Provides for the determination of tuition assistance program awards; may cover mandatory educational fees, excluding fees voted by student body; defines term; increases maximum and minimum award amounts.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
567
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 7, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CAHILL, PHEFFER, SCHIMMINGER, N. RIVERA, JACOBS,
EDDINGTON, ROBINSON, ENGLEBRIGHT, CYMBROWITZ, CUSICK, PEOPLES,
DelMONTE, CAMARA, BOYLAND -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. BENEDETTO,
BENJAMIN, BRADLEY, BRENNAN, BRODSKY, COLTON, COOK, DIAZ, ESPAILLAT,
GREENE, GUNTHER, HIKIND, JOHN, LANCMAN, LAVINE, LUPARDO, McENENY,
MILLMAN, PERRY, POWELL, REILLY, SCARBOROUGH, SEMINERIO, SWEENEY, WEIS-
ENBERG -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to creating the "TAP
reform act"
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 the "TAP reform
2 act".
3 § 2. Subdivision 5 of section 663 of the education law is amended by
4 adding a new paragraph (c) to read as follows:
5 (c) (i) In the determination of income for purposes of subdivision
6 three of section six hundred sixty-seven of this part, student financial
7 aid officers are hereby authorized, on the basis of adequate documenta-
8 tion, to make adjustments on a case-by-case basis in the amount deemed
9 applicable income in determining an applicant's award for the academic
10 year, to allow for treatment of an individual, eligible applicant with
11 special circumstances as defined herein.
12 (ii) Special circumstances may include: (A) expenses of the following
13 nature incurred or paid by one or more of either the parents of the
14 applicant or other dependent child of such parents, the spouse of the
15 applicant, or one or more dependent children of the applicant, such as
16 but not limited to: tuition expenses at an elementary or secondary
17 school, medical or dental expenses not covered by insurance, and unusu-
18 ally high child care costs, (B) recent unemployment of a family member
19 necessitating contributions by any of the aforesaid persons to the fami-
20 ly member's support, or (C) other changes in the family's income, the
21 family's assets, or a student's status. Special circumstances shall be
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00611-01-9
A. 567 2
1 conditions that differentiate an individual student from a class of
2 students rather than conditions that exist across a class of students.
3 (iii) Adequate documentation for such adjustments shall be required to
4 substantiate such special circumstances of individual students. Nothing
5 in this paragraph shall be interpreted as limiting the authority of the
6 student financial aid officer in such cases to request and use supple-
7 mentary information about the financial status or personal circumstances
8 of such applicants in selecting recipients and determining the amount of
9 awards under subdivision three of section six hundred sixty-seven of
10 this part. No student or parent shall be charged a fee for collecting,
11 processing, or delivering such supplementary information.
12 (iv) A student financial aid officer shall be considered to be making
13 a necessary adjustment in accordance with subparagraph (i) of this para-
14 graph if:
15 (A) the officer makes adjustments excluding from family income any
16 proceeds of a sale of farm or business assets of a family if such sale
17 results from a voluntary or involuntary foreclosure, forfeiture or bank-
18 ruptcy or an involuntary liquidation, or
19 (B) the officer makes adjustments in the award level of a student with
20 a disability so as to take into consideration the additional costs such
21 student incurs as a result of such student's disability.
22 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 667 of the education law, as amended by
23 chapter 622 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
24 1. Recipient qualifications. Tuition assistance program awards are
25 available for all students who are enrolled in approved programs and who
26 demonstrate the ability to complete such courses, in accordance with
27 standards established by the commissioner provided, however, that no
28 award shall be made unless tuition [(exclusive of educational fees)] and
29 any mandatory educational fees and, if applicable, the college fee
30 levied by the state university of New York pursuant to the April first,
31 nineteen hundred sixty-four financing agreements with the New York state
32 dormitory authority charged for the program in which the student is
33 enrolled total at least two hundred dollars a year[,]; and provided
34 further that[,] no award [can] shall exceed one hundred percent of the
35 amount of tuition charged.
36 § 4. Subclause (c) of clause (A) of subparagraph (i) and subparagraph
37 (vi) of paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 667 of the education
38 law, as amended by section 1 of part B of chapter 60 of the laws of
39 2000, are amended and clause (A) of subparagraph (i) is amended by
40 adding two new subclauses (d) and (e) to read as follows:
41 (c) For students first receiving aid in [the] two thousand--two thou-
42 sand one and [thereafter] before two thousand eleven--two thousand
43 twelve, five thousand dollars[.]; or
44 (d) For students first receiving aid in two thousand eleven--two thou-
45 sand twelve, five thousand five hundred dollars; or
46 (e) For students first receiving aid in two thousand twelve--two thou-
47 sand thirteen and thereafter, six thousand dollars.
48 (vi) For the two thousand [two] eleven--two thousand [three] twelve
49 academic year and thereafter, the award shall be the net amount of the
50 base amount determined pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph
51 reduced pursuant to subparagraph (ii) or (iii) of this paragraph but the
52 award shall not be reduced below [five] nine hundred fifty dollars; and
53 one thousand dollars for each academic year and thereafter.
54 § 5. Clause (B) of subparagraph (i) of paragraph a of subdivision 3 of
55 section 667 of the education law, as amended by section 1 of part B of
56 chapter 60 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
A. 567 3
1 (B) (1) Ninety-five percent of the amount of tuition [(exclusive of
2 educational fees) charged and, if applicable, the college fee levied by
3 the state university of New York pursuant to the April first, nineteen
4 hundred sixty-four financing agreement with the New York state dormitory
5 authority] and any mandatory educational fees.
6 (2) For the two thousand one--two thousand two academic year and ther-
7 eafter, one hundred percent of the amount of tuition [(exclusive of
8 educational fees) charged and, if applicable, the college fee levied by
9 the state university of New York pursuant to the April first, nineteen
10 hundred sixty-four financing agreement with the New York state dormitory
11 authority] and any mandatory educational fees.
12 § 6. Clause (B) of subparagraph (i) of paragraph b of subdivision 3 of
13 section 667 of the education law, as amended by section 2 of part B of
14 chapter 60 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
15 (B) (1) Ninety-five percent of the amount of tuition [(exclusive of
16 educational fees)] and any mandatory educational fees charged.
17 (2) For the two thousand one--two thousand two academic year and ther-
18 eafter, one hundred percent of the amount of tuition [(exclusive of
19 educational fees)] and any mandatory educational fees.
20 § 7. Clause (B) of subparagraph (i) of paragraph c of subdivision 3 of
21 section 667 of the education law, as amended by section 4 of part B of
22 chapter 60 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
23 (B) (1) Ninety-five percent of the amount of tuition [(exclusive of
24 education fees)] and any mandatory educational fees charged.
25 (2) For the two thousand one--two thousand two academic year and ther-
26 eafter, one hundred percent of the amount of tuition [(exclusive of
27 educational fees)] and any mandatory educational fees.
28 § 8. Subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of paragraph d of subdivision 3 of
29 section 667 of the education law, as added by chapter 83 of the laws of
30 1995, are amended to read as follows:
31 (i) be made unless the annual tuition [(exclusive of educational
32 fees)] and any mandatory educational fees and, if applicable, the
33 college fee levied by the state university of New York pursuant to the
34 April first, nineteen hundred sixty-four financing agreement with the
35 New York state dormitory authority charged for the program in which the
36 student is enrolled total at least two hundred dollars; or
37 (ii) exceed the amount by which such annual tuition [(exclusive of
38 educational fees)] and any mandatory educational fees and, if applica-
39 ble, the college fee levied by the state university of New York pursuant
40 to the April first, nineteen hundred sixty-four financing agreement with
41 the New York state dormitory authority exceed the total of all other
42 state, federal, or other educational aid that is received or receivable
43 by such student during the school year for which such award is applica-
44 ble and that, in the judgment of the commissioner, would duplicate the
45 purposes of the award; or
46 § 9. Section 2 of the education law is amended by adding a new subdi-
47 vision 25 to read as follows:
48 25. Mandatory educational fee. The term "mandatory educational fee"
49 includes only those fees required to fulfill the requirements of a grad-
50 uate or undergraduate degree; provided, however, that such term excludes
51 those fees imposed by a vote of the student body.
52 § 10. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amend-
53 ments to section 663 of the education law made by section two of this
54 act shall apply to determinations made on or after such effective date.
