Bill Text: NY S04511 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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

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Bill Title: Expands the eligibility period for indigent legal service attorneys to receive certain loan forgiveness; increases loan reimbursement for certain attorneys who work in legal services with indigent clients.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 19-0)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-03-11 - referred to higher education [S04511 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S04511-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          4511

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    February 9, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sens.  RAMOS, FELDER, GOUNARDES, HOYLMAN-SIGAL, JACKSON,
          LIU, MAY, MYRIE, RIVERA, SALAZAR, SEPULVEDA, SERRANO, THOMAS  --  read
          twice  and  ordered  printed,  and when printed to be committed to the
          Committee on Higher Education

        AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to  the  New  York  state
          district  attorney  and indigent legal services attorney loan forgive-
          ness program

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

     1    Section  1.    Subparagraph  (i)  of  paragraph  a of subdivision 2 of
     2  section 679-e of the education law,  as amended by section 1 of  part  R
     3  of chapter 57 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
     4    (i) "Eligible attorney" means an attorney, who is a resident of and is
     5  admitted to practice law in New York state, who is employed full-time as
     6  either  a  district  attorney,  as  defined in subparagraph (ii) of this
     7  paragraph, or an indigent legal services attorney, as defined in subpar-
     8  agraph (iii) of this paragraph or an attorney working as assigned  coun-
     9  sel  pursuant  to  article  eighteen-B of the county law who provides an
    10  annual average of one hundred twenty hours per month to assigned counsel
    11  cases, who is admitted to practice law in this state for not  more  than
    12  eleven  years  or who was within the eligible period as defined in para-
    13  graph b of this subdivision during the time for  which  such  person  is
    14  seeking  a student loan expense grant. Notwithstanding the foregoing, an
    15  eligible attorney shall include those district attorney  applicants  who
    16  were  awarded  program  eligibility  and  who provided qualified service
    17  between April first, two thousand  eight  and  March  thirty-first,  two
    18  thousand  eleven;  such  an  eligible  attorney shall remain eligible to
    19  participate in the program provided they are within an  eligible  period
    20  measured  from  six  years  from  the date which such attorney was first
    21  employed as a district attorney.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02878-02-3
        S. 4511                             2

     1    § 2. Paragraph b of subdivision 2 of section 679-e  of  the  education
     2  law,  as  amended  by  section 1 of part VV of chapter 56 of the laws of
     3  2009, is amended to read as follows:
     4    b.  "Eligible  period"  means  the  [six-year] eight-year period after
     5  completion of the [third] second year and before the commencement of the
     6  tenth year of employment as an eligible attorney. For purposes  of  this
     7  section,  all  periods  of  time  during  which an admitted attorney was
     8  employed as an eligible attorney and all periods of time during which  a
     9  law  school  graduate  awaiting  admission to the New York state bar was
    10  employed by a prosecuting [or] agency, criminal defense agency, non-pro-
    11  fit indigent civil legal services corporation, or as assigned counsel as
    12  permitted by section four hundred eighty-four of the judiciary law shall
    13  be combined.
    14    § 3. Paragraph d of subdivision 2 of section 679-e  of  the  education
    15  law,  as  amended  by  section 1 of part VV of chapter 56 of the laws of
    16  2009, is amended to read as follows:
    17    d. "Year of qualified service" means the twelve month period  measured
    18  from  the anniversary of the attorney's employment as an eligible attor-
    19  ney, or as a law school graduate awaiting  admission  to  the  New  York
    20  state  bar  employed  by  a  prosecuting  [or]  agency, criminal defense
    21  agency, non-profit indigent civil  legal  services  corporation,  or  as
    22  assigned counsel as permitted by section four hundred eighty-four of the
    23  judiciary law, adjusted for any interruption in employment.  Vacation or
    24  leave  time provided by the employer or leave taken for a condition that
    25  is a qualifying reason for leave under the Family and Medical Leave  Act
    26  of 1993, 29, U.S.C. 2612(a)(1) and (3) shall not be considered an inter-
    27  ruption  in  qualifying  employment. Any period of [temporary leave from
    28  service] interruption in qualifying  employment  taken  by  an  eligible
    29  attorney  shall  not  be  considered  in  the  calculation  of qualified
    30  service. However, the period of [temporary leave shall be considered an]
    31  interruption in qualifying employment and the calculation  of  the  time
    32  period  of qualified service shall recommence when the eligible attorney
    33  returns to [full time] service.
    34    § 4. Paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 679-e  of  the  education
    35  law,  as  amended  by  section 1 of part VV of chapter 56 of the laws of
    36  2009, is amended to read as follows:
    37    a.  An  eligible  attorney  may  apply  for  reimbursement  after  the
    38  completion  of  each  year  of  qualified  service provided however that
    39  reimbursement to each eligible attorney shall not exceed [three thousand
    40  four hundred] eight thousand dollars, per qualifying  year,  subject  to
    41  appropriations  available  therefor. The president may establish: (i) an
    42  application deadline and (ii) a method of selecting recipients if in any
    43  given year there are insufficient funds to cover the needs  of  all  the
    44  applicants.    Awards  shall be within the amounts appropriated for such
    45  purpose and based on availability of funds.
    46    § 5. Paragraph b of subdivision 3 of section 679-e  of  the  education
    47  law,  as  amended  by  section 1 of part VV of chapter 56 of the laws of
    48  2009, is amended to read as follows:
    49    b. An eligible attorney may apply after the completion of the [fourth]
    50  second year of qualified service,  and  annually  thereafter  after  the
    51  completion  of the [fifth] third through [ninth] tenth year of qualified
    52  service, and may seek a student loan expense grant for only the previous
    53  year of qualified service within the  time  periods  prescribed  by  the
    54  president.  An eligible attorney may receive student loan expense grants
    55  for no more than [six] eight years of qualified service within an eligi-
    56  ble period.
        S. 4511                             3

     1    § 6. This act shall take effect April 1, 2024.  Nothing  in  this  act
     2  shall  be  implemented  in a manner that diminishes the current award or
     3  status of eligible attorneys currently participating in the program.