NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A2240
SPONSOR: Simon TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the education law, in relation to providing for absence
from school for the mental or behavioral health of the minor
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
This bill would permit students to take excused absences for their
mental or behavioral health under rules as established by the commis-
sioner.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill amends Section 3210 of the Education Law to
provide that the absence of a minor from school due to mental or behav-
ioral health shall be permitted under rules that the Commissioner of
Education shall establish. It also makes technical changes to existing
law.
Section 2 of the bill provides the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Mental health and developmental issues have been on the rise amongst our
country's youth. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
cites, through a study, that 17.4% of children between the ages of 2 to
8 years old had been diagnosed with a mental, behavioral, or develop-
mental disorder. That number rises with age until roughly 1 in 5 young
adults are afflicted.
A study shows that mental health issues tend to affect lower income and
minority communities at a higher rate, as they have less resources and
access to proper mental health care and treatment. Not addressing these
issue's then leads to long lasting effects on our youth. The National
Institute of Mental Health (NAMI) recorded that roughly 50% of students
over the age of 14 with a mental illness have dropped out of high
school. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention found that, in
2017, adolescents and young adults had a suicide rate of 14.46%, far too
high for any nation.
Addressing this issue as a whole takes multiple steps, the first one
being acknowledgment of the growing issue and removing the stigma of
receiving help. The other - as this bill intends - is to allot excused
absences to students for their mental and behavioral heal th. Just as
the commissioner allows for students to take off for physical illness,
they should have every right to be excused for mental ones as well.
While it is not directly addressing the need for treatment, it is creat-
ing a precedent where ones mental wellbeing is important to their live-
lihood, a lesson that should be taught early.
AMENDMENTS:
This bill has been amended to reflect that students in both private and
public schools are eligible for mental health days off.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-24: A7233 Simon -referred to education
2021-22: A1869 Fernandez -referred to education
A8543A of 2020
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding the date
on which it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addi-
tion, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for
the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized and
directed to be made and completed on or before such date.
