What's happening
This bill requires colleges to notify students with education loans that tuition or fee overpayment refunds must be repaid to the lender.
Why it matters
Helps prevent student confusion and debt accumulation. By requiring colleges to notify students that tuition or fee refunds from overpayments on loans must be repaid to the lender, students are less likely to mistakenly spend refunded loan money, which could otherwise increase their overall debt burden.
Promotes financial literacy and transparency. The bill ensures students are explicitly informed—at the point of accepting aid or receiving a refund—about the true nature of refunded amounts, supporting better financial decision-making and awareness about their obligations.
Targets a common administrative gap. Overpayments can occur for various reasons (e.g., changes in course load, dropped classes), and without clear notification, students might not realize that refunds do not represent “free money.” This measure addresses a real gap in current college financial aid communication practices.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Warn Students About Loan Refunds
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to higher education
- Referred to higher education
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
5014
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 6, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. ENGLEBRIGHT, PEOPLES-STOKES, JAFFEE -- Multi- Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK, GALEF, JENNE, LUPARDO, MOSLEY, RIVERA, SEPULVEDA, TITONE, WRIGHT -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring institutions of higher education to provide conspicuous notice to students, having education loans, that refunds of overpayments of tuition or fees have to be repaid to the lender
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 6437-a to read as follows:
§ 6437-a. Overpayments of tuition and fees. Every institution of higher education which receives or credits to a student's account any overpayment of tuition and/or fees, shall, if such student's tuition and/or fees are paid by means of any type of education loan, conspicuously provide notice to students, either at the time a student accepts a financial aid offer or directly on the refund check for such overpayment, that the refund is loan money that will have to be repaid to the education loan lender.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03850-01-7
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.