BILL NUMBER: S3145
SPONSOR: MANNION
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the education law, in relation to vision screening exam-
inations in public schools
 
PURPOSE OF THE BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to authorize the Commissioner of Education
to approve the use of automated vision screening devices by public
schools for vision screening examinations required by law.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of this bill would modify the Education Law to require that
the director of school health services of each school district in this
state conduct screening examinations of vision that consist of testing
students' vision for color perception, distance acuity and near vision,
within six months of admission to the school, or by such other date as
may be prescribed in the regulations of the commissioner. This bill
would authorize the Commissioner of Education to specify the types of
vision screening devices and testing methods to be used for such exam-
inations, including but not limited to, automated vision screening
devices.
Section 2 of this bill provides that the effective date shall take
effect immediately.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Automated vision screening devices are technological advances in eye
examination that should be recognized as an alternative to the tradi-
tional Snellen Eye Chart Test. Such devices require minimal cooperation
from the subject undergoing the test and take only a matter of seconds
to administer to both eyes at the same time after which the results are
sent to a wireless printer. The test is able to detect a variety of
visual maladies that an eye chart test cannot. With the help of the
Lions Club in Syracuse, over 4000 students in the Syracuse City School
District were tested using automated vision screening devices, and over
600 were found to need further treatment. In July 2017, the State of
Connecticut amended Section 10-214 of its General Statutes to permit the
use of automated vision screening devices for conducting eye examina-
tions in its public schools as an alternative to the Snellen Eye Test
Chart. New York should follow suit.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-22: S.8055 (Mannion) - Referred to Education.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

Statutes affected:
S3145: 905 education law, 905(4) education law