NY State Senate Bill 2025-S288

Senate Bill S288

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Relates to restrictions on authority for the withholding of public monies from educational institutions

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Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee 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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2025	referred to education

co-Sponsors

2025-S288 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A4854
Current Committee:: Senate Education
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §306, Ed L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S6737, A7729

2025-S288 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides that the commissioner of education may also withhold from any district or city its share of the public money of the state for willfully disobeying any provision of law, or for such decisions, orders or regulations as aforesaid whose willful violation constitutes an immediate threat to the health, safety, education or welfare of students, employees or visitors at such common school, educational institution, school district or public school.

2025-S288 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S288

SPONSOR: RHOADS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to restrictions on
authority for the withholding of public monies from educational insti-
tutions

 
PURPOSE:

Amends the education law, in relation to restrictions on authority for
the withholding of public monies from educational institutions.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Section 306 of the education law, subdivision 1 as amended by
chapter 298 of the laws of 1957, is amended to read as follows:

§ 306 Removal of school officers; withholding public money.  Section 2.
is the enacting clause.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

State funding for education is essential to the education and develop-
ment of our youth and the removal of such funding, regardless of the
reason, will invariably harm that developmental process. The ability of
the Commissioner of Education to alter or suspend the specific actions
of the Legislature in allocating such funding to educational insti-
tutions as a punishment or sanction, therefore, must be limited.

Presently, the Commissioner, in addition to the power to remove any
school officer, wields unlimited authority to alter or suspend funds
allocated by the Legislature to educational institutions for any willful
violation of law as well as for any willful violation of a decision,
order or regulation promulgated by the Commissioner regardless of its
severity or its impact on the health, safety, education or welfare of
students, employees or visitors to that educational institution. Without
limits, this broad power can effectively shut down affected insti-
tutions, potentially impacting the education of thousands of students,
over ministerial disputes with relatively little consequence, where
other less obstructive measures can be utilized.

The proposed legislation places reasonable limits on the exercise of
this draconian authority, restricting its use to willful violations of
law, or to willful disobeyance of decisions, orders or regulations
promulgated by the Commissioner only where such disobeyance presents an
immediate threat to the health, safety, education or welfare of
students, employees or visitors to the involved institution.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2025-S288 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    288
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens. RHOADS, OBERACKER, PALUMBO, WEIK -- read twice and
   ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee  on
   Education
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  education  law,  in relation to restrictions on
   authority for the withholding of public monies from educational insti-
   tutions
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 306 of the education law, subdivision 1 as amended
 by chapter 298 of the laws of 1957, is amended to read as follows:
   § 306. Removal of school officers; withholding public money. 1.  When-
 ever  it  shall  be proved to [his] THE COMMISSIONER'S satisfaction that
 any trustee, member of a board of education, clerk, collector,  treasur-
 er,  district  superintendent, superintendent of schools or other school
 officer is a member of an organization listed as subversive by the board
 of regents pursuant to the provisions of section three thousand  twenty-
 two  of  this  chapter,  or  has  been guilty of any wilful violation or
 neglect of duty under this chapter,  or  any  other  act  pertaining  to
 common  schools  or other educational institution participating in state
 funds, or wilfully disobeying any decision, order, rule or regulation of
 the regents or of the commissioner [of education], [said]  SUCH  commis-
 sioner, after a hearing at which the school officer shall have the right
 of  representation  by  counsel, may, by an order under [his] THEIR hand
 and seal, which order shall be recorded in [his]  THEIR  office,  remove
 such school officer from [his] office.
   2.  [Said] SUCH commissioner [of education] may also withhold from any
 district or city its share of the public money of the state for wilfully
 disobeying any provision of law [or any decision, order or regulation as
 aforesaid], OR FOR SUCH DECISIONS, ORDERS OR  REGULATIONS  AS  AFORESAID
 WHOSE  WILLFUL  VIOLATION CONSTITUTES AN IMMEDIATE THREAT TO THE HEALTH,
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD01058-01-5
 S. 288                              2
 
 SAFETY, EDUCATION OR WELFARE OF STUDENTS, EMPLOYEES OR VISITORS AT  SUCH
 COMMON  SCHOOL,  EDUCATIONAL  INSTITUTION,  SCHOOL  DISTRICT  OR  PUBLIC
 SCHOOL.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S288

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Sponsored By

Steven D. Rhoads