NY State Senate Bill 2023-S7256

Senate Bill S7256

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Relates to physical therapists and occupational therapists in school districts and board of cooperative educational services

download bill text pdf

Current 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 03, 2024	referred to higher education
May 19, 2023	referred to higher education

2023-S7256 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A3336
Current Committee:: Senate Higher Education
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §912, add §3039, Ed L

2023-S7256 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires school districts and board of cooperative educational services to pay physical therapists and occupational therapists in alignment with the department's career ladder pathway framework; makes related provisions.

2023-S7256 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S7256

SPONSOR: CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to physical therapists
and occupational therapists in school districts and board of cooperative
educational services

 
PURPOSE:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to physical therapists
and occupational therapists in school districts and board of cooperative
educational services

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Section 912 of the education law, as amended by chapter 477
of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:

§ 912. Health and welfare services to all children. The voters and/or
trustees or board of education of every school district shall, upon

request of the authorities of a school other than public, provide resi-
dent children who attend such school with any or all of the health and
welfare services and facilities which are made available by such voters
and/or trustees or board of education to or for children attending the
public schools of the district. Such services may include, but are not
limited to all services performed by a physician, physician assistant,
physical therapist, occupational therapist, dentist, dental hygienist,
registered professional nurse, nurse practitioner, school psychologist,
school social worker or school speech therapist, and may also include
dental prophylaxis, vision and hearing screening examinations, the
taking of medical histories and the administration of health screening
tests, the maintenance of cumulative health records and the adminis-
tration of emergency care programs for ill or injured students. Any such
services or facilities shall be so provided notwithstanding any
provision of any charter or other provision of law inconsistent here
with. Where children residing in one school district attend a school
other than public located in another school district, the school author-
ities of the district of residence shall contract with the school
authorities of the district where such nonpublic school is located, for
the provision of such health and welfare services and facilities to such
children by the school district where such nonpublic school is located,
for a consideration to be agreed upon between the school authorities of
such districts, subject to the approval of the qualified voters of the
district of residence when required under the provisions of this chap-
ter. Every such contract shall be in writing and in the form prescribed
by the commissioner, and before such contract is executed the same shall
be submitted for approval to the superintendent of schools having juris-
diction over such district of residence and such contract shall not
become effective until approved by such superintendent.

§ 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 3039 to-read
as follows:

§ 3039. Physical and occupational therapists. Each school district or
board of cooperative educational services which employs a physical ther-
apist as licensed pursuant to article one hundred thirty-six of this
chapter or an occupational therapist licensed pursuant to article one
hundred fifty-six of this chapter shall categorize and pay such thera-
pists in alignment with the department's career ladder pathway frame-
work. Each school district or board of cooperative educational services
shall further offer such therapists school leadership opportunities that
are developed collaboratively and systematically to implement comprehen-
sive systems of professional learning, support and advancement for all
educators..

 
JUSTIFICATION:

New York State is facing a teacher shortage. NYSED has proposed to
change some of the requirements to obtain a teaching certificate to
lessen this burden of the teacher shortage. There is an inequity of pay
scale between teachers and Occupational therapists. In other words, if
the recognition of the PT and OT will be that of the classroom teacher,
then the pay scale should be on par as well.  Afterall, the level of
education and continuing education is equivalent. The solution would be
to include Occupational and Physical Therapy professionals in the cate-
gory pupil personnel under the Office of Teaching Initiatives.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding the date
on which it shall have become a law.

2023-S7256 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7256
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 19, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK  --  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 physical therapists
   and occupational therapists in school districts and board  of  cooper-
   ative educational services

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 912 of the education law, as amended by chapter 477
 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:
   § 912. Health and welfare services to all children. The voters  and/or
 trustees  or  board  of  education  of every school district shall, upon
 request of the authorities of a school other than public, provide  resi-
 dent  children  who attend such school with any or all of the health and
 welfare services and facilities which are made available by such  voters
 and/or  trustees  or board of education to or for children attending the
 public schools of the district. Such services may include, but  are  not
 limited  to  all services performed by a physician, physician assistant,
 PHYSICAL THERAPIST, OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST, dentist,  dental  hygienist,
 registered  professional nurse, nurse practitioner, school psychologist,
 school social worker or school speech therapist, and  may  also  include
 dental  prophylaxis,  vision  and  hearing  screening  examinations, the
 taking of medical histories and the administration of  health  screening
 tests,  the  maintenance  of  cumulative health records and the adminis-
 tration of emergency care programs for ill or injured students. Any such
 services  or  facilities  shall  be  so  provided  notwithstanding   any
 provision  of  any  charter or other provision of law inconsistent here-
 with. Where children residing in one school  district  attend  a  school
 other than public located in another school district, the school author-
 ities  of  the  district  of  residence  shall  contract with the school
 authorities of the district where such nonpublic school is located,  for
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03586-01-3

 S. 7256                             2
 
 the provision of such health and welfare services and facilities to such
 children  by the school district where such nonpublic school is located,
 for a consideration to be agreed upon between the school authorities  of
 such  districts,  subject to the approval of the qualified voters of the
 district of residence when required under the provisions of  this  chap-
 ter.  Every such contract shall be in writing and in the form prescribed
 by the commissioner, and before such contract is executed the same shall
 be submitted for approval to the superintendent of schools having juris-
 diction over such district of residence  and  such  contract  shall  not
 become effective until approved by such superintendent.
   § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 3039 to read
 as follows:
   § 3039. PHYSICAL  AND OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS. EACH SCHOOL DISTRICT OR
 BOARD OF COOPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES WHICH EMPLOYS A PHYSICAL THER-
 APIST AS LICENSED PURSUANT TO ARTICLE ONE  HUNDRED  THIRTY-SIX  OF  THIS
 CHAPTER  OR  AN  OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST LICENSED PURSUANT TO ARTICLE ONE
 HUNDRED FIFTY-SIX OF THIS CHAPTER SHALL CATEGORIZE AND PAY  SUCH  THERA-
 PISTS  IN  ALIGNMENT  WITH THE DEPARTMENT'S CAREER LADDER PATHWAY FRAME-
 WORK. EACH SCHOOL DISTRICT OR BOARD OF COOPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL  SERVICES
 SHALL FURTHER OFFER SUCH THERAPISTS SCHOOL LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES THAT
 ARE DEVELOPED COLLABORATIVELY AND SYSTEMATICALLY TO IMPLEMENT COMPREHEN-
 SIVE  SYSTEMS  OF PROFESSIONAL LEARNING, SUPPORT AND ADVANCEMENT FOR ALL
 EDUCATORS.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of July  next  succeeding
 the date on which it shall have become a law.

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