Bill Text: NY S00329 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires legislative approval for the closure of certain office of mental health, office for people with developmental disabilities or office of children and family services facilities and institutions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-05-14 - RECOMMIT, ENACTING CLAUSE STRICKEN [S00329 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S00329-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 329 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 9, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sen. AKSHAR -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Mental Health and Develop- mental Disabilities AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law and the executive law, in relation to requiring legislative approval for the closure of certain office of mental health, office for people with developmental disabil- ities or office of children and family services facilities and insti- tutions The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision (e) of section 7.17 of the mental hygiene law, 2 as amended by chapter 723 of the laws of 1993, paragraph 1 as amended by 3 chapter 170 of the laws of 1994, paragraph 3 as amended by chapter 83 of 4 the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows: 5 (e) In the event that the plan for state and local mental health 6 services, developed in accordance with subdivision (b) of this section, 7 determines that significant service reductions are anticipated for a 8 particular state-operated hospital or its catchment area, or a state-op- 9 erated research institute, the commissioner shall take the following 10 actions[, provided nothing in this subdivision shall create a basis for11enjoining any otherwise lawful service reductions]: 12 1. submit a written report to the legislature at least three hundred 13 sixty-five days prior to the date the office is seeking closure of any 14 facility or institution. Such report shall include justification for the 15 proposed closure. The legislature may require any additional information 16 or data that it deems necessary in such report. If the legislature, or 17 the appropriate committees thereof, upon review of the report submitted 18 to it by the office, finds that the proposed closure is not justified 19 then closure shall not occur until approved by a majority vote of each 20 house of the legislature. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD05180-01-9S. 329 2 1 2. confer with the department of civil service, the governor's office 2 of employee relations and any other state agency to develop strategies 3 which attempt to minimize the impact on the state workforce by providing 4 assistance in obtaining state employment in state-operated community- 5 based services or other employment opportunities, and to develop strate- 6 gies for the development of necessary retraining and redeployment 7 programs. In planning such strategies, the commissioner shall provide 8 for the participation of the representatives of the employee labor 9 organizations and for the participation of managerial and confidential 10 employees to ensure continuity of employment; 11 [2.] 3. consult with the department of economic development and any 12 other appropriate state agencies to develop strategies which attempt to 13 minimize the impact of such significant service reductions on the local 14 and regional economies; 15 [3.] 4. provide for a mechanism which may reasonably be expected to 16 provide notice to local governments, community organizations, employee 17 labor organizations, managerial and confidential employees, consumer and 18 advocacy groups of the potential for significant service reductions at 19 such state-operated hospitals and state-operated research institutes at 20 least twelve months prior to commencing such service reduction, 21 provided, however, that this requirement shall be deemed satisfied with 22 respect to reductions at Central Islip Psychiatric Center, Gowanda 23 Psychiatric Center, Harlem Valley Psychiatric Center, Kings Park Psychi- 24 atric Center, Willard Psychiatric Center and Manhattan Children's 25 Psychiatric Center; and 26 [4.] 5. consult with the office of general services and any other 27 appropriate state agency in developing a mechanism for determining 28 alternative uses for land and buildings to be vacated by the office of 29 mental health. Such a mechanism should include a review of other 30 programs or state agencies that could feasibly expand their operations 31 onto a state-operated hospital campus and are compatible with health, 32 safety and programmatic needs of patients served in such facilities. 33 § 2. The mental hygiene law is amended by adding a new section 13.18 34 to read as follows: 35 § 13.18 Closure of facilities. 36 The commissioner shall submit a written report to the legislature at 37 least three hundred sixty-five days prior to the date the office is 38 seeking closure of any facility or institution. Such report shall 39 include justification for the proposed closure. The legislature may 40 require any additional information or data that it deems necessary in 41 such report. If the legislature, or the appropriate committees thereof, 42 upon review of the report submitted to it by the office, finds that the 43 proposed closure is not justified then closure shall not occur until 44 approved by a majority vote of each house of the legislature. 45 § 3. Subdivision 15 of section 501 of the executive law, as amended by 46 section 1 of part H of chapter 58 of the laws of 2006, is amended to 47 read as follows: 48 15. In the event that the office of children and family services 49 determines that significant service reductions, public employee staffing 50 reductions and/or the transfer of operations to a private or not-for- 51 profit entity are anticipated in the office of children and family 52 services long term planning process or for a particular facility in a 53 future year, to take the following actions: 54 (a) submit a written report to the legislature at least three hundred 55 sixty-five days prior to the date the office of children and family 56 services is seeking closure of any secure or limited secure facility.S. 329 3 1 Such report shall include justification for the proposed closure. The 2 legislature may require any additional information or data that it deems 3 necessary in such report. If the legislature, or the appropriate commit- 4 tees thereof, upon review of the report submitted to it by the office of 5 children and family services, finds that the proposed closure is not 6 justified then closure shall not occur until approved by a majority vote 7 of each house of the legislature. 8 (b) confer with the department of civil service, the governor's office 9 of employee relations and any other state agency to develop strategies 10 which attempt to minimize the impact on the state workforce by providing 11 assistance in obtaining state employment in state-operated community- 12 based services or other employment opportunities, and to develop strate- 13 gies for the development of necessary retraining and redeployment 14 programs. In planning such strategies, the commissioner of the office of 15 children and family services shall provide for the participation of the 16 representatives of the employee labor organizations and for the partic- 17 ipation of managerial and confidential employees to ensure continuity of 18 employment; 19 [(b)] (c) consult with the department of economic development and any 20 other appropriate state agencies to develop strategies which attempt to 21 minimize the impact of such significant service reductions, public 22 employee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to a 23 private or not-for-profit entity on the local and regional economies; 24 [(c)] (d) provide for a mechanism which may reasonably be expected to 25 provide notice to local governments, community organizations, employee 26 labor organizations, managerial and confidential employees, consumer and 27 advocacy groups of the potential for significant service reductions, 28 public employee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to 29 a private or not-for-profit entity at such state-operated facilities, at 30 least twelve months prior to commencing such service reduction; and 31 [(d)] (e) consult with the office of general services and any other 32 appropriate state agency in developing a mechanism for determining 33 alternative uses for land and buildings to be vacated by the office of 34 children and family services. Such a mechanism should include a review 35 of other programs or state agencies that could feasibly expand their 36 operations onto a state-operated campus and are compatible with health, 37 safety and programmatic needs of persons served in such facilities. 38 § 4. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part 39 of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to 40 be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the 41 remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, 42 sentence, paragraph, section or part thereof directly involved in the 43 controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered. 44 § 5. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 45 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or 46 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of 47 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed 48 on or before such effective date.
