Title SOS, Social Services

§ 12. Deputy commissioners. The Commissioner shall appoint and remove at pleasure a first deputy commissioner, and such other deputy commissioners as he shall deem necessary for the proper organization and general classification of the work of the department, each of whom shall …

§ 121. Removal of persons to another state or country. 1. When any person who is cared for at the expense of the state or of any public welfare district has settlement or residence or otherwise belongs to or has legally responsible relatives able or friends willing to undertake …

§ 122. Noncitizens. 1. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, no\nperson except a citizen or a noncitizen who has been duly naturalized as\na citizen shall be eligible for additional state payments for aged,\nblind and disabled persons, family assistance, safety net assistance…

§ 13. Organization of the department. The commissioner shall determine the structure of departmental organization.

§ 131. Assistance, care and services to be given. 1. It shall be the\nduty of social services officials, insofar as funds are available for\nthat purpose, to provide adequately for those unable to maintain\nthemselves, in accordance with the requirements of this article and\noth…

§ 131-a. Monthly grants and allowances of public assistance. 1. Any\ninconsistent provision of this chapter or other law notwithstanding,\nsocial services officials shall, in accordance with the provisions of\nthis section and regulations of the department, provide public\nassis…

§ 131-aa. Monthly statistical reports. 1. Reporting requirements. The commissioner of the office of temporary and disability assistance shall issue, within sixty days of the end of each month, a monthly statistical report containing each of the tables in the March two thousand f…

§ 131-aaa. Availability of adverse childhood experiences services. Each local social services district shall be required to make available to applicants and recipients of public assistance who are a parent, guardian, custodian or otherwise responsible for a child's care, educati…

§ 131-b. Fees for services. If and only to the extent the imposition of a fee is required by federal law and regulation to insure continued full federal financial participation in the state's plan for services under applicable federal law and regulations, the department shall, b…

§ 131-bb. Family homelessness and eviction prevention supplement program. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, for a local social services district with a population of five million or more, the commissioner shall designate such local social services distr…

§ 131-c. Inclusion of parents and siblings of a minor in the public\nassistance household. 1. For the purposes of determining eligibility for\nand the amount of assistance payable, the social services district\nshall, when a minor is named as an applicant for public assistance,\…

§ 131-d. Substance abuse rehabilitative and preventive services. 1. Any inconsistent provision of this chapter or other law notwithstanding, social services officials shall provide substance abuse services, to eligible needy substance abusers and persons who are substance depend…

§ 131-e. Family planning services. Each social services commissioner shall require that appropriate members of his staff personally advise eligible needy persons periodically of the availability at public expense of family planning services for the prevention of pregnancy and in…

§ 131-f. Retroactive social security benefit increases. Any inconsistent provisions of this title, other provisions of this chapter or of any other law notwithstanding, in determining the need for family assistance, a social services official shall disregard, in addition to any …

§ 131-g. Authority to accept public and private gifts. The department or a social services district shall have the power to apply for, accept, receive and expend public and private gifts or grants of money, property or services for any purpose provided for by this chapter.

§ 131-h. Authority to operate family homes for adults. A social services official may be authorized to operate family homes for adults, in compliance with the regulations of the department, if such official applies for such authority and demonstrates the need therefor and that s…

* § 131-i. Social services districts; agreements. Subject to the provisions of section one hundred nineteen-o of the general municipal law, social services districts may enter into agreements for the performance among themselves or of one for another of any of their respective f…

* § 131-i. Family loan program. 1. From amounts appropriated for such purpose, the department of labor in consultation with the department is hereby authorized and directed to solicit proposals to establish programs to be known as family loan programs. Such programs shall provid…

§ 131-j. Certain utility deposits. Any inconsistent provision of this chapter or other law notwithstanding, a public assistance recipient shall not be required by any corporation subject to the provisions of article four of the public service law to pay a security deposit as a c…

§ 131-k. Undocumented noncitizens. An otherwise eligible applicant or recipient who has been determined to be ineligible for aid to dependent children, home relief or medical assistance because such individual is a noncitizen unlawfully residing in the United States or because s…

§ 131-l. Exclusion of agent orange benefits. A social services\nofficial shall disregard as income and resources in any program of\npublic assistance such sums as are required to be disregarded under\nsection two hundred thirty-five-a of the military law with respect to\nexposur…

§ 131-m. Information on resource referral services. 1. Each social services district shall furnish social services information and resource referral services, in accordance with the provisions of this section and the regulations of the department. 2. Such services shall be furni…

* § 131-n. Exemption of income and resources. 1. The following\nresources shall be exempt and disregarded in calculating the amount of\nbenefits of any household under any public assistance program: (a) cash\nand liquid or nonliquid resources up to two thousand five hundred\ndol…

§ 131-o. Personal allowances accounts. 1. Each individual receiving\nfamily care, residential care or care in a school for individuals with\ndevelopmental disabilities, or enhanced residential care as those terms\nare defined in section two hundred nine of this chapter, and who …

§ 131-p. Group health insurance benefits; condition of eligibility. Notwithstanding any other inconsistent provision of law and to the extent permissible under federal law, any applicant for or recipient of safety net assistance or family assistance who is or becomes employed an…

§ 131-q. Electronic payment file transfer system pilot project. * 1. The commissioner is empowered to authorize the city social services district of the city of New York to continue the pilot project for the design, development, implementation and operation of an electronic paym…

§ 131-r. Liability for reimbursement of public assistance benefits. 1. Any person who is receiving or has received, within the previous ten years, public assistance pursuant to the provisions of this article, and who wins a lottery prize of six hundred dollars or more shall reim…

§ 131-s. Payments made for utility service for recipients of public\nassistance benefits, supplemental security income benefits or additional\nstate payments. 1. In the case of a person applying for public\nassistance, supplemental security income benefits or additional state\np…

§ 131-ss. Automated identification of OTDA assistance program\nparticipants. 1. Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the\nfollowing terms shall have the following meanings:\n (a) "Commissioner" shall mean the commissioner of the office of\ntemporary and disability assi…

§ 131-t. Periodic reporting. A social services official shall require each public assistance or food stamp household which currently is receiving or received earned income to submit periodic reports relating to factors affecting eligibility, to the extent and in the manner requi…

§ 131-u. Domestic violence services. 1. Notwithstanding any\ninconsistent provision of law, a social services district shall, in\naccordance with the provisions of this section and regulations of the\ndepartment, offer and provide emergency shelter and services at a\nresidential…

§ 131-v. Temporary emergency shelter. 1. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law, and to the extent consistent with federal law, a social services official may contract with a non-profit corporation or charitable organization to provide temporary emergency shelter for …

§ 131-w. Limitations in the payment of rent arrears. Districts shall not provide assistance to pay rent arrears, property taxes or mortgage arrears for persons not eligible for home relief, aid to dependent children, emergency assistance to needy families with children or emerge…

§ 131-x. Reverse mortgage loans. Notwithstanding any other inconsistent provisions of law and to the extent permissible under federal law, regulation or waiver, the proceeds of a reverse mortgage loan made in conformity with the requirements of section two hundred eighty or two …

§ 131-z. Child assistance program. 1. Notwithstanding any other\nprovision of law to the contrary, any district may operate a child\nassistance program as part of the family assistance program with the\napproval of the department. Approved expenditures for such child\nassistance…

* § 131-zz. Child poverty reduction. 1. Legislative findings. The legislature hereby declares that New York should take any steps necessary to reduce the overall child poverty rate by fifty percent in the next ten years. Nearly three million New Yorkers are living in poverty, ei…

§ 132. Investigation of applications. 1. When an application for\nassistance or care is received, or a social services official is\ninformed that a person is in need of public assistance and care, an\ninvestigation and record shall be made of the circumstances of such\nperson. T…

§ 132-a. Children born out of wedlock; special provisions. 1. When an investigation is required by section one hundred thirty-two and other provisions of this chapter for the purpose of determining the eligibility for public assistance and care of an applicant pregnant with or w…

§ 133. Temporary preinvestigation emergency needs assistance or care. Upon application for public assistance or care under this chapter, the local social services district shall notify the applicant in writing of the availability of a monetary grant adequate to meet emergency ne…

§ 133-a. Contracts for distribution of public assistance grants. As permitted or required by regulations of the department, each social services district may contract with an appropriate department or agency of the state or banking institutions to distribute grants and allowance…

§ 134. Supervision. The social service officials responsible under section one hundred thirty-two for investigating any application for public assistance and care, shall maintain close contact with persons granted public assistance and care. Such persons shall be visited as freq…

§ 134-a. Conduct of investigation. 1. In accordance with regulations of the department of family assistance, any investigation or reinvestigation of eligibility for public assistance and care, other than medical assistance, shall be limited to those factors reasonably necessary …

§ 134-b. Front end detection system. In accordance with regulations promulgated by the department, each social services district shall establish procedures to identify, investigate and resolve potential cases of fraud, misrepresentation or inadequate documentation prior to deter…

§ 134-c. Requirement to publicly post information. 1. Each local social services district shall be required to post information in accordance with this section, in a form and manner to be determined by the commissioner. Such poster shall be conspicuous and visible to all applica…

§ 135. Cooperation of public welfare officials. 1. It shall be the duty of every public welfare official to render assistance and cooperate within his jurisdictional powers with every other public welfare official and with the family court and all other governmental agencies con…

§ 136. Protection of public welfare records. 1. The names or addresses of persons applying for or receiving public assistance and care shall not be included in any published report or printed in any newspaper or reported at any public meeting except meetings of the county board …

§ 136-a. Information from state tax commission and the comptroller. 1. Section six hundred ninety-seven or any other provision of the tax law shall in no way be construed to restrict the department from obtaining, on behalf of itself or a local social services district, the name…

§ 137. Exemption from levy and execution. All moneys or orders granted to persons as public assistance or care pursuant to this chapter shall be inalienable by any assignment or transfer and shall be exempt from levy and execution under the laws of this state.

§ 137-a. Exemption of earnings of recipients from assignment, income execution and installment payment order. 1. All wages, salary, commissions or other compensation paid or payable by an employer to a person while he is in receipt of public assistance or care supplementary to h…

§ 138-a. Responsibility of the department for recipients in family care. 1. Any inconsistent provision of this chapter or other law notwithstanding, the department shall be responsible for furnishing public assistance and care to mentally disabled persons residing in family care…