What's happening
This bill requires legislative approval before closing certain state mental health, developmental disabilities, or children and family services facilities.
Why it matters
Shifts closure authority from executive agencies to the legislature. , meaning elected representatives have direct control over whether state mental health, developmental disabilities, or children and family services facilities can be closed. This could make closures less likely or at least subject to greater public scrutiny and debate.
Introduces a mandatory one-year advance notification and justification process. , requiring agencies to submit detailed closure reports to the legislature. This long lead time gives affected communities, employees, and service users more opportunity to prepare, organize, or advocate for alternatives.
Aims to protect vulnerable populations and local economies. by making it harder to close facilities that provide critical services, often in areas with few alternatives. Closures could have significant ripple effects on patients, families, workers, and regional economies.
Increases transparency and accountability. by allowing the legislature to request additional data or information before approving closures, potentially leading to more evidence-based decisions and reducing the risk of abrupt or poorly planned service reductions.
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
Legislature Must OK Facility Closures
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
1 Multi-sponsor
History
- Referred to mental health
- Referred to mental health
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Legislature Must Approve Facility Closures
In Assembly Committee · Mental Health · Sponsor Fredrick J. Akshar II
Full text
3 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
733
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 9, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, LUPARDO, SKOUFIS, PALMESANO -- Multi- Sponsored by -- M. of A. BRAUNSTEIN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Mental Health
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 of people with developmental disabilities or office of children and family services facilities and institutions
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision (e) of section 7.17 of the mental hygiene law, as amended by chapter 723 of the laws of 1993, paragraph 1 as amended by chapter 170 of the laws of 1994, paragraph 3 as amended by chapter 83 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows:
(e) In the event that the plan for state and local mental health services, developed in accordance with subdivision (b) of this section, determines that significant service reductions are anticipated for a particular state-operated hospital or its catchment area, or a state-operated research institute, the commissioner shall take the following actions[, provided nothing in this subdivision shall create a basis for enjoining any otherwise lawful service reductions]:
1. submit a written report to the legislature at least three hundred sixty-five days prior to the date the office is seeking closure of any facility or institution. Such report shall include justification for the proposed closure. The legislature may require any additional information or data that it deems necessary in such report. If the legislature, or the appropriate committees thereof, upon review of the report submitted to it by the office, finds that the proposed closure is not justified then closure shall not occur until approved by a majority vote of each house of the legislature.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03800-01-7
A. 733 2
2. confer with the department of civil service, the governor's office of employee relations and any other state agency to develop strategies which attempt to minimize the impact on the state workforce by providing assistance in obtaining state employment in state-operated communitybased services or other employment opportunities, and to develop strategies for the development of necessary retraining and redeployment programs. In planning such strategies, the commissioner shall provide for the participation of the representatives of the employee labor organizations and for the participation of managerial and confidential employees to ensure continuity of employment;
[2.] 3. consult with the department of economic development and any other appropriate state agencies to develop strategies which attempt to minimize the impact of such significant service reductions on the local and regional economies;
[3.] 4. provide for a mechanism which may reasonably be expected to provide notice to local governments, community organizations, employee labor organizations, managerial and confidential employees, consumer and advocacy groups of the potential for significant service reductions at such state-operated hospitals and state-operated research institutes at least twelve months prior to commencing such service reduction, provided, however, that this requirement shall be deemed satisfied with respect to reductions at Central Islip Psychiatric Center, Gowanda Psychiatric Center, Harlem Valley Psychiatric Center, Kings Park Psychiatric Center, Willard Psychiatric Center and Manhattan Children's Psychiatric Center; and
[4.] 5. consult with the office of general services and any other appropriate state agency in developing a mechanism for determining alternative uses for land and buildings to be vacated by the office of mental health. Such a mechanism should include a review of other programs or state agencies that could feasibly expand their operations onto a state-operated hospital campus and are compatible with health, safety and programmatic needs of patients served in such facilities.
§ 2. The mental hygiene law is amended by adding a new section 13.18 to read as follows: § 13.18 Closure of facilities.
The commissioner shall submit a written report to the legislature at least three hundred sixty-five days prior to the date the office is seeking closure of any facility or institution. Such report shall include justification for the proposed closure. The legislature may require any additional information or data that it deems necessary in such report. If the legislature, or the appropriate committees thereof, upon review of the report submitted to it by the office, finds that the proposed closure is not justified then closure shall not occur until approved by a majority vote of each house of the legislature.
§ 3. Subdivision 15 of section 501 of the executive law, as amended by section 1 of part H of chapter 58 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:
15. In the event that the office of children and family services determines that significant service reductions, public employee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to a private or not-forprofit entity are anticipated in the office of children and family services long term planning process or for a particular facility in a future year, to take the following actions:
(a) submit a written report to the legislature at least three hundred sixty-five days prior to the date the office of children and family services is seeking closure of any secure or limited secure facility.
A. 733 3
Such report shall include justification for the proposed closure. The legislature may require any additional information or data that it deems necessary in such report. If the legislature, or the appropriate committees thereof, upon review of the report submitted to it by the office of children and family services, finds that the proposed closure is not justified then closure shall not occur until approved by a majority vote of each house of the legislature.
(b) confer with the department of civil service, the governor's office of employee relations and any other state agency to develop strategies which attempt to minimize the impact on the state workforce by providing assistance in obtaining state employment in state-operated communitybased services or other employment opportunities, and to develop strategies for the development of necessary retraining and redeployment programs. In planning such strategies, the commissioner of the office of children and family services shall provide for the participation of the representatives of the employee labor organizations and for the participation of managerial and confidential employees to ensure continuity of employment;
[(b)] (c) consult with the department of economic development and any other appropriate state agencies to develop strategies which attempt to minimize the impact of such significant service reductions, public employee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to a private or not-for-profit entity on the local and regional economies;
[(c)] (d) provide for a mechanism which may reasonably be expected to provide notice to local governments, community organizations, employee labor organizations, managerial and confidential employees, consumer and advocacy groups of the potential for significant service reductions, public employee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to a private or not-for-profit entity at such state-operated facilities, at least twelve months prior to commencing such service reduction; and
[(d)] (e) consult with the office of general services and any other appropriate state agency in developing a mechanism for determining alternative uses for land and buildings to be vacated by the office of children and family services. Such a mechanism should include a review of other programs or state agencies that could feasibly expand their operations onto a state-operated campus and are compatible with health, safety and programmatic needs of persons served in such facilities.
§ 4. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.
§ 5. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such effective date.
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.