The House Higher Education Subcommittee unanimously approved House Bill 1227, which updates statutes governing the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) to clarify responsibilities for tuition-policy guidance, student-access outreach, and academic-program approval processes.

Representative Lehi, sponsor of an amendment that was adopted, told the committee the amendment "clarifies THEC's authority to identify capital investment needs for the state," and that the bill aligns statute language to current practice on student-facing functions. The bill also revises THEC's tuition-and-fee guidance to permit institution-specific flexibility while maintaining an affordability focus and expands the statutory definition of a quality nondegree credential to expressly include registered apprenticeships, occupational licensure, and certificates that culminate in industry-recognized credentials.

The measure permits THEC to delegate some academic-program approval authority to the executive director to allow expedited approvals between commission meetings and to authorize expedited approval for certain off-site campus locations. The bill also clarifies that searches for THEC's executive director position are subject to the same public-notice and confidentiality rules applied to institutional presidents and chancellors.

Committee procedure and vote: the subcommittee adopted the amendment and then voted 5-0 to report the bill to the full Education Committee.

Why it matters: Sponsor testimony framed the bill as a modernization measure intended to improve institutional responsiveness to market demands and to align statutory language with historical practice. Supporters said delegation to an executive director is intended to speed approvals without removing oversight.

Next steps: House Bill 1227 will be considered by the full Education Committee.