S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
8399
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
December 13, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. E. BROWN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to prohibiting the grant
of tuition assistance awards to any student who has knowingly engaged
in certain antisemitic activities
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Short title. This act may be known and shall be cited as
"the combating campus antisemitism act".
§ 2. Subdivision 2 of section 666 of the education law, as amended by
chapter 947 of the laws of 1990, is amended to read as follows:
2. Eligible students. Tuition awards may be made to students, who
comply with the requirements provided in subdivisions three, five and
six of section six hundred sixty-one of this article, and (i) are also
part-time students matriculated in approved undergraduate degree
programs or enrolled and accepted into registered certificate programs
and (ii) if eligible to claim dependents or to be claimed as dependents
under the tax law, whose incomes do not exceed fifty thousand five
hundred fifty dollars or if ineligible whose incomes do not exceed thir-
ty-four thousand two hundred fifty dollars. The continuation of eligi-
bility for a tuition award shall require the retention of good academic
standing, as defined by the commissioner pursuant to article thirteen of
this chapter. Prior to the approval of any additional award pursuant to
this section, participating institutions shall review the academic
standing of all recipients of awards pursuant to this section; AND
PROVIDED, FURTHER, THAT NO TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD SHALL BE PROVIDED TO
ANY STUDENT, IN ANY ACADEMIC YEAR, WHO HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED IN PROMOT-
ING ANTISEMITISM IN A MANNER THAT IS DIRECTED TO INCITING OR PRODUCING
IMMINENT LAWLESS ACTION AND IS LIKELY TO INCITE OR PRODUCE SUCH ACTION,
THAT CONSTITUTES "TRUE THREATS," AS DEFINED BY THE UNITED STATES SUPREME
COURT IN VIRGINIA V. BLACK (2003), OR THAT CONSTITUTES "FIGHTING WORDS,"
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13566-04-3
A. 8399 2
PURSUANT TO CHAPLINSKY V. NEW HAMPSHIRE (1942), OR FAILS TO ADEQUATELY
ADDRESS ANY SUCH EVENT. THE TERM "ANTISEMITISM" SHALL HAVE THE SAME
MEANING AS THE WORKING DEFINITION FOR "ANTISEMITISM" AS PROVIDED BY THE
INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE ON MAY 26, 2016, INCLUDING
THE CONTEMPORARY EXAMPLES OF ANTISEMITISM CITED BY THE INTERNATIONAL
HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE. THE HIGHER EDUCATION SERVICES CORPO-
RATION OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK SHALL ESTABLISH GUIDELINES FOR DETERMIN-
ING WHEN A STUDENT HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED IN PROMOTING ANTISEMITISM AS
WELL AS GUIDELINES FOR ACTIONS THAT MAY BE TAKEN TO RESTORE AND/OR
RESUME A TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD.
§ 3. Subdivision 1 of section 667 of the education law, as amended by
chapter 622 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
1. Recipient qualifications. Tuition assistance program awards are
available for all students who are enrolled in approved programs and who
demonstrate the ability to complete such courses, in accordance with
standards established by the commissioner provided, however, that no
award shall be made unless tuition (exclusive of educational fees) and,
if applicable, the college fee levied by the state university of New
York pursuant to the April first, nineteen hundred sixty-four financing
agreements with the New York state dormitory authority charged for the
program in which the student is enrolled total at least two hundred
dollars a year, [and provided further that,] no award can exceed one
hundred percent of the amount of tuition charged; AND PROVIDED, FURTHER,
THAT NO TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD SHALL BE PROVIDED TO ANY STUDENT, IN
ANY ACADEMIC YEAR, WHO HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED IN PROMOTING ANTISEMITISM
IN A MANNER THAT IS DIRECTED TO INCITING OR PRODUCING IMMINENT LAWLESS
ACTION AND IS LIKELY TO INCITE OR PRODUCE SUCH ACTION, THAT CONSTITUTES
"TRUE THREATS," AS DEFINED BY THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT IN VIRGI-
NIA V. BLACK (2003), OR THAT CONSTITUTES "FIGHTING WORDS," PURSUANT TO
CHAPLINSKY V. NEW HAMPSHIRE (1942), OR FAILS TO ADEQUATELY ADDRESS ANY
SUCH EVENT. THE TERM "ANTISEMITISM" SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS THE
WORKING DEFINITION FOR "ANTISEMITISM" AS PROVIDED BY THE INTERNATIONAL
HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE ON MAY 26, 2016, INCLUDING THE CONTEMPO-
RARY EXAMPLES OF ANTISEMITISM CITED BY THE INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST
REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE. THE HIGHER EDUCATION SERVICES CORPORATION OF THE
STATE OF NEW YORK SHALL ESTABLISH GUIDELINES FOR DETERMINING WHEN A
STUDENT HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED IN PROMOTING ANTISEMITISM AS WELL AS
GUIDELINES FOR ACTIONS THAT MAY BE TAKEN TO RESTORE AND/OR RESUME A
TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD.
§ 4. Subdivision 1 of section 667-a of the education law, as amended
by chapter 83 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows:
1. Legislative intent. The legislature hereby finds that to further
the goal of equal opportunity it is necessary to assure the availability
of supplemental assistance for the successful remediation of educa-
tionally disadvantaged students in addition to assistance currently
available under existing statute for students with financial need.
Accordingly, tuition assistance shall be extended to students whose need
for remediation precludes them from fulfilling the program pursuit and
academic progress requirements of the tuition assistance program; AND
PROVIDED, FURTHER, THAT NO SUPPLEMENTAL TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD SHALL
BE PROVIDED TO ANY STUDENT, IN ANY ACADEMIC YEAR, WHO HAS KNOWINGLY
ENGAGED IN PROMOTING ANTISEMITISM IN A MANNER THAT IS DIRECTED TO INCIT-
ING OR PRODUCING IMMINENT LAWLESS ACTION AND IS LIKELY TO INCITE OR
PRODUCE SUCH ACTION, THAT CONSTITUTES "TRUE THREATS," AS DEFINED BY THE
UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT IN VIRGINIA V. BLACK (2003), OR THAT CONSTI-
TUTES "FIGHTING WORDS," PURSUANT TO CHAPLINSKY V. NEW HAMPSHIRE (1942),
A. 8399 3
OR FAILS TO ADEQUATELY ADDRESS ANY SUCH EVENT. THE TERM "ANTISEMITISM"
SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS THE WORKING DEFINITION FOR "ANTISEMITISM"
AS PROVIDED BY THE INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE ON MAY
26, 2016, INCLUDING THE CONTEMPORARY EXAMPLES OF ANTISEMITISM CITED BY
THE INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE. THE HIGHER EDUCATION
SERVICES CORPORATION OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK SHALL ESTABLISH GUIDELINES
FOR DETERMINING WHEN A STUDENT HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED IN PROMOTING ANTI-
SEMITISM AS WELL AS GUIDELINES FOR ACTIONS THAT MAY BE TAKEN TO RESTORE
AND/OR RESUME A TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD.
§ 5. Subdivision 1 of section 667-c of the education law, as amended
by section 1 of part E of chapter 56 of the laws of 2022 and paragraph
(b) as amended by section 1 of part EE of chapter 56 of the laws of
2023, is amended to read as follows:
1. Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the
president of the higher education services corporation is authorized to
make tuition assistance program awards to:
a. part-time students enrolled at the state university, a community
college, the city university of New York, and a non-profit college or
university incorporated by the regents or by the legislature who meet
all requirements for tuition assistance program awards except for the
students' part-time attendance; AND PROVIDED, FURTHER, THAT NO PART-TIME
TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD SHALL BE PROVIDED TO ANY STUDENT, IN ANY
ACADEMIC YEAR, WHO HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED IN PROMOTING ANTISEMITISM IN A
MANNER THAT IS DIRECTED TO INCITING OR PRODUCING IMMINENT LAWLESS ACTION
AND IS LIKELY TO INCITE OR PRODUCE SUCH ACTION, THAT CONSTITUTES "TRUE
THREATS," AS DEFINED BY THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT IN VIRGINIA V.
BLACK (2003), OR THAT CONSTITUTES "FIGHTING WORDS," PURSUANT TO CHAPLIN-
SKY V. NEW HAMPSHIRE (1942), OR FAILS TO ADEQUATELY ADDRESS ANY SUCH
EVENT. THE TERM "ANTISEMITISM" SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS THE WORK-
ING DEFINITION FOR "ANTISEMITISM" AS PROVIDED BY THE INTERNATIONAL HOLO-
CAUST REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE ON MAY 26, 2016, INCLUDING THE CONTEMPORARY
EXAMPLES OF ANTISEMITISM CITED BY THE INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST REMEM-
BRANCE ALLIANCE. THE HIGHER EDUCATION SERVICES CORPORATION OF THE STATE
OF NEW YORK SHALL ESTABLISH GUIDELINES FOR DETERMINING WHEN A STUDENT
HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED IN PROMOTING ANTISEMITISM AS WELL AS GUIDELINES
FOR ACTIONS THAT MAY BE TAKEN TO RESTORE AND/OR RESUME A TUITION
ASSISTANCE AWARD; or
b. part-time students enrolled at a community college or a public
agricultural and technical college in a non-degree workforce credential
program directly leading to the employment or advancement of a student
in a "significant industry" as identified by the department of labor in
its three most recent statewide significant industries reports published
preceding the student's enrollment in such non-degree workforce creden-
tial program. The state university of New York and the city university
of New York shall publish and maintain a master list of all eligible
non-degree workforce credential program courses and update such list
every semester. Eligible non-degree workforce credential programs shall
include those programs less than twelve semester hours, or the equiv-
alent, per semester. A student who successfully completes a non-degree
workforce credential program and receives part-time tuition assistance
program awards pursuant to this paragraph shall be awarded academic
credit by the state university of New York or city university of New
York upon matriculation into a degree program at such institution,
provided that such credit shall be equal to the corresponding credit
hours earned in the non-degree workforce credential program; AND
PROVIDED, FURTHER, THAT NO PART-TIME TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD SHALL BE
A. 8399 4
PROVIDED TO ANY STUDENT, IN ANY ACADEMIC YEAR, WHO HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED
IN PROMOTING ANTISEMITISM IN A MANNER THAT IS DIRECTED TO INCITING OR
PRODUCING IMMINENT LAWLESS ACTION AND IS LIKELY TO INCITE OR PRODUCE
SUCH ACTION, THAT CONSTITUTES "TRUE THREATS," AS DEFINED BY THE UNITED
STATES SUPREME COURT IN VIRGINIA V. BLACK (2003), OR THAT CONSTITUTES
"FIGHTING WORDS," PURSUANT TO CHAPLINSKY V. NEW HAMPSHIRE (1942), OR
FAILS TO ADEQUATELY ADDRESS ANY SUCH EVENT. THE TERM "ANTISEMITISM"
SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS THE WORKING DEFINITION FOR "ANTISEMITISM"
AS PROVIDED BY THE INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE ON MAY
26, 2016, INCLUDING THE CONTEMPORARY EXAMPLES OF ANTISEMITISM CITED BY
THE INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE ALLIANCE. THE HIGHER EDUCATION
SERVICES CORPORATION OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK SHALL ESTABLISH GUIDELINES
FOR DETERMINING WHEN A STUDENT HAS KNOWINGLY ENGAGED IN PROMOTING ANTI-
SEMITISM AS WELL AS GUIDELINES FOR ACTIONS THAT MAY BE TAKEN TO RESTORE
AND/OR RESUME A TUITION ASSISTANCE AWARD.
§ 6. This act shall take effect immediately.