Bill Text: NY S02049 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Enacts "new deal for SUNY: the New York state higher education equality act" to provide free tuition to students who attend SUNY who are enrolled in academic coursework and are on track to graduate; establishes the state university tuition fund to reimburse the state university of New York for the cost of tuition for students who are eligible for free tuition.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-15 - REFERRED TO HIGHER EDUCATION [S02049 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-S02049-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          2049

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 15, 2025
                                       ___________

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

        AN ACT to amend the education law and the state finance law, in relation
          to providing free tuition to students who attend the state  university
          of New York

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

     1    Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as "new  deal  for
     2  SUNY: the New York state higher education equality act".
     3    §  2. Paragraph h of subdivision 2 of section 355 of the education law
     4  is amended by adding a new subparagraph 1-a to read as follows:
     5    (1-a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule  or  regulation
     6  to  the  contrary,  the trustees shall implement a program to permit any
     7  student who has been admitted to a  state-operated  institution  of  the
     8  state  university  of  New York to attend without the payment of tuition
     9  and fees if such student  fulfills  the  requirements  of  such  program
    10  pursuant to the provisions of this subparagraph.
    11    (i)  The  trustees shall provide an application process and administer
    12  the program which shall be available to any student eligible  for  resi-
    13  dent  tuition  rates, who is enrolled in credit-bearing academic course-
    14  work and is on track to graduate.
    15    (ii) Any student not successfully completing  credit-bearing  academic
    16  coursework  in  a  semester shall still be eligible to receive all other
    17  grants, awards, and scholarships for which they qualify but shall not be
    18  eligible for the tuition and student fee waiver described herein.
    19    (iii) Students shall be eligible to receive a one  semester  exemption
    20  from  the requirement to complete credit-bearing academic coursework for
    21  such tuition waiver as promulgated by the trustees. Such exemption shall
    22  not preclude any student from exercising their right to appeal  pursuant
    23  to higher education services corporation policy.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02101-01-5
        S. 2049                             2

     1    (iv) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regulation to
     2  the  contrary  subject  to  amounts  made  available  by  appropriation,
     3  commencing in the academic year next succeeding the  effective  date  of
     4  this  subdivision, and every academic year thereafter, the state univer-
     5  sity   shall  be  entitled  to  annually  receive  one  hundred  percent
     6  reimbursement for the annual cost of tuition and student fees  for  each
     7  matriculated  undergraduate student at a state university senior college
     8  and community college who is enrolled in credit-bearing academic course-
     9  work and is on track to graduate from the fund established  pursuant  to
    10  section ninety-seven-aaaa of the state finance law.
    11    §  3.  Section  667  of  the  education law is amended by adding a new
    12  subdivision 1-a to read as follows:
    13    1-a. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regulation to
    14  the contrary, commencing in the academic year next succeeding the effec-
    15  tive date of this subdivision, and every academic year  thereafter,  all
    16  funding  appropriated  for tuition assistance program awards pursuant to
    17  this section shall be deposited into the fund specified in section nine-
    18  ty-seven-aaaa of the state finance law.
    19    § 4. Section 669-h of the education law is amended  by  adding  a  new
    20  subdivision 7 to read as follows:
    21    7.  Notwithstanding  any other provision of law, rule or regulation to
    22  the contrary, commencing in the academic year next succeeding the effec-
    23  tive date of this subdivision, and every academic year  thereafter,  all
    24  funding  appropriated  for  the  excelsior  scholarship pursuant to this
    25  section shall be deposited into the fund specified  in  section  ninety-
    26  seven-aaaa of the state finance law.
    27    §  5. Subdivision 1 of section 6304 of the education law is amended by
    28  adding a new paragraph e to read as follows:
    29    e. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or  regulation  to
    30  the  contrary,  the  trustees,  sponsors,  or  other governing body of a
    31  community college shall implement a program to permit  any  student  who
    32  has been admitted to a state-operated institution of the state universi-
    33  ty  to  attend  without  the payment of tuition and fees if such student
    34  fulfills the requirements of such program pursuant to the provisions  of
    35  this paragraph.
    36    (i)  The  trustees shall provide an application process and administer
    37  the program which shall be available to any student eligible  for  resi-
    38  dent  tuition  rates, who is enrolled in credit-bearing academic course-
    39  work and is on track to graduate.
    40    (ii) Any student not successfully completing  credit-bearing  academic
    41  coursework  in  a  semester shall still be eligible to receive all other
    42  grants, awards, and scholarships for which they qualify but shall not be
    43  eligible for the tuition and student fee waiver described herein.
    44    (iii) Students shall be eligible to receive a one  semester  exemption
    45  from  the requirement to complete credit-bearing academic coursework for
    46  such tuition waiver as promulgated by the trustees. Such exemption shall
    47  not preclude any student from exercising their right to appeal  pursuant
    48  to higher education services corporation policy.
    49    §  6. Subdivision 1 of section 6304 of the education law is amended by
    50  adding a new paragraph a-1 to read as follows:
    51    a-1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regulation to
    52  the contrary, state financial aid shall be increased above the one-third
    53  amount of operating costs set forth in paragraph a of  this  subdivision
    54  by  an  amount which is equal to the cost of tuition awarded to students
    55  who apply and qualify for the program set forth in paragraph e  of  this
        S. 2049                             3

     1  subdivision  and  such aid shall be deposited into the fund specified in
     2  section ninety-seven-aaaa of the state finance law.
     3    §  7. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 97-aaaa
     4  to read as follows:
     5    § 97-aaaa. State university tuition fund. 1. There  is  hereby  estab-
     6  lished in the joint custody of the state comptroller and the commission-
     7  er  of  taxation  and finance a fund to be known as the state university
     8  tuition fund.
     9    2. The fund shall consist of moneys received by the state pursuant  to
    10  subparagraph  one-a  of  paragraph h of subdivision two of section three
    11  hundred fifty-five of the education law, moneys donated or given to  the
    12  state, and all other moneys appropriated, credited or transferred there-
    13  to from any other fund or source.
    14    3.  Moneys  of the fund shall be made available to the commissioner of
    15  education to be distributed to the state  university  of  New  York  and
    16  shall  be  deposited with the state university no later than thirty days
    17  after the start of the semester. The state university shall  receive  an
    18  amount  equal  to  the  full  cost of in-state undergraduate tuition and
    19  student fees for each qualifying, matriculated student who  successfully
    20  completes credit-bearing academic coursework and is on track to graduate
    21  from the state university.
    22    4. The full cost of tuition shall not include any additional funds the
    23  student  may  receive  from  any  other New York state or federal grant,
    24  award, or scholarship program.
    25    5. The deposit of these funds shall be utilized as first dollar awards
    26  to the students at the state university.
    27    § 8. This act shall take effect immediately.