College Exam Fees Reimbursements 2023-24

Do your juniors and seniors know they get one free SAT, ACT, or TSI administration? Since 2019, HB3 funding has removed barriers to college access by providing district reimbursements for the administration of the SAT/ACT/and TSIA once per student. Charter districts have already been given estimated funding for this in the 2023-24 Summary of Finances Report (line 38 and 39)! Read on about the process for funding and the opportunity for corrections in the fall.

The CSS federal team and PEIMS specialists will be available to advise our clients through the process of obtaining reimbursements for eligible exam fees.

What students are eligible for reimbursement?

SAT/ACT

For the 2023-34 school year, eligible students are as follows:

• Seniors who take either the SAT, ACT, or TSIA from September 1, 2023 – July 31, 2024.
• Juniors who take either the SAT, ACT, or TSIA from January 1, 2024– July 31, 2024.

For each eligible student, $39 will be reimbursed for school day administrations of the SAT or ACT ($38). District data will be collected directly from the vendors to determine the reimbursements.

Every summer, TEA will collect vendor data from the prior school year to determine students who took an assessment and when that assessment was taken. TEA will automatically consider school day administration for reimbursement. The district must submit formal requests for reimbursement IF:

• The district wishes to be reimbursed for a national administration
• The district wishes to be reimbursed for TSIA administration

In the fall, you will have a chance to review the data and add missing students; however, you must ask those students to provide you with receipts for exams not taken during the school day. Again, only one exam per student will be reimbursed. If a senior is missing from the list, it may be because you were already paid for an exam for that student for a test in the spring of their junior year.

Industry-based Certifications

A Charter District can be reimbursed the cost of one passed IBC per student in the course of the student’s 9-12 grade enrollment in Texas Public Schools. The data to obtain reimbursements will be collected through PEIMS.

What resources are available for questions about the reimbursements?

The Advanced Academics Division at TEA has published a website about the HB 3 Reimbursements. In addition, they can be contacted by email at advancedacademics@tea.texas.gov or by phone at 512-463-8823.

Other Considerations:

• Only one SAT/ACT/TSIA fee and one Industry-Based exam fee per student can be reimbursed. Re-tests to try to raise scores and late fees are not covered.
• Writing/essay cost is not included because Texas public institutions of higher education do not require the essay or writing test for admission.
• Settle-up will not happen until April of 2025. The amounts listed on line 38 and 39 of your summary of finances will be all you receive until next spring. You may submit corrections in the fall of 2024, and then funding will be adjusted by April 2025.
• LEAs may not use the exam costs to meet the 55% expenditure requirement for the CCMR outcomes bonus program (PIC 38) or the CTE state allotment (PIC 22).
• Keep in mind the reimbursement goes to the Charter District not the student. It is local policy how the charter district chooses to pay for national administrations, TSIA, or IBC exams.
• Please refer to the FAQ document about the SAT/ACT/TSIA reimbursement.
• A separate program exists for AP exam fees. Click here for more info.

Need help?

Please contact Charter School Success:

Dr. Sheila K. Sherman ssherman@charterschoolsuccess.com

Have questions?

Ask questions, get answers, and discuss this topic on the Charter School Community Roundtable now.