New York S 6529: Prohibits discrimination, intimidation and retaliation against students of proprietary schools who file a written complaint or exercise their right of private action against a proprietary school

Bill Text

STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          6529
                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                       May 5, 2021
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen.  STAVISKY  --  (at  request  of the State Education
          Department) -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to  be
          committed to the Committee on Higher Education
        AN  ACT to amend the education law, in relation to prohibiting discrimi-
          nation, intimidation and retaliation against students  of  proprietary
          schools  who  file  a  written  complaint  or  exercise their right of
          private action against a proprietary school
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1. Paragraph c of subdivision 1 of section 5003 of the educa-
     2  tion law is amended by adding a new subparagraph 5 to read as follows:
     3    (5) No owner, operator, licensed personnel,  or  agent  thereof  of  a
     4  licensed private career school shall discriminate, intimidate, or retal-
     5  iate  against  any person who files a written complaint pursuant to this
     6  paragraph.
     7    § 2. Subdivision 8 of section 5003 of the education law, as amended by
     8  chapter 381 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
     9    8. Private right of action. A student injured by a violation  of  this
    10  article  may bring an action against the owner or operator of a licensed
    11  private career school for actual damages or one hundred dollars,  which-
    12  ever is greater. A court may, in its discretion, award reasonable attor-
    13  ney's  fees  to  a  prevailing  plaintiff.  No owner, operator, licensed
    14  personnel, or agent thereof of a licensed private  career  school  shall
    15  discriminate,  intimidate, or retaliate against any student who brings a
    16  private right of action against the owner  or  operator  of  a  licensed
    17  private career school pursuant to this subdivision.
    18    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in  (underscored) is new; matter in bracketsitalics
                              [] is old law to be omitted. 
                                                                   LBD09755-01-1