NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9617
SPONSOR: Davila TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to reimbursements
for domestic violence services
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
This bill would ensure domestic violence shelters continue to receive
funding for providing services and shelter to survivors of domestic
violence.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 requires local social service districts and residential domes-
tic violence programs to be reimbursed by the state for one hundred
percent of the costs incurred by no longer requiring survivors to apply
for public assistance or contributions to their shelter stay.
Section 2 provides the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
The requirement that survivors of domestic violence apply for public
assistance or pay out of pocket for services if not eligible for bene-
fits was removed in the enacted 2019-2020 State budget. While this was a
much-needed step to comply with the federal government and protect the
identity of a survivor of domestic violence, it has put providers in a
situation that could cause them to close their doors. Without the
"guaranteed" funding that was provided through benefits, many if not
all, domestic violence providers will most certainly suffer a major
fiscal loss, greatly impacting their ability to continue to provide
these much-needed services.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2019-2020: A.8000
2021-2022:A 3154
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Undetermined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect April 1, 2025.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9617
IN ASSEMBLY
March 26, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. DAVILA -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Social Services
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to reimbursements
for domestic violence services
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 131-u of the social services law,
2 as amended by section 3 of part J of chapter 56 of the laws of 2019, is
3 amended to read as follows:
4 2. The department shall annually establish, subject to the approval of
5 the director of the budget, a daily rate of reimbursement for each resi-
6 dential program for victims of domestic violence, as defined in article
7 six-A of this chapter, certified by the department which provides emer-
8 gency shelter and services to persons eligible for such emergency shel-
9 ter and services pursuant to this section. A social services district
10 [financially responsible for a victim of domestic violence] shall reim-
11 burse a residential program for victims of domestic violence for the
12 costs of emergency shelter and services provided to such victim at the
13 daily reimbursement rate established by the department reduced by any
14 other state or federal funds provided for such reimbursement available
15 for such costs. Provided however, local social services districts and
16 residential programs for victims of domestic violence shall be reim-
17 bursed at one hundred percent for any additional costs incurred provid-
18 ing shelter and services to victims of domestic violence as a result of
19 amendments made to this section pursuant to sections one and two of part
20 J of chapter fifty-six of the laws of two thousand nineteen. Provided
21 however, such funds utilized by the state for such reimbursement shall
22 not reduce expenditures provided for state services eligible under title
23 XX of the federal social security act.
24 § 2. This act shall take effect April 1, 2025.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14712-01-4
