Provides for the automated identification of affordability program participants to enable such participants to be automatically entered into utility corporation energy affordability programs.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A4876
SPONSOR: Solages TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to providing for
the automated identification of affordability program participants
PURPOSE:
For the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) to coordi-
nate with utility companies on automated file matching to identify
eligible affordability program participants.
SUMMARY:
Section 1. Amends the social services law by adding a new section
131-ss. Section 2. Sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
New York's utilities offer Energy Affordability Programs (EAPs) that
follow guidance from the New York Public Service Commission which
requires utilities to set low-income program discount levels that keep
customer energy burden at or below a target goal of 6% of household
income. EAPs offer customers a monthly bill credit using a tiered
discount structure that considers whether the customer is a heating or a
non-heating customer.
Utility customers who receive Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP)
grants paid to the utility on the customer's behalf are automatically
enrolled in the utility corporation's Energy Affordability Programs
(EAP). However, not all low-income customers receive HEAP even if they
qualify to receive it. The New York City Human Resources Administration
(HRA) conducts a file matching process to capture customers who partic-
ipate in other qualifying programs, including:
*Public Assistance
*Supplemental Security Income
*Medicaid
*Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
*Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program *Veterans' Disability Program
*Veterans' Surviving Spouse Pension
*Child Health Plus
The inclusion of these programs and the corresponding file-matching
process dramatically increases participation in EAP programs. Outside of
New York City, customers are largely responsible for self-identifying
for being eligible for the program - limiting the number of those who
benefit. An automated process is also more efficient and less costly to
administer than identifying customers on a case-by-case manner. Making
file matching a statewide practice is a more efficient utilization of
state and utility resources.
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating financial impact on New
Yorkers, especially those who were already struggling to make ends meet.
AARP recently estimated that 1.2 million New York households are in
energy utility arrears, totaling more than $1.7 billion
1. It is essen-
tial that utility customers throughout the state are connected to any
and all assistance programs for which they are eligible. This legis-
lation would require OTDA to coordinate with utilities to automate that
process in a manner similar to the HRA process in New York City. This
will help ensure that more low-income New Yorkers are receiving the
assistance to which they are entitled.
RACIAL JUSTICE IMPACT:
People of color and low-income New Yorkers are disproportionately
impacted by rising utility costs. Specifically, redlining and housing
discrimination has resulted in Black and Latino households paying more
in utilities than their White counterparts. Several studies have shown
that low-quality housing stock due to racial segregation is a major
driving factor of this disparity
2. This bill will create a program to
automatically match New Yorkers who receive certain public benefits with
Energy Affordability Programs.
GENDER JUSTICE IMPACT:
TBD.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2022: A9099; passed in the Assembly.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
TBD.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
1 AARP. "AARP and PULP: Governor Hochul Must Address Utility Arrears
Crisis in Budget Amendment."
HTTPS://STATES.AARP.ORG/NEW-VORK/
AARO-PULB-HOCHUL-MUST-ADDRESS-UTILITY-ARREARS-CRISIS.
2 Constantine Kontokosta, Vincent Reina, Bartozs Bonczak, "Energy Cost
Burdens for Low-Income and Minority Households: Evidence From Energy
Benchmarking and Audit Data in Five U.S. Cities," Journal of the Ameri-
can Planning Association 86 no. 1, (Sept. 2019): 89-105,
HTTPS://DOI.ORG/10.1080/01944363.2019.1647446; Brentin Mock, "Neigh-
borhoods With More People of Color Pay Higher Energy Bills," Bloomberg,
November 25, 2019,
HTTPS ://WWW,BLOOMBERG.COM/NEWS/ARTICLES/2019-11-25/
WHY-WHITE-HOUSEHOLDS-PAY- LESS-FOR-UTI1ITIES.ct.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4876
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 24, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SOLAGES, SIMON, PHEFFER AMATO -- read once and
referred 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 to be eligible by the appropriate agency for any of the
10 following programs:
11 (i) Public assistance;
12 (ii) Supplemental security income;
13 (iii) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP);
14 (iv) Low income home energy assistance program;
15 (v) Veteran's disability pension;
16 (vi) Veteran's surviving spouse pension;
17 (vii) Child health plus;
18 (viii) Lifeline; and
19 (ix) Any other income-based assistance program identified by the
20 public service commission in consultation with the office.
21 (c) "Office" shall mean the office of temporary disability assistance.
22 (d) "Utility corporation" shall mean a corporation regulated pursuant
23 to article two of the public service law.
24 (e) "Utility corporation energy affordability programs" shall be
25 defined by the public service commission and shall include programs
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01630-01-3
A. 4876 2
1 which are intended to assist customers with energy affordability by
2 reducing customers' energy burden.
3 2. Within one hundred eighty days of the effective date of this
4 section, the commissioner shall establish a statewide program to provide
5 for automated identification of eligible affordability program partic-
6 ipants for participation in utility corporation energy affordability
7 programs.
8 3. The office shall engage with utility corporations to establish
9 automated file matching mechanisms that will provide, via electronic
10 means, to utility corporations a list of eligible affordability program
11 participants within the utility corporation's service territory.
12 4. The office shall conduct automated file matching to identify utili-
13 ty corporation customer accounts that are also affordability program
14 participants and such information shall be provided to utility corpo-
15 rations no less than semi-annually. Utility corporation customer
16 accounts identified by the office as eligible for participation in
17 available utility corporation energy affordability programs as a result
18 of such file matching shall be enrolled in such programs within sixty
19 days of receipt of the office communicating the results of the automated
20 file matching to the utility corporation. Any information provided to
21 the utility corporations related to affordability program participants
22 pursuant to this section shall be redacted as necessary to protect any
23 information that is protected under any state or federal privacy laws,
24 kept confidential, and shall only be utilized for the purpose of
25 confirming eligibility in the utility corporation energy affordability
26 program.
27 5. The commissioner may adopt, on an emergency basis pursuant to arti-
28 cle two of the state administrative procedure act, any rules necessary
29 to carry out the provisions of this article.
30 6. The commissioner may delegate the administration of any portion of
31 this program to any state agency, city, county, town, contractor or
32 non-profit organization in accordance with the provisions of this arti-
33 cle and applicable federal requirements. Provided however, such privacy
34 and confidentiality limitations prescribed in subdivision four of this
35 section shall apply to any entity that the commissioner delegates the
36 administration of the program to.
37 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
