This bill sets an annual growth rate for tuition and reimbursement payments to schools and programs serving students with disabilities. It directly affects private schools, special act school districts, and approved preschool programs providing special education services for school-age and preschool children with disabilities. The key provision ties future rate increases to the difference between current and base-year public school funding levels, but ensures rates never decrease (the growth rate is the greater of this difference or zero). This creates a predictable, inflation-linked funding mechanism for these specialized education programs.
Requires any public school located in a city with a population of one million or more to offer a remote learning option to all primary and secondary students when such public school is located in a county determined by the federal centers for disease control and prevention to have a substantial or high level of community transmission of any illness deemed by the federal centers for disease control and prevention to be an outbreak.
This bill establishes the John J. Marchi government studies scholarship program to support CUNY students pursuing degrees in government or government-related fields. It provides financial aid covering tuition, fees, and non-tuition costs (up to the total cost of attendance for federal aid purposes, minus other aid received), with a maximum annual award of $20,000 per student and a total program cap of $2 million yearly. To qualify, students must be New York residents enrolled in a CUNY government degree program and agree to complete at least 12 credit hours per year for four years after graduation. Failure to meet this requirement converts the scholarship into a repayable loan with interest.
Requires public schools to follow seizure action plans developed by health care providers of students diagnosed with a seizure disorder; requires schools to provide seizure awareness training to certain employees on the recognition of signs and symptoms of a seizure and the appropriate steps to be taken to respond to such symptoms.
This bill, the New York Living Schoolyards Act (A 5343), provides competitive grants to school districts, local education agencies, and partnering nonprofits to create "living schoolyards" at elementary and secondary schools. These are outdoor learning spaces featuring gardens, native trees, natural playgrounds, and climate-resilient design elements that strengthen ecological systems and support hands-on education. Grants (ranging from $25,000 to $100,000) require master plans developed with community input, including ADA accessibility, climate goals, and long-term maintenance strategies. The program specifically prioritizes schools with high percentages of students eligible for free/reduced lunch and mandates that funds cover planning, design, and construction while limiting spending on staff training and maintenance.
Establishes a school air conditioning system grant program to provide schools with funding to install air conditioning systems in certain areas; makes an appropriation therefor.
This bill requires all public schools with 100 or more enrolled students to have a registered professional nurse physically present on-site during all school hours. It amends education law to mandate that school boards ensure this nurse is available to assist with student health needs, including emergencies and health instruction. The requirement directly affects schools meeting the enrollment threshold, ensuring consistent health support for students during school days.
This bill requires New York's Higher Education Services Corporation to create a centralized net price calculator tool on its website. The tool will estimate a college's actual cost after financial aid (net price) by using household income, assets, and the most recent tuition data reported by each college. It directly affects students and families researching college costs, replacing individual college calculators with a single, state-hosted tool that provides personalized estimates for all New York colleges. The calculator must be prominently displayed and updated when colleges revise their reported costs.
Reduces the cost of textbooks and course materials for students of institutions of higher education by requiring every institution of higher education to adopt policies that allow the use of innovative pricing techniques and payment options for textbooks, supplemental materials, and other course materials or textbooks.
This bill requires all schools to inspect hearing testing equipment annually to ensure it meets manufacturer and government safety standards. It directly affects public and private K-12 schools that conduct hearing examinations. Schools must replace any equipment failing these standards, with inspections performed per manufacturer guidelines. The requirement applies to all devices used for hearing tests under existing education law. The bill takes effect immediately upon enactment.
