STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7096
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 28, 2021
___________
Introduced by Sen. COONEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Disabilities
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to authorizing the
retention of federal funds for special education programs for
preschool children
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Paragraph k of subdivision 4 of section 4405 of the educa-
2 tion law, as added by section 37-f of part A of chapter 56 of the laws
3 of 2021, is amended to read as follows:
4 k. The tuition methodology established pursuant to this subdivision
5 for the two thousand twenty-one--two thousand twenty-two school year and
6 annually thereafter shall authorize approved private residential or
7 non-residential schools for the education of students with disabilities
8 that are located within the state, [and] special act school districts
9 and programs approved pursuant to section forty-four hundred ten of this
10 article, to retain funds in excess of their allowable and reimbursable
11 costs incurred for services and programs provided to school-age and
12 preschool students. The amount of funds that may be annually retained
13 shall not exceed one percent of the school's [or], school district's, or
14 program approved pursuant to section forty-four hundred ten of this
15 article's total allowable and reimbursable costs for services and
16 programs provided to school-age and preschool students for the school
17 year from which the funds are to be retained; provided that the total
18 accumulated balance that may be retained shall not exceed four percent
19 of such total costs for such school year; [and] provided further that
20 such funds shall not be recoverable on reconciliation of tuition rates,
21 shall be carried forward as total reimbursable costs for purposes of
22 calculating subsequent year prospective and reconciliation tuition
23 rates, and shall be separate from and in addition to any other authori-
24 zation to retain surplus funds on reconciliation. Funds may be expended
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11513-01-1
S. 7096 2
1 only pursuant to an authorization of the governing board of the school
2 [or], school district, or program approved pursuant to section forty-
3 four hundred ten of this article, for a purpose expressly authorized as
4 part of the approved tuition methodology for the year in which the funds
5 are to be expended, provided that funds may be expended to pay prior
6 year outstanding debts. Any school [or], school district, or program
7 approved pursuant to section forty-four hundred ten of this article that
8 retains funds pursuant to this paragraph shall be required to annually
9 report a statement of the total balance of any such retained funds, the
10 amount, if any, retained in the prior school year, the amount, if any,
11 dispersed in the prior school year, and any additional information
12 requested by the department as part of the financial reports that are
13 required to be annually submitted to the department.
14 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to
15 have been in full force and effect on and after April 1, 2021.