S 161 NY

0likes☆Favorite🔕SubscribeShare

Passed Legislature

Skip to main content

New York State Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie

--> --> -->

Assembly Members

Legislative Info

Public Hearings

Speaker's Press

Assembly Reports

Committees & More

Bill Search Home Laws Legislative Calendar Public Hearing Schedule Assembly Calendars Assembly Committee Agenda Javascript must be enabled to properly view this page.

Bill No.: Summary Actions Committee&nbspVotes Floor&nbspVotes Memo Text LFIN Chamber&nbspVideo/Transcript S00161 Summary: BILL NO S00161A &nbsp SAME AS SAME AS A01602-A

&nbsp SPONSOR RAMOS &nbsp COSPNSR ADDABBO, BRISPORT, BROUK, CLEARE, COMRIE, COONEY, FAHY, FELDER, FERNANDEZ, GONZALEZ, GOUNARDES, HARCKHAM, HOYLMAN-SIGAL, JACKSON, KAVANAGH, LIU, MAY, MYRIE, RIVERA, RYAN C, SALAZAR, SEPULVEDA, SERRANO, WEBB &nbsp MLTSPNSR &nbsp Amd §679-e, Ed L &nbsp Expands the eligibility period for indigent legal service attorneys to receive certain loan forgiveness; increases loan reimbursement for certain attorneys who work in legal services with indigent clients.

Go to top S00161 Text:

STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________

161--A

2025-2026 Regular Sessions

IN SENATE

(Prefiled)

January 8, 2025 ___________

Introduced by Sens. RAMOS, ADDABBO, BRISPORT, BROUK, CLEARE, COONEY, FAHY, FERNANDEZ, GONZALEZ, GOUNARDES, HARCKHAM, JACKSON, KAVANAGH, LIU, MAY, MYRIE, RIVERA, C. RYAN, SALAZAR, SEPULVEDA, SERRANO, WEBB -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education -- recommitted to the Committee on Higher Education in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the New York state district attorney and indigent legal services attorney loan forgive- ness program

The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows:

1 Section 1. Paragraph b of subdivision 2 of section 679-e of the 2 education law, as amended by section 1 of part VV of chapter 56 of the 3 laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows: 4 b. "Eligible period" means the [ six-year ] eight-year period after 5 completion of the [ third ] second year and before the commencement of the 6 [ tenth ] eleventh year of employment as an eligible attorney. For 7 purposes of this section, all periods of time during which an admitted 8 attorney was employed as an eligible attorney and all periods of time 9 during which a law school graduate awaiting admission to the New York 10 state bar was employed by a prosecuting [ or ] agency, criminal defense 11 agency , or non-profit indigent civil legal services corporation as 12 permitted by section four hundred eighty-four of the judiciary law shall 13 be combined. 14 § 2. Paragraph d of subdivision 2 of section 679-e of the education 15 law, as amended by section 1 of part VV of chapter 56 of the laws of 16 2009, is amended to read as follows:

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00120-02-6

S. 161--A 2

1 d. "Year of qualified service" means the twelve month period measured 2 from the anniversary of the attorney's employment as an eligible attor- 3 ney, or as a law school graduate awaiting admission to the New York 4 state bar employed by a prosecuting [ or ] agency, criminal defense 5 agency , or non-profit indigent civil legal services corporation as 6 permitted by section four hundred eighty-four of the judiciary law, 7 adjusted for any interruption in employment. Vacation or leave time 8 provided by the employer or leave taken for a condition that is a quali- 9 fying reason for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, 10 29 U.S.C. 2612(a)(1) and (3) shall not be considered an interruption in 11 qualifying employment. Any period of [ temporary leave from service ] 12 interruption in qualifying employment taken by an eligible attorney 13 shall not be considered in the calculation of qualified service. Howev- 14 er, the period of [ temporary leave shall be considered an ] interruption 15 in qualifying employment and the calculation of the time period of qual- 16 ified service shall recommence when the eligible attorney returns to 17 [ full time ] service. 18 § 3. Paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 679-e of the education 19 law, as amended by section 1 of part VV of chapter 56 of the laws of 20 2009, is amended to read as follows: 21 a. An eligible attorney may apply for reimbursement after the 22 completion of each year of qualified service provided however that 23 reimbursement to each eligible attorney shall not exceed [ three thousand 24 four hundred ] eight thousand dollars, per qualifying year, subject to 25 appropriations available therefor. The president may establish: (i) an 26 application deadline and (ii) a method of selecting recipients if in any 27 given year there are insufficient funds to cover the needs of all the 28 applicants. Awards shall be within the amounts appropriated for such 29 purpose and based on availability of funds. 30 § 4. Paragraph b of subdivision 3 of section 679-e of the education 31 law, as amended by section 1 of part VV of chapter 56 of the laws of 32 2009, is amended to read as follows: 33 b. An eligible attorney may apply after the completion of the [ fourth ] 34 second year of qualified service, and annually thereafter after the 35 completion of the [ fifth ] third through [ ninth ] eleventh year of quali- 36 fied service, and may seek a student loan expense grant for only the 37 previous year of qualified service within the time periods prescribed by 38 the president. An eligible attorney may receive student loan expense 39 grants for no more than [ six ] eight years of qualified service within an 40 eligible period. 41 § 5. This act shall take effect April 1, 2027. Nothing in this act 42 shall be implemented in a manner that diminishes the current award or 43 status of eligible attorneys currently participating in the program.

Go to top

Sitemap

Request Information

Directions and Maps