BILL NUMBER: S8906

SPONSOR: RAMOS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to creating a transporta-
tion subsidy to increase access to water safety instruction

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill would provide an optional transportation subsidy to children
who attend school in swimming "deserts" with little access to local swim
instruction options.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill creates an after school transportation subsidy for
instruction in water safety at a qualified private facility. The quali-
fications of the such course and facility shall be defined by the
commissioner of education, in consultation with the department of
health, in regulations.

              

Students attending a public school within the state shall be eligible to
enroll into the transportation subsidy provided that:

(a) within a city of one million or more, there are no more than ten
qualified facilities providing a qualified course within a radius of
two-and-one-half miles of such public school; or

(b) outside a city of one million or more, there are no more than ten
qualified facilities providing a qualified course within a radius of
five miles of such public school.

All students in grades kindergarten through twelve at an eligible public
school may opt into the transportation subsidy upon displaying proof of
such student's enrollment in an eligible instruction program at an
eligible facility.

The department shall promulgate regulations to determine:

(a) which forms of transportation may be funded by such subsidy on a
basis, including but not limited to school buses or public transit;

(b) on what basis separate transportation for a parent may be eligible
for the subsidy; and

(c) in what form subsidy allotments are to be distributed to enrolled
students.

Section 2 of the bill sets forth the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

There are countless New Yorkers of all ages who do not know how to swim.
and drowning is the number one cause of death for children under five.
This health and safety deficiency is rooted in a variety of public poli-
cy failings, including a lack of education, failure to engage in early
intervention, and access to swim instruction.  Additionally, there
exists a community of parents who understand the importance of drowning
prevention, yet simply do not have local swim instruction facilities to
attend or the financial wherewithal to transport their children to swim
instruction. This is not a regional issue; the lack of local access to
pools impacts communities across the state. As a result, many children
never learn to swim and accordingly, are throughout their lives in peril
of aquatic injury or drowning.

This legislation thus seeks to remedy this lack of access by providing
transportation subsidies for children in swimming "deserts" to travel to
qualified pools for swim instruction. Specifically, students of schools
without 10 qualified pools within a 5 mile radius (or a 2.5 mile radius
for schools within New York City) will be eligible to receive a trans-
portation subsidy to attend swimming lessons. This subsidy will be
tailored on a local basis for each eligible community, and would elimi-
nate a major financial and logistical burden for many families to
receive the proper instruction necessary to enjoy water safely.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

TBD

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
on or before such effective date.