Bill Text: NY S08362 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Provides for the automated identification of affordability program participants to enable such participants to be automatically entered into utility corporation energy affordability programs.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-05-16 - PRINT NUMBER 8362A [S08362 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S08362-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          8362

                    IN SENATE

                                    February 16, 2022
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- 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  providing  for
          the automated identification of affordability program participants

          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  131-ss to read as follows:
     3    §  131-ss.  Automated  identification of affordability program partic-
     4  ipants. 1. Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the  following
     5  terms shall have the following meanings:
     6    (a) "Commissioner" shall mean the commissioner of the office of tempo-
     7  rary and disability assistance.
     8    (b) "Affordability program participant" shall mean a household that is
     9  determined  by  the  office  to  be  eligible  for  any of the following
    10  programs:
    11    (i) Temporary assistance for needy families (family assistance);
    12    (ii) Safety net assistance (public assistance);
    13    (iii) Supplemental security income;
    14    (iv) Food stamps;
    15    (v) Low income home energy assistance program;
    16    (vi) Veteran's disability pension;
    17    (vii) Veteran's surviving spouse pension;
    18    (viii) Child health plus;
    19    (ix) Lifeline; and
    20    (x) Any other income-based assistance program identified by the public
    21  service commission in consultation with the office.
    22    (c) "Office" shall mean the office of temporary disability assistance.
    23    (d) "Utility corporation" shall mean a corporation regulated  pursuant
    24  to article two of the public service law.
    25    (e)  "Utility  corporation  energy  affordability  programs"  shall be
    26  defined by the public service  commission  and  shall  include  programs
    27  which  are  intended  to  assist  customers with energy affordability by
    28  reducing customers' energy burden.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14413-01-2
        S. 8362                             2

     1    2. Within one hundred eighty days of the effective date of the chapter
     2  of the laws of two thousand twenty-two, which added  this  section,  the
     3  commissioner  shall  establish  a statewide program to provide for auto-
     4  mated identification of eligible affordability program participants  for
     5  participation in utility corporation energy affordability programs.
     6    3.  The  office  shall  engage  with utility corporations to establish
     7  automated file matching mechanisms that  will  provide,  via  electronic
     8  means,  to utility corporations a list of eligible affordability program
     9  participants within the utility corporation's service territory.
    10    4. The office shall conduct automated file matching to identify utili-
    11  ty corporation customer accounts with affordability program participants
    12  and such information shall be provided to utility corporations  no  less
    13  than semi-annually.  Utility corporation customer accounts identified by
    14  the  office  as  eligible  for participation in available utility corpo-
    15  ration energy affordability programs as a result of such  file  matching
    16  shall  be  enrolled in such programs within sixty days of receipt of the
    17  office communicating the results of the automated file matching  to  the
    18  utility corporation.
    19    5. The commissioner may adopt, on an emergency basis pursuant to arti-
    20  cle  two  of the state administrative procedure act, any rules necessary
    21  to carry out the provisions of this article.
    22    6. The commissioner may delegate the administration of any portion  of
    23  this  program  to  any  state  agency, city, county, town, contractor or
    24  non-profit organization in accordance with the provisions of this  arti-
    25  cle and applicable federal requirements.
    26    § 2.  This act shall take effect immediately.