S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1384
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 11, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  BROOKS -- 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  the  New  York  state
   part-time scholarship program
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 667-c-1 of the education law, as added by section 1
 of part KKK of chapter 59 of the laws of 2017, is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   §  667-c-1.  New York state part-time scholarship (PTS) award program.
 1.  The New York state part-time  scholarship  (PTS)  award  program  is
 hereby  established  for  the purpose of providing scholarship awards to
 students who attend a [community college at the state university of  New
 York  (SUNY)  or  the city University of New York (CUNY)] NEW YORK STATE
 PUBLIC INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION on a part-time basis.
   2. To be eligible, an applicant must meet the qualifications of subdi-
 visions three and five of section six hundred sixty-one of this article,
 enroll in at least six but less then twelve credit hours at a  [SUNY  or
 CUNY  community  college]  NEW  YORK  STATE PUBLIC INSTITUTION OF HIGHER
 EDUCATION in the 2017-2018 academic year, or thereafter, and maintain  a
 grade point average of 2.0.
   3.  a. Such awards shall be made to eligible applicants in the follow-
 ing priority:
   (i) first, to applicants who have received payment of an award  pursu-
 ant  to  this section in a prior year and remain in good academic stand-
 ing; and
   (ii) second, to applicants in descending order based on financial need
 as determined by the corporation and; provided that awards made shall be
 proportionate to the total applications received for  students  accepted
 for  undergraduate study at SUNY and CUNY respectively. Provided, howev-

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02229-01-1
              

 S. 1384                             2
 
 er, in the program's first year, first priority shall be  in  accordance
 with this subparagraph.
   b.  In  the  event  that  there  are more applicants who have the same
 priority than there are  remaining  scholarships,  the  president  shall
 distribute  the  remaining  number  of  such  scholarships by means of a
 lottery or other form of random selection.
   4. Within amounts appropriated therefor,  the  president  shall  grant
 awards  to  eligible  applicants  to  cover the cost of [six] UP TO NINE
 credit hours per semester at a SUNY or CUNY community college,  provided
 however,  that no such award shall exceed [fifteen hundred] TWO THOUSAND
 TWO HUNDRED FIFTY dollars per semester.
   5. PTS awards shall be granted pursuant to this section  for  no  more
 than  four  consecutive  academic semesters pursuant to future appropri-
 ations for the continuation of this program.
   6. The corporation is authorized to promulgate rules and  regulations,
 and  may promulgate emergency regulations, necessary for the implementa-
 tion of the provisions of this section.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.