Exempts school district providers of special services or programs for preschool students with disabilities from having to obtain program approval from the…

Official titleShow

Exempts school district providers of special services or programs for preschool students with disabilities from having to obtain program approval from the commissioner of education

The heading above is this same sentence with its legal opening removed. No words were added, changed or reordered.

Latest action May 13, 2026

New York State Senate

Same as A10908, the matching bill in the Assembly.

Exempts school district providers of special services or programs for preschool students with disabilities from having to obtain program approval from the commissioner of education.

Summary from NY Open Legislation. How we handle summaries

Amends the Education Law.

Not chosen yet

Where it stands

Passed one of the two chambers; it still needs the other.

Introduced
In committee
Up for a vote
Passed one chamber
Passed
Enacted

Committee

Education · New York State Assembly

Also referred to Education · New York State Senate.

Purpose, from the sponsor's memo

Section 1 amends paragraph (a) of subdivision 9 of section 4410 of the education law to exempt school district providers of preschool special education programs and services from the requirement to apply for program approval from the commissioner of education. This section provides that school districts will instead be deemed approved to provide such services and programs and will also be exempt from the program reapproval process. School districts must continue to comply with all applicable regulatory requirements governing approved preschool programs and must notify the State Education Department of the services and programs they intend to provide. Section 2 provides the effective date.

Filed with the bill. Read it on nysenate.gov (opens in a new tab)

Recorded votes

Vote: Floor vote
NY SenateMay 13, 2026Result: passed
(60) (0) (0) (3)
Vote: Committee vote · Education
Senate EducationApr 21, 2026Result: passed
(15) (0) (0) (0)

Cosponsors

Didi Barrett, Michelle Hinchey and 1 more on Agora

Showing the cosponsors who are on Agora, A to Z. The official record may list more.

Read on NY Senate

Democratic3

Shown in neutral colors by design; Agora is non-partisan.

The sponsor's argument

Why Shelley Mayer says this is needed

Under state and federal law, school districts are responsible for ensur- ing that preschool students with disabilities receive a free and appro- priate public education in the least restrictive environment. Despite this responsibility, current law requires school districts to apply to the State Education Department for approval before they may provide preschool special education services or programs under section 4410 of the education law. This approval requirement creates an additional administrative step for school districts that are already subject to extensive oversight and accountability requirements. School districts do not face a similar approval process when providing special education services to students in grades kindergarten through twelve. This legislation eliminates the separate approval requirement by deeming school districts approved to provide preschool special education programs and services. This aligns the process for preschool special education with the existing framework for K-12 special education. School districts will continue to be subject to all applicable programmatic and fiscal standards in the commissioner's regulations and must notify the State Education Department of the services and programs they intend to provide

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.

Full history

May 13, 2026
Sent to the executive
DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
NY Senate
May 13, 2026
Passed a chamber
PASSED SENATE
NY Senate
May 13, 2026
Referred to committee
REFERRED TO EDUCATION
NY Assembly
Apr 27, 2026
Advanced to Third Reading
ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
NY Senate
Apr 22, 2026
2ND Report CAL.
2ND REPORT CAL.
NY Senate

Show full history (3 earlier events)

Apr 21, 2026
1ST Report CAL.745
1ST REPORT CAL.745
NY Senate
Apr 8, 2026
Referred to committee
REFERRED TO EDUCATION
NY Assembly
Mar 10, 2026
Referred to committee
REFERRED TO EDUCATION
NY Senate

From NY Open Legislation, the NY Senate and Assembly, and official rosters. This record was last updated Oct 21, 2026. About our data

Read the record

Read on NY Senate (opens in a new tab) The official record on nysenate.gov.

Your position