What's happening
This bill raises the mandatory school attendance age from 16 to 18 and requires 18-year-olds without a diploma to attend GED courses.
Why it matters
Raising the school attendance age to 18 aims to reduce dropout rates. , keeping more teenagers in school and potentially increasing long-term graduation rates and future earning potential for young adults.
Requiring 18-year-olds without a diploma to attend GED courses creates a pathway for at-risk youth. to gain a high school equivalency credential, which can improve access to jobs, college, and training programs.
The new law may impact families, employers, and schools. , as it limits the ability of 16- and 17-year-olds to leave school for full-time work, and could require additional resources for schools to support older students and expanded GED programming.
Certain exceptions remain, such as for students in approved vocational programs or those who have already completed requirements. , but overall, the bill strengthens the state’s stance on education as a mandatory obligation through age 18.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Raise School Attendance Age
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
16 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to education
- Referred to education
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
3495
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 29, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. ZEBROWSKI, L. ROSENTHAL, CRESPO, RAMOS, WEPRIN, GOODELL, STIRPE, STECK, COLTON, JAFFEE, COOK, ARROYO, PICHARDO, GOTT- FRIED, GALEF, MONTESANO, BRABENEC -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. CYMBROWITZ, DAVILA, PEOPLES-STOKES, PERRY, SIMON, SOLAGES, THIELE -read once and referred to the Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to attendance of minors at full-time day instruction
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 3205 of the education law, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 262 of the laws of 1959, paragraphs a and b of subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 296 of the laws of 1969, paragraph c of subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 518 of the laws of 1993, paragraph b of subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 975 of the laws of 1966, paragraph c of subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 277 of the laws of 2017 and subdivision 3 as amended by chapter 183 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:
§ 3205. Attendance of minors upon full time day instruction. 1. a. In each school district of the state, each minor from six to [sixteen] eighteen years of age shall attend upon full time instruction, except as provided in subdivision four of this section.
b. Each minor from six to [sixteen] eighteen years of age on an Indian reservation shall attend upon full time day instruction, except as provided in subdivision four of this section.
c. For purposes of this article, a minor who becomes six years of age on or before the first of December in any school year shall be required to attend upon full time instruction from the first day that the appropriate public schools are in session in September of such school year, and a minor who becomes six years of age after the first of December in any school year shall be required to attend upon full time instruction from the first day of session in the following September; and, except as
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01581-01-9
A. 3495 2
otherwise provided in subdivision three of this section, shall be required to remain in attendance until the last day of session in the school year in which the minor becomes sixteen years of age.
2. Exceptions. a. A minor who has completed a four-year high school course of study or has passed a high school equivalency examination shall not be subject to the provisions of this part [one of this article] in respect to required attendance upon instruction.
b. A minor for whom application for a full-time employment certificate has been made and who is eligible therefor may, though unemployed, be permitted to attend part time school not less than twenty hours per week instead of full time school.
c. The board of education of the Syracuse city school district, the board of education of the city school district of the city of New York, the board of education of the city school district of the city of Rochester, the board of education of the city school district of the city of Utica, the board of education of the city school district of the city of Buffalo the board of education of the city school district of the city of Cohoes, the board of education of the city school district of the city of Watervliet, and the board of education of the city school district of the city of Yonkers are hereby authorized to require minors who are five years of age on or before December first to attend kindergarten instruction. However, the provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to:
(i) Minors whose parents elect not to enroll their children in school until the following September.
(ii) Students enrolled in non-public schools or in home instruction.
d. A minor seventeen years of age or older who participates, with the consent of the school district and the person in parental relation to such minor, in a course of instruction in vocational or occupational skills shall not be subject to the provisions of this part with respect to required attendance upon instruction.
3. In each school district, the board of education shall have power to require minors [from sixteen to seventeen] eighteen years of age who are not employed to attend upon full time day instruction until the last day of session in the school year in which the student becomes [seventeen] eighteen years of age.
4. In each school district of the state, each person over the age of eighteen years and under the age of nineteen years, who does not attend upon full-time instruction, shall enroll and participate in a general education development course of study until he or she reaches the age of nineteen years, or he or she passes the high school equivalency examination for such course of study, whichever shall occur first.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the first of September next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
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.