BUFFALO, N.Y. — Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the nation’s first tuition-free college program for students at two-year and four-year public schools will pay the bill for about 22,000 New York students in its first year.

The Excelsior Scholarship program pays the balance not covered by other state and federal financial aid and scholarships for New York residents who are financially eligible.

Tuition is about $6,500 at four-year public colleges and $4,800 at two-year community colleges in the State University of New York and City University of New York systems. The program does not cover living expenses, books and fees.

“A college degree now is what a high school diploma was 30 years ago — it is essential to succeed in today’s economy,” Cuomo, a Democrat, said in a statement Sunday afternoon.

In all, about 53 percent of the 400,000 New York residents attending a SUNY or CUNY campus full-time won’t have to pay tuition, Cuomo said.

The number of students who apply and are awarded the scholarship is expected to increase in the next two years.

The state will spend about $87 million this year and $163 million annually once the program is fully implemented in 2019.The scholarship’s average award is $4,000 per student, according to Cuomo’s office