Bill Text: NY S07495 | 2015-2016 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires legislative approval for the closure of certain office of mental health, office for people with developmental disabilities or office of children and family services facilities and institutions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2016-06-14 - referred to ways and means [S07495 Detail]
Download: New_York-2015-S07495-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7495 IN SENATE May 5, 2016 ___________ Introduced by Sen. AKSHAR -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Mental Health and Develop- mental Disabilities AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law and the executive law, in relation to requiring legislative approval for the closure of certain office of mental health, office of people with developmental disabili- ties or office of children and family services facilities and insti- tutions The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision (e) of section 7.17 of the mental hygiene law, 2 as amended by chapter 723 of the laws of 1993, paragraph 1 as amended by 3 chapter 170 of the laws of 1994, paragraph 3 as amended by chapter 83 of 4 the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows: 5 (e) In the event that the plan for state and local mental health 6 services, developed in accordance with subdivision (b) of this section, 7 determines that significant service reductions are anticipated for a 8 particular state-operated hospital or its catchment area, or a state-op- 9 erated research institute, the commissioner shall take the following 10 actions[, provided nothing in this subdivision shall create a basis for11enjoining any otherwise lawful service reductions]: 12 1. submit a written report to the legislature at least three hundred 13 sixty-five days prior to the date the office is seeking closure of any 14 facility or institution. Such report shall include justification for the 15 proposed closure. The legislature may require any additional information 16 or data that it deems necessary in such report. If the legislature, or 17 the appropriate committees thereof, upon review of the report submitted 18 to it by the office, finds that the proposed closure is not justified 19 then closure shall not occur until approved by a majority vote of each 20 house of the legislature. 21 2. confer with the department of civil service, the governor's office 22 of employee relations and any other state agency to develop strategies 23 which attempt to minimize the impact on the state workforce by providing 24 assistance in obtaining state employment in state-operated community- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD14968-01-6S. 7495 2 1 based services or other employment opportunities, and to develop strate- 2 gies for the development of necessary retraining and redeployment 3 programs. In planning such strategies, the commissioner shall provide 4 for the participation of the representatives of the employee labor 5 organizations and for the participation of managerial and confidential 6 employees to ensure continuity of employment; 7 [2.] 3. consult with the department of economic development and any 8 other appropriate state agencies to develop strategies which attempt to 9 minimize the impact of such significant service reductions on the local 10 and regional economies; 11 [3.] 4. provide for a mechanism which may reasonably be expected to 12 provide notice to local governments, community organizations, employee 13 labor organizations, managerial and confidential employees, consumer and 14 advocacy groups of the potential for significant service reductions at 15 such state-operated hospitals and state-operated research institutes at 16 least twelve months prior to commencing such service reduction, 17 provided, however, that this requirement shall be deemed satisfied with 18 respect to reductions at Central Islip Psychiatric Center, Gowanda 19 Psychiatric Center, Harlem Valley Psychiatric Center, Kings Park Psychi- 20 atric Center, Willard Psychiatric Center and Manhattan Children's 21 Psychiatric Center; and 22 [4.] 5. consult with the office of general services and any other 23 appropriate state agency in developing a mechanism for determining 24 alternative uses for land and buildings to be vacated by the office of 25 mental health. Such a mechanism should include a review of other 26 programs or state agencies that could feasibly expand their operations 27 onto a state-operated hospital campus and are compatible with health, 28 safety and programmatic needs of patients served in such facilities. 29 § 2. The mental hygiene law is amended by adding a new section 13.18 30 to read as follows: 31 § 13.18 Closure of facilities. 32 The commissioner shall submit a written report to the legislature at 33 least three hundred sixty-five days prior to the date the office is 34 seeking closure of any facility or institution. Such report shall 35 include justification for the proposed closure. The legislature may 36 require any additional information or data that it deems necessary in 37 such report. If the legislature, or the appropriate committees thereof, 38 upon review of the report submitted to it by the office, finds that the 39 proposed closure is not justified then closure shall not occur until 40 approved by a majority vote of each house of the legislature. 41 § 3. Subdivision 15 of section 501 of the executive law, as amended by 42 section 1 of part H of chapter 58 of the laws of 2006, is amended to 43 read as follows: 44 15. In the event that the office of children and family services 45 determines that significant service reductions, public employee staffing 46 reductions and/or the transfer of operations to a private or not-for- 47 profit entity are anticipated in the office of children and family 48 services long term planning process or for a particular facility in a 49 future year, to take the following actions: 50 (a) submit a written report to the legislature at least three hundred 51 sixty-five days prior to the date the office of children and family 52 services is seeking closure of any secure or limited secure facility. 53 Such report shall include justification for the proposed closure. The 54 legislature may require any additional information or data that it deems 55 necessary in such report. If the legislature, or the appropriate commit- 56 tees thereof, upon review of the report submitted to it by the office ofS. 7495 3 1 children and family services, finds that the proposed closure is not 2 justified then closure shall not occur until approved by a majority vote 3 of each house of the legislature. 4 (b) confer with the department of civil service, the governor's office 5 of employee relations and any other state agency to develop strategies 6 which attempt to minimize the impact on the state workforce by providing 7 assistance in obtaining state employment in state-operated community- 8 based services or other employment opportunities, and to develop strate- 9 gies for the development of necessary retraining and redeployment 10 programs. In planning such strategies, the commissioner of the office of 11 children and family services shall provide for the participation of the 12 representatives of the employee labor organizations and for the partic- 13 ipation of managerial and confidential employees to ensure continuity of 14 employment; 15 [(b)] (c) consult with the department of economic development and any 16 other appropriate state agencies to develop strategies which attempt to 17 minimize the impact of such significant service reductions, public 18 employee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to a 19 private or not-for-profit entity on the local and regional economies; 20 [(c)] (d) provide for a mechanism which may reasonably be expected to 21 provide notice to local governments, community organizations, employee 22 labor organizations, managerial and confidential employees, consumer and 23 advocacy groups of the potential for significant service reductions, 24 public employee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to 25 a private or not-for-profit entity at such state-operated facilities, at 26 least twelve months prior to commencing such service reduction; and 27 [(d)] (e) consult with the office of general services and any other 28 appropriate state agency in developing a mechanism for determining 29 alternative uses for land and buildings to be vacated by the office of 30 children and family services. Such a mechanism should include a review 31 of other programs or state agencies that could feasibly expand their 32 operations onto a state-operated campus and are compatible with health, 33 safety and programmatic needs of persons served in such facilities. 34 § 4. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part 35 of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to 36 be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the 37 remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, 38 sentence, paragraph, section or part thereof directly involved in the 39 controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered. 40 § 5. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 41 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or 42 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of 43 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed 44 on or before such effective date.
