Bill Text: NY S07407 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Ensures adequate access to information by individuals who have limited English proficiency.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-12 - REFERRED TO SOCIAL SERVICES [S07407 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-S07407-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          7407
                    IN SENATE
                                    January 12, 2018
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen.  BAILEY -- 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  ensuring
          adequate access to information by individuals who have limited English
          proficiency
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 95-a of the  social  services  law  is  amended  by
     2  adding a new subdivision 9 to read as follows:
     3    9.  (a)  The  department  shall develop and implement a plan to ensure
     4  adequate access to information by individuals who have  limited  English
     5  proficiency  or  otherwise  require communication assistance.   Notwith-
     6  standing the provisions of any general, special  or  local  law  to  the
     7  contrary, and subject to appropriation, the department shall:
     8    (i) translate necessary documents, including but not limited to, forms
     9  and  instructions  provided to or completed by the program beneficiaries
    10  or participants, into the six most common non-English  languages  spoken
    11  by beneficiaries with limited-English proficiency;
    12    (ii)  offer,  upon request, interpretation services between the entity
    13  administering the program and  an  individual  in  his  or  her  primary
    14  language with respect to the provision of services or benefits; and
    15    (iii)  offer,  upon request or demonstrated need, services to an indi-
    16  vidual who requires additional assistance due to partial or total  deaf-
    17  ness, blindness, speech impediment, or cognitive impairment; and
    18    (iv)  subject  to appropriation, work with the office for the aging to
    19  provide additional translation services to both agencies to assist  with
    20  informing  low-income  and  elderly  households  potentially eligible to
    21  receive food stamps.
    22    (b) Each commissioner of social services shall  retain  discretion  to
    23  offer additional language translation services to low-income recipients,
    24  as necessary.
    25    §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
    26  have become a law.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14204-01-8