Authorizes shelters for victims of domestic violence to be reimbursed for any payment differential for housing a single individual in a room intended for double occupancy where a single occupancy room is not available.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A3264B
SPONSOR: Hevesi TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to authorizing
domestic violence shelters to be reimbursed for housing a single indi-
vidual in a room intended for double occupancy
PURPOSE:
This bill will provide temporary housing assistance to a single individ-
ual who meets the residential program providers' eligibility require-
ments for victims of domestic violence as defined in section four
hundred fifty-nine-a of the social services law, while allowing the
program provider to be reimbursed by New York State for any payment
differential for housing a single individual in a room intended for
double occupancy in order to address the system-wide lack of shelter for
single adults.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one amends section 131-u of the social services law by adding
two new subdivisions 3 and 4.
Subdivision 3 authorizes certain residential program for victims of
domestic violence to be reimbursed for any payment differential for
housing a single individual in a room intended for double occupancy if
no other room intended for single occupancy is available within the
facility. Further, the bill sets reimbursement rates for the next
several years.
Subdivision 4 provides that such reimbursement shall be one hundred
percent of any cost differential for the fiscal year commencing on or
after the effective date of this subdivision.
Section two establishes the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
The domestic violence emergency shelter system was originally created to
provide short-term respite for victims of domestic violence and their
families who were fleeing imminent danger. Across New York State, but
particularly in New York City, domestic violence shelters were created
over several decades to house families rather than single adults. Non-
profit providers who operate these shelters are reimbursed by the State
(OCFS) per person per night.
This reimbursement from the State is supposed to cover the entire cost
of operating those shelters, including rent, utilities, staffing, insur-
ance, and other inflationary factors. Any reduction in this reimburse-
ment severely impacts the ability of the provider to cover the cost of
operating the shelter. As a result, domestic violence emergency shelter
providers have major financial disincentives to "downsize" a
room/apartment in order to accommodate a smaller family size, including
most prominently single adult victims of domestic violence, human traf-
ficking, and sexual assault. As a result, single adult victims of these
and other crimes have a much more difficult time trying to access domes-
tic violence emergency shelters, and instead may be forced to remain in
an unsafe situation. This legislation will require the State to preserve
the full reimbursement to providers who "downsize" a room configured for
a family of two to accommodate a single adult victim of violence and
will therefore help increase system-wide capacity for single adults who
otherwise faced serious obstacles to accessing this shelter system.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-2024: A. 2583A - Vetoed S. 15A/Gounardes
2021-2022: A. 1847 - Referred to Ways and Means S. 843/Gounardes -
Referred to Finance
2019-2020: A. 2381 - Referred to Ways and Means
2018: S. 5471/Gounardes - Referred to Finance A. 9672 - Referred to Ways
and Means
FISCAL:
To be determined
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
3264--B
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 27, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. HEVESI, GONZALEZ-ROJAS, WALKER, SHIMSKY, STECK,
PAULIN, ROSENTHAL, SIMON, REYES, KELLES, GALLAGHER -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Social Services -- recommitted to the
Committee on Social Services in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec.
2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended
and recommitted to said committee -- again reported from said commit-
tee with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to
said committee
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to authorizing
domestic violence shelters to be reimbursed for housing a single indi-
vidual in a room intended for double occupancy
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 131-u of the social services law is amended by
2 adding two new subdivisions 3 and 4 to read as follows:
3 3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, a resi-
4 dential program for victims of domestic violence, as defined in section
5 four hundred fifty-nine-a of this chapter, which operates an emergency
6 shelter with at least ten beds and provides temporary housing assistance
7 to a single individual who meets such program's necessary eligibility
8 requirements, shall be reimbursed for the payment differential, if any,
9 for housing a single individual in a room intended for double occupancy,
10 if no other room intended for single occupancy is available within the
11 facility in accordance with the following:
12 (a) for the fiscal year beginning April first, two thousand twenty-
13 seven the reimbursement shall be fifty percent of any cost differential;
14 (b) for the fiscal year beginning April first, two thousand twenty-
15 eight the reimbursement shall be seventy-five percent of any cost
16 differential; and
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06806-04-6
A. 3264--B 2
1 (c) for the fiscal year beginning April first, two thousand twenty-
2 nine the reimbursement shall be one hundred percent of any cost differ-
3 ential.
4 4. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, a resi-
5 dential program for victims of domestic violence, as defined in section
6 four hundred fifty-nine-a of this chapter, which operates an emergency
7 shelter with fewer than ten beds and provides temporary housing assist-
8 ance to a single individual who meets such a program's necessary eligi-
9 bility requirements, shall be reimbursed for the payment differential,
10 if any, for housing a single individual in a room intended for double
11 occupancy, if no other room intended for single occupancy is available
12 within the facility. Such reimbursement shall be one hundred percent of
13 any cost differential for the fiscal year commencing on or after the
14 effective date of this subdivision and thereafter.
15 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
