The 140 Credit Hour Act Exposed

The 140 Credit Hour Act was adopted by ALEC's Education Task Force at the Spring Task Force Summit on April 21, 2001, approved by the full ALEC Board of Directors in May, 2001.

CMD's Bill Summary

This "model" legislation imposes a 25% tuition "surcharge" (increase) on students who take more than 140 credit hours to complete a bachelor's degree in a four-year program at a public college or university. This is a substantial cost increase that could adversely affect highly motivated students willing to take on larger course loads to learn more or who already pay additional tuition for coursework to complete their degree. It also appears to punish students who change their majors, which is not uncommon as students determine their aptitude and interest, and who therefore require more credits to graduate; the provisions thus seem unduly punitive.

ALEC Bill Text

Summary

This act will impose a twenty-five percent tuition surcharge on students who take more than 140 credit hours to complete a baccalaureate degree in a four-year program at any state-supported college or university or more than 110 percent of the credit hours necessary to complete a baccalaureate degree in a five year program. This act will also prohibit colleges and universities subject to this act from counting students in its full-time equivalent count for funding purposes after the student has reached the 140 credit hour limit in a four year program or 110 percent in a five year program.

Model Bill

Section 1. {Short Title}

This act may be cited as the 140 Credit Hour Act.

Section 2.

(A) A twenty-five percent tuition surcharge is imposed on students who take more than one hundred forty credit hours to complete a baccalaureate degree in a four-year program at any state-supported college or university of this state or more than one hundred ten percent of the credit hours necessary to complete a baccalaureate degree in any program designated by {insert name of state commission on higher education} as a five-year program at any state supported college or university of this state. The calculation of these credit hours taken at a college or university or accepted for transfer shall exclude hours earned through the college board’s advanced placement or CLEP examinations, through institutional advanced placement or course validation, or through summer term or extension programs.

(B) A surcharge may not be imposed on a student who exceeds the degree credit hour limits within the equivalent of four academic years of regular term enrollment, or within five academic years of regular term enrollment in a degree program officially designated by the {insert name of state commission on higher education} as a five year program.

(C) The undergraduate credit hours counted for this requirement include all regular session degree creditable courses taken at any institution, including repeated courses, failed courses, and courses dropped after the official census date (normally the last day to add a course).

(D)

1. The tuition surcharge required by subsection (A) must be imposed beginning with the next semester or quarter.

2. This surcharge must be imposed on all counted credit hours in excess of the threshold for each of the following three categories of undergraduates:

a. For a student earning a first baccalaureate degree in a program that requires no more than one hundred twenty-eight credit hours, the surcharge must be applied to all counted credit hours in excess of one hundred forty.

b. For a student earning a first baccalaureate degree in a {insert name of state commission on higher education} approved program that requires more than one hundred twenty-eight counted credit hours, the surcharge must be applied to all credit hours that exceed one hundred ten percent of the credit hours required for the degree. Those programs include those that have officially been designated by {insert name of state commission on higher education} as five-year programs, as well as those involving double majors or combined bachelor’s and master’s degrees.

c. For a student earning a baccalaureate degree other than the first, the surcharge must be applied to all counted credit hours that exceed one hundred ten percent of the minimum additional credit hours needed to earn the additional baccalaureate degree.

(E) The surcharge must be imposed on tuition charged in the current semester and in subsequent semesters in which a student’s cumulative credit hour total, with the current semester’s course load included, exceeds the threshold. The surcharge does not apply to required fees.

(F) An institution subject to the provisions of this section may not count a student in its full-time equivalent count for funding purposes after the student has accumulated one hundred forty credit hours in a four year program or has exceeded by one hundred ten percent the number of hours designated for a five-year program by {insert name of state commission on higher education}.

Adopted by ALEC's Education Task Force at the Spring Task Force Summit April 21, 2001.

Approved by full ALEC Board of Directors May, 2001.