Bill Text: NY S03913 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to the caseloads of preventative services caseworkers.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-30 - REFERRED TO SOCIAL SERVICES [S03913 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-S03913-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          3913

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 30, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen. S. RYAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services

        AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to caseload  stand-
          ards for preventative services caseworkers

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Section 20-a of the social services law, as added by  chap-
     2  ter 107 of the laws of 1971, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 20-a.  Local personnel; limitations on department's power.  Notwith-
     4  standing  any  inconsistent  provision  of  this chapter, the board, the
     5  commissioner or the department, acting singly or in  unison,  shall  not
     6  have  the  power,  directly  or  indirectly  to  prescribe the number of
     7  persons to be employed in any social  services  district  providing  the
     8  district  complies  with the minimum federal standards relating thereto.
     9  Provided, however, that the provisions of this section shall  not  apply
    10  to  the regulations of the office of children and family services estab-
    11  lishing caseload  standards  for  preventative  case  planning  services
    12  promulgated  pursuant  to subdivision nine of section four hundred twen-
    13  ty-one of this chapter.
    14    § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section  153-k  of  the  social
    15  services law, as added by section 15 of part C of chapter 83 of the laws
    16  of 2002, is amended to read as follows:
    17    (a)  Expenditures  made by social services districts for child protec-
    18  tive services, preventive services provided, as applicable, to  eligible
    19  children  and  families  of  children  who are in and out of foster care
    20  placement, independent living services, aftercare services, and adoption
    21  administration and  services  other  than  adoption  subsidies  provided
    22  pursuant  to  article  six  of  this  chapter and the regulations of the
    23  department of family assistance shall, if  approved  by  the  office  of
    24  children  and  family  services,  be subject to sixty-five percent state
    25  reimbursement exclusive of any federal funds  made  available  for  such

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD07014-01-5
        S. 3913                             2

     1  purposes,  in accordance with the directives of the department of family
     2  assistance and subject to the approval of the director  of  the  budget.
     3  Provided  however,  for  requirements  prescribed in subdivision nine of
     4  section four hundred twenty-one of this chapter, such expenditures shall
     5  be  subject  to  one  hundred percent state reimbursement, provided that
     6  local  social  services  districts  continue  to  maintain  expenditures
     7  related  to  preventative  case planning services at a level equal to or
     8  greater than expenditures for such activity during the fiscal year imme-
     9  diately prior to the effective date of the chapter of the  laws  of  two
    10  thousand twenty-five which amended this paragraph.
    11    § 3. Section 421 of the social services law is amended by adding a new
    12  subdivision 9 to read as follows:
    13    9.  promulgate  regulations in consultation with local social services
    14  districts, relating to caseload standards for preventative case planning
    15  services. Such standards shall be no more than twelve families per full-
    16  time preventative case planning services caseworker per month.   Nothing
    17  in  this  subdivision  shall  be  construed  to prohibit the office from
    18  prescribing local social services districts from  establishing  caseload
    19  guidelines that are less than what is required in this subdivision.
    20    § 4. This act shall take effect two years after it shall have become a
    21  law;  provided,  however  that  the  amendments  to section 153-k of the
    22  social services law made by section two of this act shall not affect the
    23  repeal of such section and shall be deemed repealed therewith.