Texas’ Higher Education Coordinating Board has officially repealed an old policy related to in-state tuition for illegal aliens.
The board removed this policy from its rules as part of the consent agenda during its quarterly meeting without any discussion.
According to the board agenda, the previous policy was already “superseded by the rules in Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Chapter 13, Subchapter K, which were adopted in October 2025 and became effective November 2025.” The new policy had gone into effect for the fall 2025 semester.
The policy, adopted in October, requires students who wrongly qualified for lower in-state tuition at public colleges or universities to repay the difference if they hid key facts that they “reasonably should have known” could change their status, or if the school uncovers the error on its own.
They have 30 days from the time of the school’s notice to pay up. Until they do, the school can hold back diplomas, certificates, or transcripts for classes taken during the mix-up—unless federal rules say otherwise.
The new rules also include a board note regarding Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).
“While it is beyond the role of the Coordinating Board to attempt to provide a comprehensive definition of lawful presence, applicable case law and federal orders indicate that DACA recipients are not lawfully present and thus ineligible to receive the benefit of Texas resident tuition on that basis.” The committee stated that “each institution of higher education is required to comply with federal court rulings in making determinations of lawful presence.”
This rule change was necessary to implement a June 2025 consent agreement Texas reached with the federal government that prohibits the state from providing preferential tuition rates to illegal aliens.
Attorney Tony McDonald told Texas Scorecard that today’s action was likely a “clerical” matter aimed at “cleaning up the books.”
The board also adopted rules to guide university system boards of regents as they review core curricula under Senate Bill 37, a reform measure state lawmakers passed during the 2025 legislative session.
The rules list requirements for communication, mathematics, life and physical sciences, language, philosophy and culture, creative arts, American history, government/political science, and social and behavioral sciences.
Boards of regents will have to provide “initial certification” to the coordinating board by January 1, 2027.
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board oversees a variety of functions related to Texas’ taxpayer-subsidized higher education institutions. Its members are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Texas Senate. Stacy Hock of Austin is the current board chair.
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