In an attempt to fill the need for math and science teachers in New York public schools, Governor Pataki announced a plan this week to offer free tuition to students who commit to teaching those subject areas.

Mr. Pataki mentioned the proposal, which would apply to students at city and state universities, during his final state of the state address. “Let’s invest in our future by providing free SUNY or CUNY tuition to students who pursue math and science degrees and commit to teaching right here in New York State,” Mr. Pataki said Wednesday.

Details about cost, commitment, and implementation will not be released until later this month, when Mr. Pataki presents his executive budget, a spokesman for the governor, Scott Reif, said. Due to a dire shortage of teachers in math and science, education analysts have been brainstorming to come up with new ways to attract teachers to fill those slots.

The state’s leading business lobbying group, the Business Council of New York State, is floating a proposal it presented to the Pataki administration in an informal meeting during which the group asked state lawmakers to fund $50 million worth of scholarships. The money would fund up to 500 scholarships totaling $20,000 a year to New York college students who agree to teach math and science for a minimum of five years.

A spokesman for the group, Matthew Maguire, said he hopes the governor’s proposal will mirror the group’s “West Point model,” which involves recruiting the “best and the brightest” by offering education for free or at a substantially reduced cost.

More than half of all high schools in New York State have vacancies in teaching positions for math, biology, and other sciences, according to the proposal by the business group.

A spokesman for the city Department of Education, Keith Kalb, was unable to provide information about vacancies in city schools, but said there are fewer applicants for math, science, and special education jobs than in other areas.

About 48,000 teachers apply for about 8,000 available slots in city schools each year. The official in charge of science education for city schools, Julia Rankin, recently called the state of science education “horrendous.” At a City Council hearing in November, Dr. Rankin gave her own program a failing grade of 55 when she was pressed to rate it by a council member.

The dean of New York University’s Steinhardt School of Education, Mary Brabeck, said college students who graduate with math and science degrees are often enticed into fields other than teaching. The school recently received a $1 million federal grant to prepare high quality math and science teachers.