Bill Text: NY S02943 | 2015-2016 | General Assembly | Amended

New York Senate Bill 2943 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: Enacts the "welfare reform act" to require applicants for public assistance to submit to a drug test; provides that the illegal use of a controlled substance, indicated in such a test, shall result in the denial of public assistance benefits; such provisions do not apply to persons 65 or older; prohibits the sale or purchase of alcoholic beverages, tobacco products or lottery tickets with public assistance benefits; prohibits the use of public assistance benefits, by means of an electronic benefit transfer transaction, at a liquor store, casino or adult entertainment facility; establishes the public assistance integrity fund.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-02-22 - PRINT NUMBER 2943A [S02943 Detail]

Download: New_York-2015-S02943-Amended.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         2943--A
                               2015-2016 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                    January 30, 2015
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen. RITCHIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services --  recom-
          mitted  to  the Committee on Social Services in accordance with Senate
          Rule  6,  sec.  8  --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
        AN  ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to drug testing of
          certain public assistance applicants, prohibiting the sale or purchase
          of alcoholic beverages,  tobacco  products  or  lottery  tickets  with
          public  assistance  benefits  and prohibiting use of or access to such
          benefits in a casino, liquor store or  adult  entertainment  facility;
          and  to  amend  the state finance law, in relation to establishing the
          public assistance integrity fund
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1.   Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
     2  the "welfare reform act".
     3    § 2.  Subdivision 4 of section 132 of  the  social  services  law,  as
     4  added  by section 23 of part B of chapter 436 of the laws of 1997, para-
     5  graphs (a) and (c) as amended by chapter 214 of the laws of 1998,  para-
     6  graphs  (d),  (e),  (f) and (g) as amended by section 43-a and paragraph
     7  (i) as added by section 44 of part C of chapter 58 of the laws of  2008,
     8  is amended to read as follows:
     9    4.  (a)  Investigation  into [the cause of] the condition of a head of
    10  household or of any adult applicant  [or  recipient  and  the  treatment
    11  which  will  be  helpful to such person], who is under the age of sixty-
    12  five years, shall include a urine drug test screening process for [alco-
    13  hol and/or substance abuse] illegal use of controlled substances using a
    14  standardized screening [instrument]  process  to  be  developed  by  the
    15  office  of  alcoholism and substance abuse services in consultation with
    16  the department of health.  Such screening shall be performed by a social
    17  services district at the time of application [and periodically thereaft-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD07071-02-6