This bill would temporarily exempt basic school supplies from sales tax during a 15-day period each year - the 15 days preceding Labor Day (the first Monday in September). It applies to items like backpacks, textbooks, pens, notebooks, and calculators purchased for under $110 total per transaction. The exemption covers only purchases made during this specific annual window, directly benefiting families buying school essentials for the upcoming school year. The bill amends tax law to create this temporary relief period while maintaining existing tax definitions.
S 3696 establishes the New York State Promise Program, providing tuition waivers for eligible students enrolled in New York community colleges. To qualify, students must be New York residents for at least one year, have completed high school or earned a GED in New York within six months of enrollment, maintain a 2.5 GPA, file the FAFSA, and not exceed 90 college credits. The waiver covers tuition costs (after deducting $50 and other aid) up to the actual tuition or $1,000, whichever is greater, but not exceeding average community college tuition. The state appropriates $450 million for the program, with annual grant spending capped at $10 million. The program requires annual reports on student completion rates, financial impacts, and program effectiveness.
Relates to imposing a school impact tax on developers of non-senior housing developments to be used for the construction of new public kindergarten through twelfth grade schools.
Bill A 8157 mandates that all schools incorporate instruction on the prevention of eating disorders into their health education programs. This new instruction will be provided to students in grades six through twelve as a component of their nutrition programs. The curriculum must be age-appropriate, designed to foster a healthy self-image and prepare students for healthy lives. The commissioner may consult with comprehensive care centers for eating disorders when developing this instruction.
This bill creates a competitive grant program providing school districts and eligible nonprofits with $25,000-$100,000 to transform schoolyards into "living schoolyards" at elementary and secondary schools across New York. These outdoor learning spaces must include features like gardens, natural playgrounds, and outdoor classrooms designed with community input and ADA accessibility. Grants require a master plan covering ecological goals, educational activities, and long-term maintenance, with funds specifically allocated for native trees (to combat heat), natural playgrounds (for inclusivity and cost savings), and educator training. The program directly affects schools serving students, particularly those with higher free/reduced lunch eligibility, by creating healthier, greener outdoor learning environments on school grounds.
Requires school districts and board of cooperative educational services to pay physical therapists and occupational therapists in alignment with the department's career ladder pathway framework; makes related provisions.
Enacts the "youth & teen internet safety and social media literacy act"; directs the commissioner of education to provide technical assistance to school districts for the development of curricula for such study of courses which shall be age appropriate and developed according to the needs and abilities of pupils at successive grade levels in order to provide awareness, skills, information, and support to aid in the safe usage of the internet, social media, and artificial intelligence.
This bill creates a free, mandatory test preparation program for all sixth-grade students in New York City public schools, culminating in a pre-specialized high schools admissions test administered in spring. Parents may opt their child out of the program. After completing the program, students receive a "gap analysis" identifying learning needs, which schools must use to tailor instruction - including potential enrollment in specialized high school test prep. The program must be offered during regular school hours at no cost to families.
Directs the education department and OCFS to prepare posters and pamphlets with information regarding higher education funding opportunities for foster youth.
This bill allows school districts in western New York to tax certain state-owned land used for correctional facilities, specifically targeting properties in the Alden and Gowanda central school districts (Erie County). It amends tax law to include the land (excluding state-built improvements) of these facilities in the school tax base. The change directly affects those two school districts by potentially increasing their local tax revenue from state-owned properties. The bill requires no further action beyond the tax law amendment and takes effect immediately.
