of the FAFSA and TASFA;
(D) documents and information required to complete
the FAFSA or TASFA; and
(E) contact information for school staff or local community
resources available to support completion of the forms.
(3) Options available to a student under subsection
(b) of this section if a student wishes to decline to complete and
submit a financial aid application shall be provided to a student
at the beginning of Grade 12 or at the time a student in Grade 12
transfers into a high school from a non-public school or a public
school outside of Texas. The options shall include:
(A) the opt-out form and explanation of required signatures;
and
(B) notification that if the student chooses to opt
out for the purposes of graduation, the student will still be eligible
to complete the FAFSA or TASFA that year or in subsequent years.
(e) Each school district and open-enrollment charter
school shall require one of the following methods of proof that a
student has completed and submitted the FAFSA or TASFA as required
by this section.
(1) Completion and submission of the FAFSA shall be
confirmed through one of the following methods:
(A) ApplyTexas Counselor Suite FAFSA data;
(B) notification from the United States Department
of Education that demonstrates a student has completed and submitted
a FAFSA; or
(C) a local policy developed by a school district or
an open-enrollment charter school for the method by which a student
must provide proof that the student has completed a FAFSA.
(2) School districts and open-enrollment charter schools
shall develop a local policy for the method by which a student must
provide proof that the student has completed a TASFA.
(f) Each school district and open-enrollment charter
school shall report through the Texas Student Data System Public Education
Information Management System (TSDS PEIMS) the following information
not later than December 1 of each school year for students awarded
diplomas in the previous school year:
(1) the number of students who completed and submitted
a financial aid application; and
(2) the number of students who submitted an exception.
(g) Each school district and open-enrollment charter
school shall maintain student financial aid application information
securely and ensure compliance with federal law regarding the confidentiality
of student educational information, including the Family Educational
Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 U.S.C. Section 1232g), and any
state law relating to the privacy of student information.
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