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Senate Bill S9125

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Enacts the "licensure incentives and fee-support for testing (LIFT) act"

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Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Higher Education Committee

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2025-S9125 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:
A10094
Current Committee:
Senate Higher Education
Law Section:
Education Law
Laws Affected:
Add §7711, Ed L

2025-S9125 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Enacts the "licensure incentives and fee-support for testing (LIFT) act"; establishes the social work licensure examination voucher program to provide low-income individuals vouchers to cover the cost of the examination required for licensure as a licensed master social worker or licensed clinical social worker.

2025-S9125 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S9125 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf 

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   9125
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 5, 2026
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  SUTTON -- 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 enacting  the  "licen-
   sure incentives and fee-support for testing (LIFT) act"
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the  "licensure
 incentives and fee-support for testing (LIFT) act".
   § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 7711 to read
 as follows:
   §  7711.  SOCIAL  WORK  LICENSURE  EXAMINATION VOUCHER PROGRAM. 1. THE
 DEPARTMENT SHALL ESTABLISH A PROGRAM TO  PROVIDE  VOUCHERS  TO  ELIGIBLE
 LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUALS TO COVER THE COST OF THE EXAMINATION REQUIRED FOR
 LICENSURE AS A LICENSED MASTER SOCIAL WORKER OR LICENSED CLINICAL SOCIAL
 WORKER.
   2.  TO  BE  ELIGIBLE  FOR  A  VOUCHER UNDER THIS SECTION, AN APPLICANT
 SHALL:  (A) BE A RESIDENT OF THE STATE; (B) BE ELIGIBLE TO SIT  FOR  THE
 LICENSED  MASTER  SOCIAL WORKER OR LICENSED CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER EXAM-
 INATION; AND (C) DEMONSTRATE INCOME AT OR BELOW A THRESHOLD  ESTABLISHED
 BY THE DEPARTMENT BY RULE OR REGULATION, BASED ON NET TAXABLE INCOME, AS
 DETERMINED  PURSUANT TO SECTION SIX HUNDRED SIXTY-THREE OF THIS CHAPTER.
 PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT FOR APPLICANTS WHO WOULD BE  CONSIDERED  EMANCI-
 PATED  PURSUANT  TO SUBDIVISION THREE OF SECTION SIX HUNDRED SIXTY-THREE
 OF THIS CHAPTER, ELIGIBILITY  SHALL  BE  DETERMINED  WITHOUT  REGARD  TO
 PARENTAL INCOME.
   3.  THE DEPARTMENT SHALL PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS NECESSARY TO
 IMPLEMENT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
 it shall have become a law.
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14592-03-6

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