What's happening
The bill requires new oversight, audit policies, and procedures for safeguarding cash accounts of people with developmental disabilities in facilities.
Why it matters
Mandates standardized audit procedures and training. , aiming to reduce risks of financial mismanagement or theft of residents’ funds by staff, which directly impacts the security of vulnerable individuals’ personal money.
Requires inclusion of modern financial tools (bank and debit cards). , helping residents access safer and more traceable ways to manage their funds, potentially reducing reliance on cash and increasing transparency.
Sets rules for gift card use and tracking. , ensuring that these are accounted for in personal expenditure plans and that supervisors are notified, which helps prevent misuse or unrecorded spending on behalf of residents.
Bans self-generated receipts for certain purchases. , closing a loophole that could allow fraudulent or undocumented expenditures, thus strengthening accountability for those entrusted with resident cash.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Protect Disabled Residents' Money
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- 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.
Protect Residents' Cash Accounts
In Senate Committee · Mental Health And Developmental Disabilities · Sponsor John E. Brooks
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
9532
IN ASSEMBLY
January 19, 2018
Introduced by M. of A. JEAN-PIERRE -- read once and referred to the Committee on Mental Health
AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to safeguarding cash accounts for people with developmental disabilities in a facility
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision (f) of section 16.11 of the mental hygiene law is relettered subdivision (g) and a new subdivision (f) is added to read as follows:
(f) The commissioner shall provide for the oversight of facilities and providers of services holding operating certificates pursuant to section 16.03 of this article by:
(1) developing a statewide policy mandating audits for residents' cash accounts including the frequency of the audits, who is responsible for conducting the audits, and policies and procedures for how the audits will be conducted;
(2) developing a uniform system for audits of residents' cash accounts to assist supervisors in audits;
(3) providing training directly to anyone required to conduct audits of residents' cash accounts, including information regarding audit policies and practices of residents' cash accounts;
(4) authorizing the use of bank and debit cards for all residents' cash accounts;
(5) developing a policy on the purchase and use of gift cards by or on behalf of residents, including, but not limited to, requirements that supervisory staff include gift cards in residents' personal expenditure plans and notification to supervisors of the purchase or delivery of a gift card to a resident; and
(6) prohibiting the use of self-generated receipts as evidence of a meal purchased by cash custodians for meals outside the residence.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it shall have become a law; provided, however, that 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.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08756-01-7
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.