A 1298: Expands the veterans tuition awards program to include all persons who were honorably discharged and were residents of the state before and after serving in the armed forces of the United States; provides veterans an award equal to the in-state tuition paid at a state university for each semester the veteran is engaged in undergraduate, graduate or vocational study.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1298 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY January 9, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. SLATER, BENDETT -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to expanding eligibility under the veterans tuition awards program The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 669-a of the education law is 2 amended by adding a new paragraph d-1 to read as follows: 3 d-1. "Veteran" means a person who: (i) is a resident of the state; 4 (ii) served in the armed forces of the United States; (iii) was a resi- 5 dent of the state immediately prior to his or her entry into such armed 6 forces; and (iv) received an honorable discharge from the branch of the 7 armed forces of the United States in which they served. 8 § 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 669-a of the education 9 law, as amended by chapter 453 of the laws of 2024, is amended to read 10 as follows: 11 a. Tuition awards are available for all other eligible veterans, as 12 defined in subdivision one of this section, and veterans who are 13 enrolled, pursuant to paragraph a of subdivision four of section six 14 hundred sixty-one of this part, in approved undergraduate or graduate 15 programs at degree granting institutions or enrolled in approved voca- 16 tional training programs and who apply for a tuition assistance program 17 award, for up to the equivalent of eight full-time semesters, pursuant 18 to section six hundred sixty-seven of this subpart. 19 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD03836-01-5