A 8973: Requires public school students to take three semester-long financial literacy courses between sixth and twelfth grades.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8973 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY August 13, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. ALVAREZ -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring public school students to take three financial literacy courses between sixth and twelfth grades 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 819 to 2 read as follows: 3 § 819. Courses of study in financial literacy. 1. All public school 4 students shall, within grades six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, and 5 twelve, complete three distinct semester-long courses of study in finan- 6 cial literacy. 7 2. The board of education or trustees of the school district is 8 charged with developing and maintaining a financial literacy program 9 which complies with the provisions of this section. Topics of such 10 courses shall include, but not be limited to: 11 a. an introductory financial literacy course, focused on core personal 12 finance; 13 b. investment, interest, credit card debt, student loans, credit 14 scores, and related topics; 15 c. local, state, and federal income tax; 16 d. insurance, including medical, auto, home, and life insurance and 17 related topics; and 18 e. financial planning, saving, and goal-setting. 19 3. The commissioner may prescribe from time to time a course of exer- 20 cises and instruction in the subjects listed in subdivision two of this 21 section, which shall be adopted and observed by the board of education 22 or trustees of public school districts. Upon receipt of copies of such 23 course sufficient in number to supply all the schools under their super- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD13550-01-5 
 A. 8973 2 1 vision, boards of education and trustees shall promptly provide each of 2 the schools under their charge with a copy, and cause it to be observed. 3 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding 4 the date on which it shall have become a law.