Private universities remain under pressure from declining student numbers caused by the nation’s low birthrate, but a draft bill setting out the exit mechanisms for closing of such schools has been stuck in the legislature for two years.
The bill stipulating the requirements for closing private schools or reorganizing or merging them with other institutions, and budget of NT$5 billion (US$161 million) to cover such costs, was passed by the Executive Yuan on Nov. 23, 2017, under then-premier William Lai (賴清德).
While the legislature did approved a NT$2.5 billion budget for the funding portion of the bill, the full bill never passed its third reading, and the budget has remained frozen.
In last year’s budget, the Ministry of Education did not allocate funds for the closing of private universities, as the funding can only be unfrozen once the bill is passed by the legislature.
That appears unlikely to happen anytime soon, as bill is not listed among the government’s priority bills for the legislative session that started last month.
However, the ministry’s funding for closing private schools was established according to the Budget Act (預算法), meaning it could be used after obtaining the Executive Yuan’s approval, Department of Technological and Vocational Education Director Yang Yu-hui (楊玉惠) said when asked for comment.
The ministry has spent more than NT$20 million helping Kaomei College of Health Care and Management — which stopped admitting students in August last year — and the Asia-Pacific Institute of Creativity — which ended operations in June — transfer their students to other schools, she said.
The bill, which targets poorly performing schools, was designed to protect students’ rights and prevent certain corporations involved in the management of such schools from selling school property and assets to the benefit a few people.
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