Bill Text: NY A00707 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Provides for the determination of tuition assistance program awards; provides such awards may cover mandatory educational fees, excluding fees voted by student body; defines term; increases maximum and minimum award amounts.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - referred to higher education [A00707 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A00707-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                           707

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                       (Prefiled)

                                     January 6, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. CAHILL -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. ABBATE,
          BENEDETTO, COLTON, COOK,  CUSICK,  CYMBROWITZ,  ENGLEBRIGHT,  GUNTHER,
          LUPARDO,  PEOPLES-STOKES,  PERRY  --  read  once  and  referred to the
          Committee on Higher Education

        AN ACT to amend the education law, in  relation  to  creating  the  "TAP
          reform act"

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Short title.  This act shall be known and may be  cited  as
     2  the "TAP reform act".
     3    §  2. Subdivision 5 of section 663 of the education law, as amended by
     4  section 3 of part J of chapter 58 of the laws of  2011,  is  amended  to
     5  read as follows:
     6    5.  Adjustments  of  income.  a.  In  the  determination of income for
     7  purposes of paragraphs a and b  of  subdivision  three  of  section  six
     8  hundred  sixty-seven  of this part if, during the academic year in which
     9  the applicant will receive an award, one of either the  parents  of  the
    10  applicant  or  other  dependent child of such parents, the spouse of the
    11  applicant, or one or more dependent children of the applicant, in  addi-
    12  tion  to  the  applicant, will be in full-time attendance in an approved
    13  program, the combined net taxable income  determined  under  subdivision
    14  one  of  this  section shall be reduced by three thousand dollars and an
    15  additional two thousand dollars for each other such person additional to
    16  the aforesaid persons (including the applicant)  who  will  be  in  such
    17  attendance,  and  the  resulting  amount  shall be deemed the applicable
    18  income in determining the applicant's award for the academic year.
    19    b. (i) In the determination of  income  for  purposes  of  subdivision
    20  three of section six hundred sixty-seven of this part, student financial
    21  aid  officers are hereby authorized, on the basis of adequate documenta-
    22  tion, to make adjustments on a case-by-case basis in the  amount  deemed

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01381-01-1
        A. 707                              2

     1  applicable  income  in determining an applicant's award for the academic
     2  year, to allow for treatment of an individual, eligible  applicant  with
     3  special circumstances as defined herein.
     4    (ii)  Special circumstances may include: (A) expenses of the following
     5  nature incurred or paid by one or more of  either  the  parents  of  the
     6  applicant  or  other  dependent child of such parents, the spouse of the
     7  applicant, or one or more dependent children of the applicant,  such  as
     8  but  not  limited  to:  tuition  expenses  at an elementary or secondary
     9  school, medical or dental expenses not covered by insurance, and  unusu-
    10  ally  high  child care costs, (B) recent unemployment of a family member
    11  necessitating contributions by any of the aforesaid persons to the fami-
    12  ly member's support, or (C) other changes in the  family's  income,  the
    13  family's  assets,  or a student's status. Special circumstances shall be
    14  conditions that differentiate an individual  student  from  a  class  of
    15  students rather than conditions that exist across a class of students.
    16    (iii) Adequate documentation for such adjustments shall be required to
    17  substantiate  such special circumstances of individual students. Nothing
    18  in this paragraph shall be interpreted as limiting the authority of  the
    19  student  financial  aid officer in such cases to request and use supple-
    20  mentary information about the financial status or personal circumstances
    21  of such applicants in selecting recipients and determining the amount of
    22  awards under subdivision three of section  six  hundred  sixty-seven  of
    23  this  part.  No student or parent shall be charged a fee for collecting,
    24  processing, or delivering such supplementary information.
    25    (iv) A student financial aid officer shall be considered to be  making
    26  a necessary adjustment in accordance with subparagraph (i) of this para-
    27  graph if:
    28    (A)  the  officer  makes  adjustments excluding from family income any
    29  proceeds of a sale of farm or business assets of a family if  such  sale
    30  results from a voluntary or involuntary foreclosure, forfeiture or bank-
    31  ruptcy or an involuntary liquidation, or
    32    (B) the officer makes adjustments in the award level of a student with
    33  a  disability so as to take into consideration the additional costs such
    34  student incurs as a result of such student's disability.
    35    § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 667 of the education law, as amended  by
    36  chapter 622 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
    37    1.  Recipient  qualifications.  Tuition  assistance program awards are
    38  available for all students who are enrolled in approved programs and who
    39  demonstrate the ability to complete such  courses,  in  accordance  with
    40  standards  established  by  the  commissioner provided, however, that no
    41  award shall be made unless tuition [(exclusive of educational fees)] and
    42  any mandatory educational fees  and,  if  applicable,  the  college  fee
    43  levied  by the state university of New York pursuant to the April first,
    44  nineteen hundred sixty-four financing agreements with the New York state
    45  dormitory authority charged for the program  in  which  the  student  is
    46  enrolled  total  at  least  two  hundred dollars a year[,]; and provided
    47  further that[,] no award [can] shall exceed one hundred percent  of  the
    48  amount of tuition charged.
    49    §  4.  Subitem  (c)  of  item  1 of clause (A) of subparagraph (i) and
    50  subparagraph (vi) of paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 667 of  the
    51  education  law,  subitem (c) of item 1 of clause (A) of subparagraph (i)
    52  as amended by section 1 of part U of chapter 56 of the laws of 2014  and
    53  subparagraph (vi) as amended by section 1 of part B of chapter 60 of the
    54  laws of 2000, are amended to read as follows:
    55    (c) For students first receiving aid in two thousand--two thousand one
    56  and  [thereafter] before two thousand twenty-three--two thousand twenty-
        A. 707                              3

     1  four, five thousand dollars[, except starting in two thousand  fourteen-
     2  two  thousand  fifteen  and  thereafter such students shall receive five
     3  thousand one hundred sixty-five dollars]; or
     4    (I) For students first receiving aid in two thousand twenty-three--two
     5  thousand twenty-four, five thousand five hundred dollars; or
     6    (II) For students first receiving aid in two thousand twenty-four--two
     7  thousand twenty-five and thereafter, six thousand dollars.
     8    (vi)  For  the  two  thousand [two] twenty-three--two thousand [three]
     9  twenty-four academic year and thereafter, the award  shall  be  the  net
    10  amount  of  the  base  amount determined pursuant to subparagraph (i) of
    11  this paragraph reduced pursuant to subparagraph (ii) or  (iii)  of  this
    12  paragraph  but  the award shall not be reduced below [five] nine hundred
    13  fifty dollars; and one thousand dollars for each academic year and ther-
    14  eafter.
    15    § 5. Clause (B) of subparagraph (i) of paragraph a of subdivision 3 of
    16  section 667 of the education law, as amended by section 1 of part  B  of
    17  chapter 60 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
    18    (B)  (1)  Ninety-five  percent of the amount of tuition [(exclusive of
    19  educational fees) charged and, if applicable, the college fee levied  by
    20  the  state  university of New York pursuant to the April first, nineteen
    21  hundred sixty-four financing agreement with the New York state dormitory
    22  authority] and any mandatory educational fees.
    23    (2) For the two thousand one--two thousand two academic year and ther-
    24  eafter, one hundred percent of the  amount  of  tuition  [(exclusive  of
    25  educational  fees) charged and, if applicable, the college fee levied by
    26  the state university of New York pursuant to the April  first,  nineteen
    27  hundred sixty-four financing agreement with the New York state dormitory
    28  authority] and any mandatory educational fees.
    29    § 6. Clause (B) of subparagraph (i) of paragraph b of subdivision 3 of
    30  section  667  of the education law, as amended by section 2 of part B of
    31  chapter 60 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
    32    (B) (1) Ninety-five percent of the amount of  tuition  [(exclusive  of
    33  educational fees)] and any mandatory educational fees charged.
    34    (2) For the two thousand one--two thousand two academic year and ther-
    35  eafter,  one  hundred  percent  of  the amount of tuition [(exclusive of
    36  educational fees)] and any mandatory educational fees.
    37    § 7. Subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of paragraph c  of  subdivision  3  of
    38  section  667 of the education law, as added by chapter 83 of the laws of
    39  1995 and such paragraph as relettered by section 2 of part J of  chapter
    40  58 of the laws of 2011, are amended to read as follows:
    41    (i)  be  made  unless  the  annual  tuition [(exclusive of educational
    42  fees)] and any  mandatory  educational  fees  and,  if  applicable,  the
    43  college  fee  levied by the state university of New York pursuant to the
    44  April first, nineteen hundred sixty-four financing  agreement  with  the
    45  New  York state dormitory authority charged for the program in which the
    46  student is enrolled total at least two hundred dollars; or
    47    (ii) exceed the amount by which such  annual  tuition  [(exclusive  of
    48  educational  fees)]  and any mandatory educational fees and, if applica-
    49  ble, the college fee levied by the state university of New York pursuant
    50  to the April first, nineteen hundred sixty-four financing agreement with
    51  the New York state dormitory authority exceed the  total  of  all  other
    52  state,  federal, or other educational aid that is received or receivable
    53  by such student during the school year for which such award is  applica-
    54  ble  and  that, in the judgment of the commissioner, would duplicate the
    55  purposes of the award; or
        A. 707                              4

     1    § 8. Section 2 of the education law is amended by adding a new  subdi-
     2  vision 25 to read as follows:
     3    25.  Mandatory  educational  fee. The term "mandatory educational fee"
     4  includes only those fees required to fulfill the requirements of a grad-
     5  uate or undergraduate degree; provided, however, that such term excludes
     6  those fees imposed by a vote of the student body.
     7    § 9. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the  amend-
     8  ments  to  section  663 of the education law made by section two of this
     9  act shall apply to determinations made on or after such effective date.