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

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

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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--A

                    IN SENATE

                                    February 22, 2022
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  THOMAS -- 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

        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;  and  to  amend  the  tax law, in
          relation to excluding from gross income certain student loan  forgive-
          ness awards

          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 thirty hours per week or at least thirty hours per week
    18  throughout  a  contractual or employment period of at least eight months
    19  in a twelve-month period, such as elementary and secondary school teach-
    20  ers.
    21    4. "Public service employer" means any state, county,  city  or  other
    22  local government employer, including any office, department, independent
    23  agency,  school  district,  public  college or university system, public

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14644-03-2
        S. 8389--A                          2

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

     1    4. Nothing in this section shall prevent  a  public  service  employer
     2  from  seeking  permission  from  its employees prior to certifying their
     3  employment.
     4    § 2. Subsection (c) of section 612 of the tax law is amended by adding
     5  a new paragraph 46 to read as follows:
     6    (46) The amount of any student loan forgiveness award made pursuant to
     7  the federal Higher Education Act of 1965.
     8    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that:
     9    a. public service employers shall be required to comply with paragraph
    10  a of subdivision 2 of section 1002 of the labor law as added by this act
    11  no later than sixty days after such effective date; and
    12    b. public service employers shall be required to comply with paragraph
    13  b of subdivision 2 of section 1002 of the labor law as added by this act
    14  no later than January 1, 2023.