New York A 10204: Adds members to the board of trustees of the state university of New York who represent the interests of community colleges

Bill Text

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A10204 Summary:

BILL NOA10204 

&nbsp

SAME ASSAME AS S09218

&nbsp

SPONSOREachus

&nbsp

COSPNSRMaher

&nbsp

MLTSPNSR

&nbsp

Amd §§353 & 6306, Ed L

&nbsp

Adds members to the board of trustees of the state university of New York who represent the interests of community colleges as full voting members of the board of trustees; provides that the local legislative body or board of the county in which a community college is located may appoint a trustee in the event that the governor fails to appoint such trustee within 180 days of a vacancy on a board of trustees of a community college.

Go to top A10204 Actions:

BILL NOA10204 

&nbsp

02/12/2026referred to higher education

Go to topA10204 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topA10204 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topA10204 Text:

 STATE OF NEW YORK
 ________________________________________________________________________

 10204

 IN ASSEMBLY

 February 12, 2026
 ___________

 Introduced by M. of A. EACHUS, MAHER -- read once and referred to the
 Committee on Higher Education

 AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to appointing represen-
 tatives of community colleges to the board of trustees of the state
 university of New York and authorizing counties to appoint members to
 boards of trustees of community colleges when certain members have not
 been appointed in a timely manner

 The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
 bly, do enact as follows:

 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 2 the "community college representation act".
 3 § 2. Legislative findings and justification. The State University of
 4 New York (SUNY) system includes 30 community colleges serving more than
 5 44% of its total student population. These institutions are not only
 6 foundational to SUNY's academic mission, but they are also key drivers
 7 of regional workforce development, upstate economic revitalization, and
 8 closing persistent equity gaps in higher education.
 9 Despite their critical role, community colleges currently have no
 10 voting representation on the SUNY Board of Trustees. Their faculty,
 11 presidents, and trustees contribute directly to the success of hundreds
 12 of thousands of New Yorkers, yet they have no formal vote in system-lev-
 13 el policy or budget decisions. By contrast, SUNY's four-year campuses
 14 are well represented in both formal and informal governance channels.
 15 This bill is not about expanding representation for every SUNY affil-
 16 iated stakeholder group. It is about recognizing the singular role of
 17 community colleges, which serve the largest segment of SUNY students and
 18 operate under a distinct funding and governance structure. Their inclu-
 19 sion is essential to balanced and informed system-wide governance.
 20 Further, these positions shall be uncompensated, in alignment with
 21 existing trustee practice, and shall impose no fiscal burden on the
 22 State or SUNY.
 23 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 353 of the education law, as amended by
 24 chapter 268 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:

 EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD14092-02-6

 A. 10204 2

 1 1. The state university shall be governed, and all of its corporate
 2 powers exercised, by a board of trustees. Such board shall consist of
 3 [eighteen] twenty-one members, fifteen of whom shall be appointed by the
 4 governor with the advice and consent of the senate, one of whom shall be
 5 appointed by the New York community college trustees' association, one
 6 of whom shall be appointed by the New York community college association
 7 of presidents, one of whom shall be appointed by the faculty council of
 8 community colleges, one of whom shall be the president of the student
 9 assembly of the state university, ex-officio and voting, one of whom
 10 shall be the president of the university faculty senate, ex-officio and
 11 non-voting, and one of whom shall be the president of the faculty coun-
 12 cil of community colleges, ex-officio and non-voting. Such ex-officio
 13 members shall be subject to every provision of any general, special, or
 14 local law, ordinance, charter, code, rule, or reg