NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9128
SPONSOR: Jensen TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the education law, in relation to grant programs for
facilities providing prekindergarten services
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
This bill intends to enhance the level of universal prekindergarten
funding provided to school districts and eligible agencies providing
prekindergarten services on behalf of districts, expands collaboration
requirements between districts and eligible agencies, and establishes
equivalent minimum supervision ratios and maximum class size standards
between district and agency run UPK programs.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 provides the legislative intent.
Sections 2 through 4 amend various subdivisions of Section 3602-e of the
Education Law to increase the minimum UPK aid in the 2024-25 school year
and thereafter from $5,400 to $6,400 and provides that such amount shall
be adjusted annually to account for inflation; increases the minimum
required collaboration efforts between school districts and eligible
agencies from 10% to 15% of the total grant award to the school
district; and directs the Commissioner of Education, in consultation
with the Commissioner of the Office of Children and Family Services, to
establish equivalent standards for minimum teacher to student super-
vision ratios and maximum class sizes.
Section 5 sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
While New York has been increasing spending on Universal Prekindergarten
Aid in recent years, service providers have voiced concerns regarding
the level of State funding they receive on a per student basis and the
quality of education they are able to provide at such rates. Prekinder-
garten programs offer a valuable alternative to traditional child care
placements, which have become more difficult for families across the
state to find and afford since the COVID-19 pandemic. Increasing the
minimum per-pupil prekindergarten aid provided and expanding collab-
oration requirements between school districts and eligible agencies that
provide prekindergarten services can incentivize program providers to
increase the number of students they serve and maximize the quality of
education they are able to provide to early childhood learners.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9128
IN ASSEMBLY
February 8, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. JENSEN -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to grant programs for
facilities providing prekindergarten services
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature hereby recognizes and
2 acknowledges the significant financial and logistical challenges faced
3 by New York families in accessing and affording child care services
4 across the state. The legislature further acknowledges that prekinder-
5 garten programs offer a viable alternative to traditional child care
6 settings, providing children with a strong social and academic founda-
7 tion before entering kindergarten level classes. Additionally, the
8 legislature acknowledges the crucial role played by community-based
9 organizations and other educational service providers in delivering
10 high-quality prekindergarten services to an increasing number of fami-
11 lies. Recognizing the importance of these community partners, the legis-
12 lature emphasizes the need to ensure the financial viability of these
13 organizations as the state expands access to prekindergarten education.
14 In addition to the provisions outlined in this act, the legislature
15 hereby calls on the commissioner of education to identify strategies for
16 enhancing and streamlining the operations of eligible agencies that
17 provide prekindergarten services, including facilitating access to a
18 repository of qualified early childhood education professionals, with
19 the aim of improving the recruitment and retention of highly skilled
20 employees, and identifying methods to minimize overhead expenses
21 incurred by eligible agencies.
22 § 2. The opening paragraph of subdivision 10 of section 3602-e of the
23 education law is amended by adding a new subparagraph (x) to read as
24 follows:
25 (x) for the two thousand twenty-four--two thousand twenty-five school
26 year and thereafter, each school district shall be eligible to receive a
27 grant amount equal to the greater of the amount provided under subpara-
28 graph (ix) of this paragraph or the product of: (1) the sum of: (A)
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13889-01-3
A. 9128 2
1 eligible half-day three-year-old prekindergarten pupils weighted at 0.5
2 as defined in clause two of subparagraph (iii) of paragraph b of this
3 subdivision, (B) eligible full-day three-year-old prekindergarten pupils
4 as defined in clause two of subparagraph (ii) of paragraph b of this
5 subdivision, (C) eligible half-day four-year-old prekindergarten pupils
6 weighted at 0.5 as defined in clause one of subparagraph (iii) of para-
7 graph b of this subdivision, and (D) eligible full-day four-year-old
8 prekindergarten pupils as defined in clause one of subparagraph (ii) of
9 paragraph b of this subdivision, multiplied by (2) six thousand four
10 hundred dollars; provided, however, that the maximum grant shall not
11 exceed the total actual grant expenditures incurred by the school
12 district in the current school year, as approved by the commissioner;
13 and provided, further, notwithstanding any other provision of the law to
14 the contrary, that the dollar amount set forth in this clause shall be
15 adjusted annually to reflect the percentage increase in the consumer
16 price index, as defined by paragraph hh of subdivision one of section
17 three thousand six hundred two of this part.
18 § 3. Paragraph e of subdivision 5 of section 3602-e of the education
19 law, as amended by section 19 of part B of chapter 57 of the laws of
20 2007, is amended to read as follows:
21 e. Not less than [ten] fifteen percent of the total grant award to the
22 school district shall be set aside for collaborative efforts with eligi-
23 ble agencies, provided that the commissioner may waive such set aside
24 requirement based upon documented evidence that the school district was
25 unable to use the set aside to make a collaborative arrangement that
26 would meet all requirements of this subdivision because of unavailabili-
27 ty of eligible agencies willing to collaborate or other factors beyond
28 the control of the school district, or for school districts which have
29 fully implemented a universal prekindergarten program by serving all
30 eligible [four year olds] four-year-olds in the nineteen hundred [nine-
31 ty-eight--ninety-nine] ninety-eight--nineteen hundred ninety-nine school
32 year and due to parental choice the ten percent set aside requirement
33 exceeds the total of the district's aid per kindergarten pupil multi-
34 plied by the number of pre-kindergarten pupils in collaborative
35 programs. In such cases, school districts shall set aside, for collabo-
36 rative efforts with eligible agencies, the total of the district's aid
37 per kindergarten pupil multiplied by the number of prekindergarten
38 pupils in collaborative programs.
39 § 4. Subdivision 5 of section 3602-e of the education law is amended
40 by adding a new paragraph g to read as follows:
41 g. Notwithstanding any provision of the law to contrary, the commis-
42 sioner shall consult with the commissioner of children and family
43 services to require that school districts and eligible agencies adminis-
44 tering a prekindergarten program pursuant to paragraph e of this subdi-
45 vision which shall follow equivalent standards relating to minimum
46 teacher to student supervision ratios and maximum class sizes.
47 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
