State Senator Michael Balboni and members of the Senate today unveiled TEACH-2, a far-reaching package of pension and other financial incentives aimed at keeping experienced and qualified teachers in the classroom, and reversing a worsening teacher shortage in the state's public schools.

TEACH-2 builds on the Senate's 2000 TEACH proposal and Teachers of Tomorrow - Gov. Pataki's plan enacted to provide recruitment incentives for new teachers - by encouraging senior, more experienced teachers to defer their retirement and remain in the classroom, where they can continue to teach and also serve as mentors to younger, less experienced colleagues.

More than half of New York teachers will be eligible to retire over the next decade. TEACH-2 includes pension incentives to encourage mid-career teachers to remain in the classroom while adding to their pension benefits.

"Senior teachers have a wealth of knowledge and experience that they can continue to share with students and their colleagues alike," said Senator Balboni. "This initiative aims to reward these good teachers and encourage them to continue working at the jobs they love."

TEACH-2's principal goal is to retain experienced teachers by providing pension incentives and other benefits. It also includes additional financial incentives for new teachers that complement TEACH and Teachers of Tomorrow, including a waiver of the state's teacher certification fee and scholarship grants to reward teachers who have gained national accreditation.

Key provisions of TEACH-2 include:

Keeping Experience in the Classroom

STAY - Senior Teacher Allowance Years

Provides additional service credit to retirement-eligible teachers if they agree to remain in the classroom for three additional years. Eligible teachers would receive an additional month of credit for each year they were in the retirement system. For example, a 55-year-old teacher with 30 years experience would receive an extra 30 months of service credit. New York previously has offered incentives to encourage early retirement, but TEACH-2 marks the first-ever proposal for a retirement deferral bonus.

START - State Teacher Attraction and Retention

Eliminates the retirement penalty for out-of-state, mid-career teachers who transferred to New York schools, and those previously employed in nonpublic schools, by allowing them to purchase pension credits for their earlier service.

Salary Earnings Waiver

Allows retired teachers to re-enter the teaching workforce by eliminating the pensioner's earnings cap. Right now, retirees lose part of their pension if they earn more than $18,500 a year. The Senate plan also gives more flexibility to school districts to hire back retired teachers in areas where they are most needed.

Attracting and Retaining Quality Teachers

National Certification Grants

Provides $3,400 bonuses for five years to teachers who successfully complete the rigorous National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification program. Under Teachers of Tomorrow, teachers with national certification are eligible to become Master Teachers in low-performing schools and earn $10,000 bonuses for three years. There are currently 104 nationally certified teachers in New York, compared to nearly 2,400 in North Carolina.

Waiver of Certification Fees

Public school teachers in New York State must pay to become state-certified, even if they already have been licensed in another state. TEACH-2 would waive these fees for first-time applicants, saving novice and out-of-state teachers $3.6 million a year, to entice them into the classroom. The governor has proposed similar fee waivers for other professions in his current executive budget.

Teacher of the Year Awards

For 30 years, New York has recognized its very best teachers through this annual award. TEACH-2 would add a $10,000 cash bonus and Master Teacher designation to this prestigious honor, providing even more incentive for teachers to excel in their work.

"Student performance that prepares our children for the future is directly tied to the quality of teachers in the classroom," Senator Balboni said. "TEACH-2 will help ensure that our classrooms are staffed with the brightest and most experienced teachers we can find so that our children get the quality education they deserve."

Building on the Senate's commitment to promote high technology and to boost New Yorkers' computer literacy, Senator Michael Balboni today proposed creation of a "Sales Tax-Free PC Week" to encourage the purchase and use of home computers.

The proposal seeks a one week waiver of the state and local sales tax on home computers, accessories and certain software during back-to-school shopping time in August as a way to entice individuals, families, and senior citizens to buy computers or replace outdated units. The goal is to bring a quarter million or more new computers into New Yorkers' homes, and lift New York's ranking among states for home computer use from its current 34th in the nation.

"Over the past decade, personal computers have become a necessity in the household, and knowledge of computers and their use is now considered essential for anyone who wishes to excel in an increasingly technology-based economy," said Senator Balboni. "Computers are great tools for students, parents and senior citizens, expanding opportunities for learning, communication and entertainment."

While recent studies found that students who had computers at home were nine times more likely to use computers in school, an October 2000 report by the U.S. Commerce Department showed that New York lagged behind most states in the percentage of homes with computers. The study found that 48.7 percent of New York homes had computers, far behind states like California and neighboring New Jersey and Connecticut which scored in the top third of states.

"The 'digital divide' between New York and other states puts our citizens, especially our children, at a competitive disadvantage," said Senator Balboni. "This initiative will help improve the technology-based education of our children and give New York a leading edge in the future."

Senator Balboni's proposal, valued at $20 million, would provide a one-week exemption from state and local sales tax for purchases in-store or over the Internet of:

* complete computer units, including laptops, desktops, or tower personal computers. A complete unit comprises a minimum of a central processing unit (CPU), storage drive, random access memory, keyboard and display monitor;

* peripherals such as printers, scanners, extra memory cards, cables, modems and CD-ROM drivers, when purchased within the same transaction as a complete PC unit;

* software when purchased as part of the same transaction as a new PC.

Counties would receive reimbursement from the state for lost sales tax revenue under Senator Balboni's plan. Expected retailer promotions combined with the tax elimination could save consumers hundreds of dollars on purchases of new home computer equipment.

Last year, Pennsylvania pioneered the idea of a sales tax-free PC week, resulting in a threefold increase in computer sales by retailers in that state. New York would be only the second state to offer such a tax break.