Bill Text: NY S08389 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Relates to certification of public employment for purposes of the federal public service loan forgiveness program; requires public employers to provide certain notices and program forms; provides that an average of 30 hours per week shall be considered full-time for purposes of certifying public employment under the federal program.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Passed) 2022-09-15 - SIGNED CHAP.562 [S08389 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S08389-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         8389--C
            Cal. No. 1289

                    IN SENATE

                                    February 22, 2022
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sens. THOMAS, MAY -- read twice and ordered printed, and
          when printed to be committed to the Committee on  Labor  --  committee
          discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
          to  said  committee -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered
          to first and second report, amended on second  report,  ordered  to  a
          third  reading, and to be reprinted as amended, retaining its place in
          the order of third reading -- reported favorably from  said  committee
          to  third  reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place
          in the order of third reading

        AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to certification  of  employ-
          ment  with public service employers for purposes of the federal public
          service loan forgiveness program

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

     1    Section 1. The labor law is amended by adding a new article 34 to read
     2  as follows:
     3                                 ARTICLE 34
     4                 CERTIFICATION OF PUBLIC SERVICE EMPLOYMENT
     5  Section 1000. Definitions.
     6          1001. Hours worked and full-time employment.
     7          1002. Certifying employment.
     8    § 1000. Definitions. For purposes of this article:
     9    1.  "Certifying  employment"  means  either  completing  the  employer
    10  sections of the public service loan forgiveness  form  or  sharing  data
    11  directly  with the U.S.  department of education that corresponds to the
    12  information required for the public service loan forgiveness form.
    13    2. "Employee" means someone who works for a public  service  employer,
    14  regardless of whether the public service employer considers that work to
    15  be full-time or part-time, contingent, or contracted.
    16    3.  "Full-time"  for  the  purpose of certifying employment only means
    17  working at least an average of thirty hours per  week  or  at  least  an
    18  average  of thirty hours per week throughout a contractual or employment
    19  period of at least eight  months  in  a  twelve-month  period,  such  as
    20  elementary and secondary school teachers, provided, however, that should

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14644-07-2
        S. 8389--C                          2

     1  the  U.S.  department  of  education adopt a lower hourly standard, that
     2  standard shall apply.
     3    4. "Public service employer" means any employer designated as a public
     4  service organization or employer by the U.S. department of education for
     5  the  purpose  of  the  public service loan forgiveness program. The term
     6  shall include any state, county, city or other local government  employ-
     7  er,   including  any  office,  department,  independent  agency,  school
     8  district, public college or university system,  public  library  system,
     9  authority,  or  other body, including the legislature and the judiciary,
    10  as well as any employer that has received designation  as  a  tax-exempt
    11  organization  pursuant to section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue
    12  Code.  For the purposes of this article, this term does  not  include  a
    13  federal or tribal nation government organization, agency, or entity.
    14    5.  "Public  service loan forgiveness form" means the form used by the
    15  U.S. department of education to certify an individual's employment at  a
    16  public  service  organization and determine eligibility for the purposes
    17  of the public service loan forgiveness program.
    18    6. "Public service loan forgiveness program" means  the  federal  loan
    19  forgiveness  program  established  pursuant  to  20  U.S.C. 1087e(m) and
    20  administered pursuant to 34 C.F.R 685.219, as of the effective  date  of
    21  this article.
    22    §  1001.  Hours  worked  and full-time employment. The following shall
    23  apply for the purposes of certifying employment for the purposes of  the
    24  public  service  loan  forgiveness  program only and shall have no other
    25  applicability for public service employers and their employees.
    26    1. For faculty or teacher employees, a public service employer  certi-
    27  fying  employment  after  the  effective  date of this subdivision shall
    28  credit 3.35 hours worked for each hour of  lecture  or  classroom  time,
    29  regardless  of  when the hours were worked, including hours worked prior
    30  to the effective date of this subdivision.   This subdivision  does  not
    31  supersede  any  greater  adjustment  factor  established by a collective
    32  bargaining agreement or employer policy  in  recognition  of  additional
    33  work  associated  with  lecture or classroom time for the purpose of the
    34  public service loan forgiveness program.
    35    2. When determining whether an employee is considered "full-time,"  as
    36  that  term  is  defined  in  this article, for the purpose of certifying
    37  employment for the public  service  loan  forgiveness  program  only,  a
    38  public  service employer shall not treat any adjusted total hours worked
    39  pursuant to subdivision one  of  this  section  differently  from  hours
    40  worked without an adjustment factor.
    41    3.  For  the  purpose  of certifying employment only, a public service
    42  employer shall consider as "full-time" any employee  who  satisfies  the
    43  definition of "full-time" provided in this article.
    44    § 1002. Certifying employment. 1. Should the U.S. department of educa-
    45  tion  permit  public service employers to certify employment for past or
    46  present individual employees or groups of employees  directly  with  the
    47  U.S.  department  of  education  or  its  agents,  notwithstanding other
    48  provisions of law, a public service employer shall be permitted to  send
    49  to  the  U.S.    department  of  education or its agents the information
    50  necessary for employment certification.
    51    2. If a public service employer does not directly  certify  employment
    52  with  the  U.S.  department  of education pursuant to subdivision one of
    53  this section, the public service employer shall annually provide  notice
    54  of  renewal  and a copy of the public service loan forgiveness form with
    55  the employer information and employment certification  sections  of  the
    56  form already completed to:
        S. 8389--C                          3

     1    a. an employee who requests a public service loan forgiveness form;
     2    b.  any  current  employee  for  whom  the public service employer has
     3  previously certified employment; and
     4    c. an employee who is ending his or her work with the  public  service
     5  employer.
     6    The  partially  completed form should reflect employment for the prior
     7  calendar year, and may reflect longer periods of employment,  as  neces-
     8  sary.
     9    3.  A public service employer shall not unreasonably delay in certify-
    10  ing employment.
    11    4. Nothing in this section shall prevent  a  public  service  employer
    12  from  seeking  permission  from  its employees prior to certifying their
    13  employment.
    14    § 2. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part
    15  of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction  to
    16  be  invalid  and  after  exhaustion  of all further judicial review, the
    17  judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the  remainder  thereof,
    18  but  shall  be  confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, para-
    19  graph, section or part of this act directly involved in the  controversy
    20  in which the judgment shall have been rendered.
    21    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that:
    22    a. public service employers shall be required to comply with paragraph
    23  a  of subdivision 2 of section 1002 of the labor law as added by section
    24  one of this act no later than sixty days after such effective date; and
    25    b. public service employers shall be required to comply with paragraph
    26  b of subdivision 2 of section 1002 of the labor law as added by  section
    27  one of this act no later than January 1, 2023.