Bill Text: NY A01378 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Prohibits legacy preference as eligible criteria for admission standards.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-14 - print number 1378a [A01378 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A01378-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1378

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 17, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  EPSTEIN,  SEAWRIGHT,  GIBBS -- read once and
          referred to the Committee on Higher Education

        AN ACT to amend the education law, in  relation  to  prohibiting  legacy
          preference as eligible criteria for admission standards or for partic-
          ipation in state awards programs

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

     1    Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section  209-b
     2  to read as follows:
     3    §  209-b. Legacy preference for admission. 1. For the purposes of this
     4  section, "legacy preference"  means  a  preference  given  by  a  public
     5  college  or  public  university  on the basis of an applicant's familial
     6  relationship to alumni of such public college or public university.
     7    2. Notwithstanding any other law, rule or regulation to the  contrary,
     8  a  public college or public university shall not consider a legacy pref-
     9  erence as eligible criteria for admission standards; provided,  however,
    10  that a public college or public university may still inquire about fami-
    11  lial relationships to alumni in order to collect data.
    12    §  2.  Subdivision 1 of section 665-a of the education law, as amended
    13  by chapter 146 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
    14    1. Participation agreement. No  institution  may  participate  in  the
    15  general,  academic  or  other  award  programs described in this article
    16  unless it shall have entered into a written agreement  with  the  corpo-
    17  ration  under  which it shall be bound to comply with all laws and rules
    18  applicable to such programs. The  participation  agreement  may  contain
    19  such  other  terms and conditions, consistent with such applicable laws,
    20  rules and procedures, as the president may require  in  accordance  with
    21  rules  adopted  for  this purpose by the board and shall be developed in
    22  consultation with the commissioner of education; provided, however, that
    23  a participation agreement with any institution shall include the  condi-
    24  tion  that  such  institution  shall not consider a legacy preference as

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03385-01-3
        A. 1378                             2

     1  eligible criteria for admission standards. For purposes of this subdivi-
     2  sion, "legacy preference" shall mean a preference given by  an  institu-
     3  tion  on  the basis of an applicant's familial relationship to alumni of
     4  such institution.
     5    In  accordance  with  rules adopted by the board for this purpose, the
     6  president, may suspend, limit  or  terminate  an  institution's  partic-
     7  ipation  in  these  programs in the event it shall be determined after a
     8  hearing conducted in accordance with the state administrative  procedure
     9  act  that  the  institution  has  violated any applicable laws, rules or
    10  procedures provided for under the agreement in accordance with  law  and
    11  the rules of the board.
    12    §  3.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
    13  have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
    14  repeal of any rule or regulation necessary  for  the  implementation  of
    15  this  act  on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
    16  on or before such date.