A02059 Summary:

BILL NOA02059
 
SAME ASSAME AS S01092
 
SPONSORSepulveda (MS)
 
COSPNSRAbinanti, Cahill, Colton, Raia, Montesano, Crespo, Rodriguez, Blake, Lavine, Crouch, Dickens, D'Urso, Ortiz, Zebrowski, Cook, Rivera
 
MLTSPNSRDe La Rosa, Gottfried, Hyndman, Magee, Perry, Simon, Steck, Thiele
 
 
Requires the conducting of a study by the board of regents of feasible alternative methods of funding a college education at public four-year institutions of higher learning in New York state.
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A02059 Actions:

BILL NOA02059
 
01/17/2017referred to higher education
01/03/2018referred to higher education
04/30/2018enacting clause stricken
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A02059 Committee Votes:

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A02059 Floor Votes:

There are no votes for this bill in this legislative session.
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A02059 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          2059
 
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    January 17, 2017
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  SEPULVEDA,  ABINANTI,  CAHILL, COLTON, RAIA,
          MONTESANO, CRESPO, RODRIGUEZ, BLAKE, LAVINE, CROUCH -- Multi-Sponsored
          by -- M. of A.  GOTTFRIED, MAGEE, PERRY, RIVERA, SIMON, STECK,  THIELE
          -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education
 
        AN  ACT  to require the conducting of a study by the board of regents of
          feasible alternative methods of funding a college education at  public
          four-year institutions of higher learning in New York state
 
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. The legislature recognizes  that  post-secondary  education
     2  has  expanded  opportunities for New Yorkers to qualify for high-quality
     3  jobs and entry into the middle class, providing clear benefits  to  this
     4  state's economy.
     5    Regrettably,  public  investment in higher education in this state has
     6  decreased over the past decade, resulting in  substantial  increases  in
     7  annual  tuition, fees and room and board imposed by public four-year and
     8  two-year institutions of higher education in the state. These  increases
     9  have  out-paced  increases  in  the  average family income in the state,
    10  forcing students to incur larger amounts of debt in order to  afford  to
    11  attend  college.  The  average  student loan debt of students graduating
    12  from public four-year institutions of higher education in New  York  now
    13  exceeds $25,000.
    14    Such high levels of student debt are damaging not only to the individ-
    15  ual  student's  ability  to succeed financially but also will have grave
    16  consequences for the future economy of this state.
    17    The legislature finds that it must halt the decrease  in  the  state's
    18  support  for public education and, over time, must increase its contrib-
    19  ution to the funding of higher education. It also finds that  the  state
    20  must  immediately seek another approach to financing the students' share
    21  of the cost of public higher education  in  this  state  that  will  not
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01101-01-7

        A. 2059                             2
 
     1  result  in  students  graduating  from  New  York's  public colleges and
     2  universities burdened with debt.
     3    §  2.  The  board of regents shall consider the creation of a proposed
     4  pilot program called "Pay Forward, Pay Back".
     5    (a) The pilot program would:
     6    (i) Replace the current system of charging students tuition  and  fees
     7  for enrollment at public institutions of higher education; and
     8    (ii)  Identify  one or more public institutions of higher education to
     9  participate in the pilot program.
    10    (b) If the board  of  regents  determines  that  a  pilot  program  is
    11  warranted,  the  commission shall submit a proposed pilot program to the
    12  2018 regular session of the legislature for approval.
    13    (c) The proposed pilot program shall:
    14    (i) Allow students who are residents of this state, as defined by  the
    15  institution,  and who qualify for admission to the institution to enroll
    16  in the institution without paying tuition or fees;
    17    (ii) Provide that, in lieu of paying tuition or  fees,  students  must
    18  sign  binding  contracts to pay to the state of New York or the institu-
    19  tion a certain percentage of the student's annual adjusted gross  income
    20  upon graduation from the institution for a specified number of years;
    21    (iii)  Specify  the  number  of  years  and  the  percentage of annual
    22  adjusted gross income for contracts at  each  participating  institution
    23  and base the specifications on research to date; and
    24    (iv)  Establish  an  immediate  funding  source for the first 15 to 20
    25  years of the pilot program and include the establishment of a  revolving
    26  fund to deposit payments made under the pilot program.
    27    (d) The pilot program may vary by institution depending on:
    28    (i) The total cost of education at the institution.
    29    (ii) The portion of the cost that is paid by the state.
    30    (iii) The number of years specified in the contract.
    31    (iv)  The  percentage of annual adjusted gross income specified in the
    32  contract.
    33    § 3. (a) The board of regents shall conduct a study on whether  public
    34  universities  in  the  state can successfully implement a tuition freeze
    35  that will guarantee that incoming undergraduate students have  the  same
    36  tuition rate for four years. The study must include an analysis of:
    37    (i)  The 'Western Tuition Promise' offered by Western Oregon Universi-
    38  ty;
    39    (ii) The 'Finish in Four' program proposed in Florida; and
    40    (iii) Ways of mitigating the financial strain that the adoption  of  a
    41  tuition freeze would place on a university's finances.
    42    (b)  The board of regents shall submit a report on the study described
    43  in subdivision (a) of this section to the committees relating to  higher
    44  education during the 2018 regular session of the legislature.
    45    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
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