Bill Text: NY S09343 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Requires the office of temporary and disability assistance to make publicly available on its website information regarding waivers, rental supplement plans and shelter supplement plans.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-13 - REFERRED TO SOCIAL SERVICES [S09343 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S09343-Introduced.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          9343

                    IN SENATE

                                      May 13, 2024
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen. PERSAUD -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services

        AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation  to  requiring  the
          office  of temporary and disability assistance to make publicly avail-
          able on its website information regarding waivers,  rental  supplement
          plans and shelter supplement plans

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The social services law is amended by adding a new  section
     2  152-e to read as follows:
     3    §  152-e. Public availability of information regarding waiver requests
     4  and shelter and rental supplements. 1. For purposes of this section, the
     5  following terms shall have the following meanings:
     6    (a) "Office" shall mean the office of temporary and disability assist-
     7  ance.
     8    (b) "Waiver" means permission to  deviate  from  a  state  or  federal
     9  program rule or statutory provision.
    10    (c)  "Shelter  supplement  plan"  means  a  plan submitted by a social
    11  services district for approval by the department to  provide  additional
    12  monthly  shelter supplements to public assistance applicants and recipi-
    13  ents as provided in 18 NYCRR 352.3.
    14    (d) "Rental supplement program plan" means any  plan  submitted  by  a
    15  social  services  district  for approval by the office to provide rental
    16  assistance to individuals  who  are  experiencing  homelessness  or  are
    17  facing imminent loss of housing.
    18    2.  The  office  shall  make  publicly available information regarding
    19  waivers and rental supplement plans  and  shelter  supplement  plans  by
    20  providing, at a minimum, the following information:
    21    (a)  Within  sixty  days  of  the  effective date of this section, the
    22  office shall post on its website a compendium  of  existing  waivers  of
    23  state  or  federal  program rules or statutory provisions, including but
    24  not limited to a description of the state or  federal  program  rule  or
    25  statutory  provision waived, the date first granted, the date the waiver
    26  will expire if any, and the social services districts to which the waiv-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14960-01-4
        S. 9343                             2

     1  er applies. The office shall review existing waivers at least once every
     2  five years to analyze the continued need for existing waivers and  shall
     3  publish  the  results  of the review and make it available to the public
     4  for comment.
     5    (b)  Within  ten days after a federal agency has provided notice of an
     6  available federal waiver, the office shall post on its website the rele-
     7  vant information about such available federal waiver including a summary
     8  of such available waiver and a  citation  or  link  to  the  appropriate
     9  federal  authority for such available federal waiver. Any waiver request
    10  submitted by the office to any federal agency  shall  be  made  publicly
    11  available  on the website of the office no later than ten days after the
    12  request is submitted. Any approval or denial of such requests  shall  be
    13  made available on the website of the office no later than ten days after
    14  receipt.
    15    (c)  The  office  shall  provide notice of waivers of state or federal
    16  program rules or statutory provisions which may be requested  by  social
    17  services districts. Within ten days after the office has provided notice
    18  that a waiver may be requested by a social services district, the office
    19  shall  post on its website the relevant information about such available
    20  waiver including a summary of such available waiver and  a  citation  or
    21  link  to the appropriate authority for such available waiver. Any waiver
    22  request submitted by a social services district to the office  shall  be
    23  made  publicly  available on the website of the office no later than ten
    24  days after the request is submitted  to  the  office.  Any  approval  or
    25  denial  of  such  requests shall be made available on the website of the
    26  office no later than ten days after receipt.
    27    (d) Any shelter supplement plan and any rental supplement program plan
    28  submitted to the office by a social  services  district  shall  be  made
    29  publicly  available  on the website of the office no later than ten days
    30  after such plan is submitted. Any approval or denial of such requests in
    31  addition to any guidance issued related to such requests shall  be  made
    32  publicly  available  on the website of the office no later than ten days
    33  after issuance.
    34    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.