Bill Text: NY S02842 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires a course of instruction on the provisions of the federalist papers and the United States constitution to be provided to high school students.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO EDUCATION [S02842 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S02842-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          2842

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 25, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  LANZA  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Education

        AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to courses of instruction
          on the constitution of the United States and the federalist papers

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

     1    Section  1.  Subdivisions 2 and 3 of section 801 of the education law,
     2  subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 481 of the laws of 1949 and subdivi-
     3  sion 3 as amended by section 27 of part A of chapter 56 of the  laws  of
     4  2020, are amended and a new subdivision 6 is added to read as follows:
     5    2.  The regents shall prescribe courses of instruction in the history,
     6  meaning, significance and effect of the provisions of  the  constitution
     7  of the United States, the amendments thereto, the federalist papers, the
     8  declaration  of  independence, the constitution of the state of New York
     9  and the amendments thereto, to be maintained and followed in all of  the
    10  schools  of  the  state.  The  boards  of  education and trustees of the
    11  several cities and school districts of the state shall require  instruc-
    12  tion  to  be  given  in  such  courses,  by the teachers employed in the
    13  schools therein. All pupils attending such schools, in  the  eighth  and
    14  higher grades, shall attend upon such instruction.
    15    Similar  courses  of instruction shall be prescribed and maintained in
    16  private schools in the state, and all pupils in such schools  in  grades
    17  or  classes  corresponding  to  the instruction in the eighth and higher
    18  grades of the public schools shall attend upon  such  courses.  If  such
    19  courses  are  not  so  established  and  maintained in a private school,
    20  attendance upon instruction in such school shall not be deemed  substan-
    21  tially  equivalent  to instruction given to pupils in the public schools
    22  of the city or district in which such pupils reside.
    23    3. The regents shall determine the subjects to  be  included  in  such
    24  courses  of  instruction in patriotism, citizenship, civic education and
    25  values, our shared history of diversity, the role of history of diversi-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02282-01-3
        S. 2842                             2

     1  ty, the role of religious tolerance in this country,  and  human  rights
     2  issues,  with  particular  attention  to  the study of the inhumanity of
     3  genocide, slavery (including the freedom  trail  and  underground  rail-
     4  road),  the  Holocaust,  and the mass starvation in Ireland from 1845 to
     5  1850, and in the  history,  meaning,  significance  and  effect  of  the
     6  provisions  of  the  constitution  of  the United States, the amendments
     7  thereto, the federalist papers, the  declaration  of  independence,  the
     8  constitution  of  the  state of New York and the amendments thereto, and
     9  the period of instruction in each of the grades in such  subjects.  They
    10  shall adopt rules providing for attendance upon such instruction and for
    11  such  other matters as are required for carrying into effect the objects
    12  and purposes of this section. The commissioner shall be responsible  for
    13  the  enforcement  of  such  section  and shall cause to be inspected and
    14  supervise the instruction to be given in such subjects. The commissioner
    15  may, in his discretion, cause all or a  portion  of  the  public  school
    16  money to be apportioned to a district or city to be withheld for failure
    17  of  the  school authorities of such district or city to provide instruc-
    18  tion in such courses and to compel attendance upon such instruction,  as
    19  herein  prescribed,  and  for  a  non-compliance  with  the rules of the
    20  regents adopted as herein provided.
    21    6. The regents shall establish and implement a course  of  instruction
    22  on  the  history,  meaning,  significance  and  effect of the federalist
    23  papers and the provisions of the constitution of the United  States  and
    24  all  amendments thereto. Such course of instruction established pursuant
    25  to this subdivision shall be provided  to  all  pupils  in  grades  nine
    26  through twelve.
    27    §  2.  This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding
    28  the date on which it shall have become a law.