What's happening
This bill requires social services to provide at least $50 per month to eligible people with disabilities for food and veterinary expenses for their guide, hearing, or service dogs.
Why it matters
Reduces financial burden for people with disabilities. by ensuring a guaranteed minimum amount of support specifically for the care of their guide, hearing, or service dogs—helping cover both food and veterinary expenses that are often not fully addressed by other assistance programs.
Makes the program more inclusive. by defining “service dog” broadly, covering any dog being individually trained to assist someone with a disability, regardless of formal certification. This helps people who may not have access to or need certified service animals.
Guarantees state reimbursement to local agencies. , which helps ensure consistent application of the benefit across New York and removes financial disincentives for counties to provide this assistance.
Establishes clear eligibility and oversight mechanisms. , requiring periodic review of who qualifies and excluding those already receiving exempted income for this purpose under federal rules, which helps maintain program integrity and targets aid to those most in need.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Help for Service Dog Expenses
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to ways and means
- Reported referred to ways and means
- Referred to social services
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
4938
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 6, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Social Services
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to assistance for guide dogs, hearing dogs and service dogs and to repeal section 303-a of such law relating thereto
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 303-a of the social services law is REPEALED and a new section 131-y is added to read as follows:
§ 131-y. Assistance for guide dogs, hearing dogs and service dogs. 1. It shall be the duty of the social services official to provide assistance, in accordance with regulations of the department, to a person with a disability using a guide dog, hearing dog or service dog who has been determined to be eligible for or is receiving, including but not limited to, federal supplemental security income benefits, supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits, medical assistance for needy persons and/or additional state payments under this chapter, for the purchase of food and the cost of veterinarian expenses for such dog.
2. Such regulations of the department shall fix an amount of not less than fifty dollars a month, and the method and frequency of distribution and procedures for the determination and periodical redetermination of eligibility for such assistance.
3. Such assistance shall not be granted to any person for whom earned income has been exempted for such purpose pursuant to federal law or regulation.
4. The full amount properly expended by social services districts under this section, including costs of administration, shall be reimbursed by the state.
5. For purposes of this section, "service dog" shall mean any dog, regardless of certification, under the control of the person using or
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05138-01-7
A. 4938 2
training it and that has been or is being individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.