A 5704: Establishes a loan forgiveness program for child care providers that have earned an undergraduate or graduate degree from a two or four year college or university in the state.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5704 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY February 20, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. SOLAGES -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Higher Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to establishing a loan forgiveness program for child care providers The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 679-k 2 to read as follows: 3 § 679-k. The New York state child care provider loan forgiveness 4 program. 1. Purpose. The president shall grant student loan forgiveness 5 awards for the purpose of increasing the number of child care providers, 6 as defined in section six hundred ninety-five-b of the labor law, serv- 7 ing in the state. Such awards shall be made on a competitive basis, in 8 accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the corporation for 9 such purposes, to applicants who meet the eligibility criteria. 10 2. Eligibility. To be eligible for an award pursuant to this subdivi- 11 sion, applicants shall: 12 (a) have graduated and obtained an undergraduate or graduate degree 13 from an accredited two or four-year college or university located in New 14 York state; 15 (b) have outstanding student loan debt from obtaining such degree; 16 (c) comply with subdivision five of section six hundred sixty-one of 17 this part; and 18 (d) be employed full time in this state as a child care provider. 19 3. Awards. Awards shall be granted to qualified applicants in the 20 amount of up to ten thousand dollars per year, per applicant, not to 21 exceed a duration of four years and not to exceed the total amount of 22 such applicant's student loan debt. The corporation shall grant such 23 awards within amounts appropriated for such purposes and based on the 24 availability of funds. No one applicant shall receive more than a total 25 of forty thousand dollars upon the end of a four-year period. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD09928-01-5 
 A. 5704 2 1 4. Rules and regulations. The corporation is authorized to promulgate 2 rules and regulations and may promulgate emergency regulations necessary 3 for the implementation of the provisions of this section. 4 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.