What's happening
Writing a plain-English summary… Track this bill to get it by email.
Why it matters
Albany, before your first meeting.
Every bill that moved yesterday, summarized in a sentence and ranked by impact. The Albany Scorecard follows on Sundays.
Free. Unsubscribe in one click. Want alerts on specific bills? Create an account.
Who cares
Headline styles
Sponsors
History
- Referred to children and families
- Referred to children and families
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the social services law and the family court act, in relation to foster care review and the extension of placement in child protective proceedings
Purpose or general idea of bill
This bill would authorize a Family Court Judge, when considering the continuation of a child in foster care, upon making a determination that such continuation is necessary solely because of a lack of adequate housing, to order a social services official to provide funds for housing that may equal up to 50% of the cost it would otherwise require to keep the child in foster care.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends subdivision 3 of section 358-a of the social service law by adding a new paragraph (g); Section 2 adds a new section 392 of the social services law; Section 3 amends subdivision (c) of section 1055 of the family court act, as amended by chapter 283 of the laws of 1990, all sections make conforming changes to direct the local social services official to provide funds for housing to the parent(s) or legal guardian of a child in foster care, if such housing will allow for the return of the child to their custody. Such funding cannot exceed 50% of what the cost would be if the child were to remain in foster care.
Justification
There are instances where the lack of adequate housing becomes the only reason why some families are prevented from reuniting families after other adverse circumstances have been alleviated or remedied. While a public assistance allowance contains a certain amount to cover rent, that amount has proven to be inadequate in many cases. The result of such situation is undesirable not only because it is counter productive from the point of view of keeping families intact or promoting permanency, but it is also fiscally unsound. It is estimated to cost around $20,000 a year to maintain a child in foster care, depending on the child's age and the type of care provided. It would cost considerably less to provide funds necessary to house the family adequately and permanently. This bill not only places a cap on the amount that may be paid for housing at 50% of the sum that would have been expended for foster care, but also places a cap on the duration of such additional aid, as a period fixed by the court. A similar measure was passed by the Legislature in 1990, only to be vetoed by the Governor, who expressed regret that the necessary funds were not available. This measure provided that housing funds be made available to prevent foster care placement if lack of adequate housing was identified as the only reason that foster care would be necessary. The current bill would utilize the money that would otherwise be spent on foster care and spend it on housing.
Prior legislative history
2007/2008: S.1489 - Died in Committee 2005/2006: A.2126 - Referred to Children and Families 2003/2004: A.2361/S3110 - Died in Committee 2001/2002: A.1233 - Died in Committee 1999/2000: A.2514 - Died in Committee 1997/1998: A.1862 - Died in Committee 1995/1996: A.2399 - Died in Committee
Fiscal implications
There should be savings for the state and the location amount expended would be at least 50% less than what the cost would have been for the child in foster care and possibly the parents in a shelter.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.