NY State Senate Bill 2021-S115

Senate Bill S115

2021-2022 Legislative Session

Establishes the small business employees loan forgiveness incentive program

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Higher Education Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 05, 2022	referred to higher education
Jan 06, 2021	referred to higher education

2021-S115 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A917
Current Committee:: Senate Higher Education
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Add §679-k, Ed L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S7356, A9769
2023-2024: S2565

2021-S115 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes the small business employees loan forgiveness incentive program for applicants who agree to engage in employment at a small business registered to do business in New York state; establishes the eligibility for such awards; establishes the amount and duration of such awards.

2021-S115 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S115

SPONSOR: KAPLAN
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to creating the small
business employees loan forgiveness incentive program

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation creates a loan forgiveness program for eligible employ-
ees of small business.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 adds a new section 679-k to the education law creating the New
York State Small Business Employees Loan Forgiveness incentive program.
To be eligible an applicant must be a resident of New York who has grad-
uated from an institution of higher learning and has an outstanding
student loan debt. This individual would have to be employed for twelve
months as an employee of a small business and have an annual salary of

$50,000 or below.  Awards are annual for a period of 10 years and capped
at $12,500 annually.

The corporation is to grant awards within the amounts appropriated, and
each award is to not exceed the total cost of the completion of such
degree program.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Small Business is the backbone of our communities, forming the economic
base, while helping to form the social fabric of our municipalities. As
small business work to compete against a litany of competitors including
big box retailers, and internet sales we must look at ways to assist
them in recruiting and retaining the employees who provide the core
employment services that make a small business great. With the skyrock-
eting cost of higher education, creating a student loan forgiveness
program for these eligible small business employees will not only reduce
the crushing student loan debt many individuals face but also help
recruit and retain these valuable individuals.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S. 7356/A. 9769 of 2019; Referred to Higher Education Committee

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect April 1 next succeeding.

2021-S115 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    115
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 6, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  KAPLAN -- 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  creating  the  small
   business employees loan forgiveness incentive program

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section  679-k
 to read as follows:
   §  679-K.  NEW  YORK  STATE  SMALL BUSINESS EMPLOYEES LOAN FORGIVENESS
 INCENTIVE PROGRAM. 1. PURPOSE.  THE PRESIDENT SHALL GRANT  STUDENT  LOAN
 FORGIVENESS  AWARDS FOR THE PURPOSE OF INCREASING THE NUMBER OF INDIVID-
 UALS WHO CHOOSE TO WORK FOR A SMALL BUSINESS IN NEW YORK STATE.
   2. ELIGIBILITY. (A) TO BE ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE  AN  AWARD  PURSUANT  TO
 THIS  SECTION, AN APPLICANT MUST BE A RESIDENT OF NEW YORK STATE WHO HAS
 GRADUATED FROM AN INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND HAS AN OUTSTANDING
 STUDENT LOAN DEBT.
   (B) SUCH AWARDS SHALL BE MADE ANNUALLY  TO  ELIGIBLE  APPLICANTS  WHO,
 PRIOR  TO  ACCEPTING SUCH AWARDS, ENGAGED IN TWELVE MONTHS OF SERVICE AS
 AN EMPLOYEE OF A SMALL BUSINESS REGISTERED TO DO BUSINESS IN  THE  STATE
 OF  NEW  YORK  AND,  HAVE  AN ANNUAL SALARY OF FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS OR
 LESS.  SUCH AWARDS SHALL NOT EXCEED AN AMOUNT OF  TWELVE  THOUSAND  FIVE
 HUNDRED  DOLLARS  AND  SHALL BE MADE TO SUCH APPLICANTS, PURSUANT TO THE
 FOLLOWING SCHEDULE:
   (I) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE FIRST YEAR;
   (II) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE SECOND YEAR;
   (III) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE THIRD YEAR;
   (IV) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE FOURTH YEAR;
   (V) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE FIFTH YEAR;
   (VI) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE SIXTH YEAR;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD02025-01-1

 S. 115                              2
 
   (VII) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE  COMPLETION  OF  THE  SEVENTH
 YEAR;
   (VIII)  TEN  PERCENT  TO  BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE EIGHTH
 YEAR;
   (IX) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE NINTH  YEAR;
 AND
   (X) TEN PERCENT TO BE AWARDED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE TENTH YEAR.
   (C)  RECIPIENTS  OF  SUCH  AWARDS SHALL BE ELIGIBLE TO APPLY FOR OTHER
 AWARDS ESTABLISHED UNDER THIS CHAPTER.
   3. DURATION. SUCH AWARDS SHALL BE MADE ANNUALLY, FOR NO MORE THAN  TEN
 YEARS,  TO APPLICANTS WHO REMAIN ELIGIBLE UNDER THIS SECTION AND WHO ARE
 CERTIFIED AS SUCH BY THE CORPORATION.
   4. AMOUNT. THE CORPORATION SHALL GRANT SUCH AWARDS WITHIN THE  AMOUNTS
 APPROPRIATED  FOR SUCH PURPOSE AND BASED ON THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS IN
 AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED THE TOTAL COST OF THE COMPLETION OF SUCH  DEGREE
 PROGRAMS.  COST  OF COMPLETION OF SUCH DEGREES SHALL INCLUDE: TUITION AT
 AN INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION APPROVED OR REGISTERED BY THE REGENTS
 AND OTHER REQUIRED OR REASONABLE STUDENT FEES.
   5. DEFINITION. FOR THE PURPOSES  OF  THIS  SECTION,  "SMALL  BUSINESS"
 SHALL  HAVE  THE  SAME  MEANING  AS  SUCH TERM IS DEFINED IN SECTION ONE
 HUNDRED THIRTY-ONE OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT LAW.
   6. RULES AND REGULATIONS. AWARDS SHALL BE MADE ON A COMPETITIVE  BASIS
 AS  PROMULGATED  BY  THE CORPORATION FOR SUCH PURPOSES TO APPLICANTS WHO
 MEET THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA. SUCH RULES AND REGULATIONS SHALL  INCLUDE
 PROVISIONS  FOR  THE  CONSIDERATION  OF  APPLICANTS WHO ARE ECONOMICALLY
 DISADVANTAGED.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of April next  succeeding
 the date upon which it shall have become a law.

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