Assembly BillIntroduced
A 9357: Clarifies the definition of severe and permanent disability for eligibility for military enhanced recognition, incentive and tribute ("MERIT") scholarships.
What A 9357 does, verified March 3, 2026
The bill aims to amend the Education Law to expand eligibility for military enhanced recognition, incentive, and tribute (MERIT) scholarships. An individual is considered severely and permanently disabled if a licensed doctor determines that the person is unable to engage in any occupation due to a physical or mental impairment. This change will allow severely and permanently disabled individuals to receive MERIT scholarships. The bill will take effect immediately.
Bill journey
1IntroducedCurrent
2In CommitteePending
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: referred to higher education (2026-01-07)Alert me
Quick answers about A 9357
- What is the current status of A 9357?
- As of March 3, 2026, A 9357 is recorded as "Introduced": it has been introduced and is waiting for its first committee hearing or floor vote. The last recorded action, on January 7, 2026, was "referred to higher education".
- Did A 9357 pass?
- Not yet. A 9357 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote A 9357, and where is it now?
- A 9357 was authored by Asm. Gabriella Romero with 11 coauthors. Its committee of record is Assembly Higher Education.
Author and sponsors
Full contact details, staff, and committees with Connect, $16/moUnlockRecent actions2 total · showing 2
| Jan. 07, 2026 | referred to higher education |
| Dec. 19, 2025 | referred to higher education |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, December 19, 2025 · 212 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9357 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY December 19, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. ROMERO -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to eligibility for mili- tary enhanced recognition, incentive and tribute ("MERIT") scholar- ships The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 668-e of the education law is amended by adding a 2 new subdivision 3 to read as follows: 3 3. Severely and permanently disabled. For the purposes of this 4 section, an individual is severely and permanently disabled when a 5 doctor of medicine or osteopathy, licensed to practice in a state, has 6 determined that such person is either: 7 a. unable to engage in any occupation for substantial gainful activity 8 due to a physical or mental impairment; or 9 b. unable to engage in any occupation for remuneration or profit due 10 to a physical or mental impairment. 11 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD13771-01-5 Text of A 9357 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions