Bill Text: NY A03148 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Expands the eligibility and increases the number of awards for the New York state young farmers loan forgiveness incentive program to undergraduate and graduate degrees; increases the number of such awards from ten to twenty; increases the amount of such award from fifty to sixty thousand dollars upon the end of a six year, rather than five year, period.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - referred to higher education [A03148 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-A03148-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ S. 3819 A. 3148 2017-2018 Regular Sessions SENATE - ASSEMBLY January 27, 2017 ___________ IN SENATE -- Introduced by Sens. LAVALLE, GALLIVAN, RITCHIE, SERINO, SEWARD -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education IN ASSEMBLY -- Introduced by M. of A. THIELE -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to expanding the eligi- bility and increasing the number of awards for the New York state young farmers loan forgiveness incentive program The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 679-f of the education law, as added by section 1 2 of part Y of chapter 56 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as 3 follows: 4 § 679-f. New York state young farmers loan forgiveness incentive 5 program. 1. Purpose. The president shall grant student loan forgiveness 6 awards for the purpose of alleviating the burden of student loan debt 7 for young farmers. Such awards shall be made on a competitive basis, in 8 accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the corporation for 9 such purposes, to applicants who meet the eligibility criteria. Such 10 rules and regulations shall include provisions for the consideration of 11 applicants who are economically disadvantaged. 12 2. Eligibility. To be eligible for an award pursuant to this section, 13 applicants shall: (a) have graduated and obtained [a] an undergraduate 14 or graduate degree from an approved New York state college or universi- 15 ty; (b) have an outstanding student loan debt from obtaining such 16 degree; (c) operate a farm in New York state on a full-time basis; (d) 17 agree to operate such farm for the duration of no less than five years; 18 (e) apply for this program within two years of college graduation; and 19 (f) comply with subdivisions three and five of section six hundred 20 sixty-one of this part. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04111-01-7S. 3819 2 A. 3148 1 3. Awards. No greater than [ten] twenty awards shall be granted to 2 qualified applicants in the amount of up to ten thousand dollars per 3 year, per applicant, not to exceed a duration of [five] six years and 4 not to exceed the total amount of such applicant's student loan debt. 5 The corporation shall grant such awards within amounts appropriated for 6 such purposes and based on the availability of funds. No one applicant 7 shall receive more than a total of [fifty] sixty thousand dollars upon 8 the end of a [five] six year period. 9 4. Priority. First priority shall be given to applicants who are 10 completing the second, third, fourth or fifth year of full-time farm 11 operation and are re-applying to receive an award under this program. 12 Second priority shall be given to an applicant who can demonstrate 13 economic need but did not receive an award during the first year of this 14 program's operation. If larger numbers of applicants are eligible pursu- 15 ant to this subdivision than funds available, applicants shall be chosen 16 pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated by the corporation. 17 Provided, however, that each applicant chosen shall receive an award of 18 up to ten thousand dollars in each year such applicant is accepted into 19 the program. 20 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.