What's happening
This bill allows school districts to receive BOCES aid for certain equipment purchases if they prove the purchase is cost-effective.
Why it matters
Expands what schools can get state BOCES aid for. by allowing equipment purchases—such as furniture and classroom materials—to qualify, as long as the district proves it’s the most cost-effective option.
Encourages smarter spending by schools. since districts must demonstrate that accessing BOCES aid leads to savings compared to buying equipment without it, potentially leading to better use of taxpayer money.
May provide more flexibility for schools’ budgeting. because they can claim aid for a wider range of purchases, possibly making it easier to update or improve classroom environments and educational tools.
Requires new oversight and standards. as the Commissioner of Education is directed to set up rules and guidelines, which could impact how quickly and efficiently districts can access these funds.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Make School Equipment Aid Cheaper
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to education
- Referred to education
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
611
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE (Prefiled)
January 9, 2019
Introduced by Sen. BOYLE -- 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 the cost effectiveness of tangible equipment
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Paragraph d of subdivision 4 of section 1950 of the education law is amended by adding a new subparagraph 6 to read as follows:
(6) Cost effectiveness of tangible equipment. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary, expenditures incurred by component school districts in compliance with the general municipal law, pursuant to purchase and/or installation contracts entered into on or after January fifteenth, two thousand, for equipment including but not limited to furniture, bulletin boards, tangible instructional materials and classroom aids, shall be an acceptable expense for BOCES aid if the component school district demonstrates the purchase would be more cost-effective than would otherwise be possible if such services were to be purchased without the consideration of BOCES aid.
§ 2. The commissioner of education shall promulgate rules, regulations and standards necessary to implement the provisions of this act.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04330-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the education law, in relation to the cost effectiveness of tangible equipment
Purpose or general idea of bill
The purpose of the bill is to allow school districts to receive BOCES aid reimbursement for purchases deemed more cost effective than those through BOCES.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1: Allows for BOCES reimbursement to a school district for purchases of tangible equipment made outside of BOCES if those purchases are more cost effective than what could have been purchased through' BOCES without the consideration of BOCES aid.
Section 2: Directs the commissioner to promulgate rules, regulations and standards to implement the provisions of this legislation.
Justification
It is incumbent upon school districts and Boards of Cooperative Educa- tional Services (BOCES) to ensure that all expenditures are cost effec- tive.
Often school districts are able to find better prices on equipment and supply purchases than those offered by their boards of cooperative educational services. However, because purchases via BOCES are reimburs- able, the school district will often purchase from BOCES as opposed to the more cost effective alternative. This extra expense is a waste of taxpayer dollars.
This legislation seeks to encourage BOCES and school districts to exer- cise due diligence in the procurement of supplies and equipment so they make purchases that are the most cost efficient.
Prior legislative history
S.7938 of 2014
01/13/15 REFERRED TO EDUCATION
01/06/16 REFERRED TO EDUCATION
01/03/18 REFERRED TO EDUCATION
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.