NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A924
SPONSOR: Carroll TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the social services law and the administrative code of
the city of New York, in relation to allowing for case workers to apply
for education and training vouchers for children in foster care
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To raise the rate of college application among children in the New York
State foster care system. This bill would make it easier for foster
children to receive financial aid through Education and Training Vouch-
ers by allowing for them to apply through their caseworker. Their case-
worker would be able to fill out a form for them to be entered into the
ETV application.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 Amends Section 397 of Social Services Law to add a new para-
graph referring to children in foster care applying for education and
training vouchers.
Section 2 Amends the administrative code of City of New York to allow
for case workers and case planners to apply for education and training
vouchers for a child in foster care.
Section 3 sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Every year, the state sets money aside with the purpose of supporting
people who have been in the foster care system. 84% of 17-18 year olds
in foster care in this country wish to attend college, and yet only 20%
of those who graduate high school end up attending. Less than 10% of
those who do attend higher education end up attaining a bachelor's
degree.
Programs that have offered financial support to people in the foster
care system have consistently resulted in increased college admission
amongst people in foster care. Studies have also demonstrated that one
of the main roadblocks for people in foster care who wish to attend
college is a lack of structured family support.
This bill proposes that the low rate of college application amongst
people in foster care can partially be attributed to people in foster
care having a lack of family support to help them to apply for financial
aid. People in foster care do not have a support system to help them to
go through the various steps required to apply for ETVs. This bill's
proposed solution is to ensure that people in foster care have easier
access to ETV funding by allowing for the person in foster care's indi-
vidual case worker to fill out a form for them.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A.8614 of 2019-20; A.1457 of 2021-22
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
TBD
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
924
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 11, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CARROLL -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Children and Families
AN ACT to amend the social services law and the administrative code of
the city of New York, in relation to allowing for case workers to
apply for education and training vouchers for children in foster care
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 397 of the social services law is amended by adding
2 a new subdivision 5 to read as follows:
3 5. As to children in foster care, apply for education and training
4 vouchers pursuant to paragraph i of section 677 of the United States
5 code for the child.
6 § 2. Section 21-902.1 of the administrative code of the city of New
7 York is amended by adding a new subdivision f to read as follows:
8 f. Case planners and case workers may apply for education and training
9 vouchers for a child who is in foster care.
10 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01052-01-3
