S 6022: Authorizes tuition assistance program awards for students enrolled in short-term credential programs offered by certain public institutions.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6022 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE March 4, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. BASKIN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to authorizing tuition assistance program awards for students enrolled in short-term creden- tial programs offered by certain public institutions 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 2 667-c-2 to read as follows: 3 § 667-c-2. Short-term credential tuition assistance program awards. 1. 4 Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the pres- 5 ident of the higher education services corporation is authorized to make 6 tuition assistance program awards to students enrolled in short-term 7 credential programs offered by the state university of New York (SUNY), 8 a community college established pursuant to article one hundred twen- 9 ty-six of this chapter, the city university of New York (CUNY), or a 10 board of cooperative educational services established pursuant to arti- 11 cle forty of this chapter, who meet all requirements for tuition assist- 12 ance program awards. 13 2. For purposes of this section, a short-term credential program is 14 one that: 15 a. provides not less than one hundred fifty, and not more than six 16 hundred, clock hours of instructional time over a period of not less 17 than eight weeks and not more than fifteen weeks; 18 b. provides training aligned with the requirements of high-skill, 19 high-wage, or in-demand industry sectors or occupations in the state, as 20 determined by the commissioner, in consultation with the department of 21 labor; and 22 c. provides a student, upon completion of the program, with a recog- 23 nized postsecondary credential that is recognized by employers in the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD02988-01-5 
 S. 6022 2 1 relevant industry, including credentials recognized by industry or 2 sector partnerships in the relevant industry in the state; 3 3. a. For students enrolled in a short-term credential program as 4 defined in this section, the award shall be calculated as provided in 5 section six hundred sixty-seven of this article and shall be in an 6 amount equal to the enrollment factor percent of the award the student 7 would have been eligible for if the student were enrolled full-time at a 8 degree-granting institution or registered not-for-profit business school 9 qualified for tax exemption under section 501(c)(3) of the internal 10 revenue code for federal income tax purposes. The enrollment factor 11 percent is the percentage obtained by dividing the number of hours the 12 student is enrolled in, as certified by the school, by the number of 13 hours required for full-time study, at a degree-granting institution or 14 registered not-for-profit business school qualified for tax exemption 15 under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code for federal 16 income tax purposes, for a semester, quarter, or term, as defined by the 17 commissioner. 18 b. Any award a student receives pursuant to this section shall be 19 counted as the enrollment factor percent of a semester, quarter or term 20 toward the maximum term of eligibility for tuition assistance awards 21 pursuant to section six hundred sixty-seven of this article. The total 22 period of study for which payment may be made shall not exceed the 23 equivalent of the maximum period authorized for that award. 24 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.