STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          10647

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      July 22, 2024
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Hevesi) --
          read once and referred to the Committee on Children and Families

        AN ACT to amend the social services law, in  relation  to  incorporating
          the cost of living adjustment into subsequent maximum state aid rates

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

     1    Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 398-a of the social services  law,
     2  as amended by section 20 of part C of chapter 83 of the laws of 2002, is
     3  amended to read as follows:
     4    (2)  The  office  of  children  and  family services shall promulgate,
     5  subject to consultation with appropriate state agencies, the approval of
     6  the director of the budget and certification to  the  [chairmen]  chair-
     7  persons  of  the  senate finance and assembly ways and means committees,
     8  regulations establishing standards  of  payment  for  care  provided  to
     9  foster  children  when  the  care  of such children is subject to public
    10  financial support, when such care is provided by  relatives,  authorized
    11  agencies,  family  boarding  homes, or state agencies. Such standards of
    12  payment shall include the care required to be provided for foster  chil-
    13  dren  and  the cost of such care. When the office of children and family
    14  services has established such standards, reimbursement under subdivision
    15  two of section one hundred fifty-three-k of this chapter, for  the  care
    16  of  foster  children shall be limited in accordance with such standards.
    17  Provided, however, notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law  to
    18  the contrary, when a cost of living adjustment is provided in accordance
    19  with  a  chapter  of  the  laws of such year, the office of children and
    20  family services shall ensure such adjustment  is  subsequently  included
    21  and  incorporated  as part of the next base payment rate established for
    22  providing care to foster children and every subsequent maximum state aid
    23  rate established thereafter. Provided, further, such adjustment shall be
    24  in addition to any cost of living adjustment that may be provided  in  a
    25  subsequent state fiscal year, as well as any additional trend factors or
    26  staff  retention factors that the office of children and family services
    27  may apply to eligible programs. Nothing herein shall preclude the office

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD15896-01-4

        A. 10647                            2

     1  of children and family services from applying additional  trend  factors
     2  or staff retention factors that a program may be eligible for.
     3    §  2.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
     4  the amendments to subdivision 2 of section 398-a of the social  services
     5  law  made by section one of this act shall not affect the repeal of such
     6  subdivision and shall be deemed repealed therewith.