SB 1229: Students from foreign countries; student exchange programs, tuition and fee waivers. - Virginia

Delegate Carr Substitute → Chaptered · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill was formatted from a House substitute version to a chaptered version, meaning it has been approved and enacted into law. The substantive text of the legislation remains unchanged, continuing to allow tuition waivers for foreign students in exchange programs as long as the number of waiver recipients does not exceed outbound students paying full tuition over a three-year period.

TECHNICAL

The document was converted from a proposed substitute bill to an enacted chaptered version, adding official formatting and approval date (March 21, 2025) while keeping the legislative text identical.

Education Substitute → Delegate Carr Substitute · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended from a House Substitute to a Delegate Carr Floor Amendment, changing the bill title from 'Education Substitute' to 'Delegate Carr Substitute' and updating the bill number. The substantive policy language regarding student exchange program tuition waivers remains largely unchanged, though the amendment adds 'full-time equivalent' language to clarify how inbound and outbound students are counted for waiver eligibility purposes.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on public institutions of higher education and student exchange programs, with no change to the fundamental eligibility criteria for tuition waivers.

TECHNICAL

Changed bill designation from 'HOUSE SUBSTITUTE' to 'HOUSE SUBSTITUTE' with Delegate Carr Floor Amendment status

Updated bill number from 25106934D to 25107627D

Revised section title from 'Student exchange programs' to 'Students from foreign countries; student exchange programs'

DEFINITION

Added 'full-time equivalent' language to clarify how student counts are calculated for tuition waiver eligibility

Education Subcommittee Substitute → Education Substitute · 1 edit

MINOR

This document appears to be a formatting diff between two versions of a legislative bill (SB 1229) rather than a substantive policy change. The content of the bill itself regarding student exchange programs and tuition waivers remains identical, with only the document layout, spacing, and metadata formatting differing between the versions.

TECHNICAL

The document layout changed from a compact format to a more spaced-out format with different line breaks and spacing, but the actual legislative text and policy content remain unchanged.

Finance and Appropriations Substitute → Education Subcommittee Substitute · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was re-substituted from the Senate Finance Committee to the Education Subcommittee, changing the committee attribution from Senate to House Education. The substantive policy change allows institutions to count multiple part-time outbound students as a single outbound student if their combined credits equal a full term, and similarly for inbound students. This creates more flexibility in calculating the tuition waiver exchange ratio.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on tuition and fee waivers for international students in exchange programs, but the calculation method for determining waiver limits has been expanded to include part-time student equivalencies.

ELIGIBILITY

Added language allowing institutions to treat multiple part-time outbound students as a single outbound student when their combined credit hours equal a full term of enrollment.

Added language allowing institutions to treat multiple part-time inbound students as a single inbound student when their combined credit hours equal a full term of enrollment.

TECHNICAL

Changed committee attribution from Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations to House Committee on Education.

Added the word 'an' before 'inbound student' in line 11 for grammatical correction.

Education and Health Substitute → Finance and Appropriations Substitute · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was transferred from the Senate Committee on Education and Health to the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations, indicating a shift in committee oversight. The bill text was reformatted with new spacing and numbering, and the bill description was updated to focus on 'Students from foreign countries' rather than just 'student exchange programs'. The substantive policy language regarding tuition waivers appears incomplete in the provided text, making it difficult to assess specific eligibility or funding changes.

Scope change

The bill's committee assignment changed from Education and Health to Finance and Appropriations, which may affect how the legislation is reviewed and funded.

TECHNICAL

The bill was moved from the Education and Health committee to the Finance and Appropriations committee, changing the legislative oversight body.

The bill title was updated to emphasize 'Students from foreign countries' instead of focusing primarily on 'student exchange programs'.

The document was reformatted with new spacing, numbering, and layout changes, though the substantive policy language appears incomplete in the provided excerpt.

Enrolled → Education and Health Substitute · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was amended to add clarity and additional provisions regarding how student exchange programs are counted for tuition waiver purposes. The amendment includes language to allow institutions to count multiple part-time students as single full-time equivalents when determining compliance with outbound student limits.

Scope change

The scope of the bill remains focused on student exchange programs and tuition waivers, but the amendment adds specific counting rules for part-time students.

ELIGIBILITY

Added provisions allowing public institutions to count multiple part-time outbound students as a single outbound student if their combined credit hours equal a full term of enrollment.

Added provisions allowing public institutions to count multiple part-time inbound students as a single inbound student if their combined credit hours equal a full term of enrollment.

REQUIREMENT

Revised the language defining the three-year limit on tuition waivers to clarify that waived inbound students cannot exceed outbound students paying full tuition under the exchange program.

Introduced → Enrolled · 3 edits · Mar 21, 2025

MINOR

This bill amends Virginia's student exchange program tuition waiver law to clarify that exchange programs must be formalized agreements between two institutions, not just approved by a single institution. It also updates the accounting method to use full-time equivalent students for tracking waiver limits, ensuring fairer comparison between inbound and outbound students.

Scope change

The bill expands clarity on program requirements by specifying that exchange programs must involve agreements between two institutions rather than just institutional approval.

REQUIREMENT

Changed program approval requirement from 'approved by such institution' to 'approved by between such institution and another institution of higher education' to ensure formalized bilateral agreements.

DEFINITION

Updated student counting methodology from raw student numbers to 'full-time equivalent' students for more accurate tracking of waiver limits.

ELIGIBILITY

Clarified that outbound students must pay full tuition and mandatory fees to the home institution, ensuring proper reciprocity in the exchange program.

Students from foreign countries; student exchange programs, tuition and fee waivers.

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