What's happening
This bill phases out the local share of Medicaid costs in New York over five years and requires most savings to lower property taxes.
Why it matters
Significant shift of Medicaid funding from local to state responsibility. By phasing out the local share of Medicaid costs over five years, the bill would relieve counties and New York City of a major budget burden, potentially transforming how Medicaid is financed in the state and reducing the fiscal pressure on local governments.
Mandated property tax relief. The bill requires that at least 75% of the savings localities gain from not having to pay Medicaid costs must go toward lowering property taxes or providing property tax rebates. This ensures that the primary benefit of the Medicaid cost shift is passed directly to property owners, rather than being redirected to other local spending.
State oversight and accountability. The State Comptroller is tasked with calculating and certifying the minimum property tax reductions resulting from the Medicaid savings, adding a layer of transparency and helping prevent local governments from diverting the funds to unrelated expenditures.
Impact on local budgets and services. Local governments will have more flexibility in their budgets since a substantial, mandated expense is removed, but they are also restricted in how most of the resulting savings can be used, which could affect funding decisions for other local services or initiatives.
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Who cares
Headline styles
End Local Medicaid Payments
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to social services
- Referred to social services
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1370
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 14, 2019
Introduced by Sens. RITCHIE, O'MARA, TEDISCO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services
AN ACT to amend chapter 58 of the laws of 2005, relating to authorizing reimbursements for expenditures made by or on behalf of social services districts for medical assistance for needy persons and the administration thereof, in relation to a five year elimination of the local share for medicaid
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Paragraph (iv) of subdivision (c) of section 1 of part C of chapter 58 of the laws of 2005, relating to authorizing reimbursements for expenditures made by or on behalf of social services districts for medical assistance for needy persons, is amended and seven new subdivisions (c-2), (c-3), (c-4), (c-5), (c-6), (c-7) and (c-8) are added to read as follows:
(iv) 2009 (January 1, 2009 through December 31, 2009), and each succeeding calendar year through 2022: prior year's trend factor percentage plus 3%.
(c-2) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 368-a of the social services law, or any other provision of law, commencing with the period January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023, calendar year social services district medical assistance expenditure amounts for each social services district shall be reduced by 20% from the 2022 expenditures. No less than 75% of the savings from this medical assistance expenditure reduction shall be used for property tax levy reductions, or property tax rebates, effective in the local government's 2024 fiscal year.
(c-3) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 368-a of the social services law, or any other provision of law, commencing with the period January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024, calendar year social services district medical assistance expenditure amounts for each social services
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03829-01-9
S. 1370 2
district shall be reduced by 40% from the 2022 expenditures. No less than 75% of the annual savings from this medical assistance expenditure reduction, compared to the prior year medical assistance expenditure, shall be used for property tax levy reductions, or property tax rebates, effective in the local government's 2025 fiscal year.
(c-4) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 368-a of the social services law, or any other provision of law, commencing with the period January 1, 2025 through December 31, 2025, calendar year social services district medical assistance expenditure amounts for each social services district shall be reduced by 60% from the 2022 expenditures. No less than 75% of the annual savings from this medical assistance expenditure reduction, compared to the prior year medical assistance expenditure, shall be used for property tax levy reductions, or property tax rebates, effective in the local government's 2026 fiscal year.
(c-5) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 368-a of the social services law, or any other provision of law, commencing with the period January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026, calendar year social services district medical assistance expenditure amounts for each social services district shall be reduced by 80% from the 2022 expenditures. No less than 75% of the annual savings from this medical assistance expenditure reduction, compared to the prior year medical assistance expenditure, shall be used for property tax levy reductions, or property tax rebates, effective in the local government's 2027 fiscal year.
(c-6) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 368-a of the social services law, or any other provision of law, commencing with the period January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2027, calendar year social services district medical assistance expenditure amounts for each social services district shall be reduced by 100% from the 2022 expenditures; and shall remain eliminated each year thereafter. No less than 75% of the annual savings from this medical assistance expenditure reduction, compared to the prior year medical assistance expenditure, shall be used for property tax levy reductions, or property tax rebates, effective in the local government's 2028 fiscal year.
(c-7) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions (f) and (g) of section twelve hundred sixty-one of the tax law, any county that opted into the local sales tax intercept methodology shall receive a proportionate reduction in the sales tax intercept as described in subdivisions (c-2), (c-3), (c-4), (c-5) and (c-6) of this section and use these recaptured funds for property tax reductions in the same manner as other local jurisdictions as described.
(c-8) The minimum amount of annual property tax levy reductions resulting from savings achieved as defined in subdivisions (c-2), (c-3), (c-4), (c-5) and (c-6) of this section, shall be determined by the state comptroller and transmitted to each local government one hundred eighty days in advance of the start of the fiscal year for which the property tax reduction is to be effective.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend chapter 58 of the laws of 2005, relating to authorizing reimbursements for expenditures made by or on behalf of social services districts for medical assistance for needy persons and the adminis- tration thereof, in relation to a five year elimination of the local share for medicaid
Purpose or general idea of bill
This bill would amend chapter 58 of the laws of 2005, relating to authorizing reimbursements for expenditures made by or on behalf of social services districts for medical assistance for needy persons and the administration thereof in relation to a five year elimination of the local share for Medicaid.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 amends the laws of 2005, relating to authorizing reimburse- ments for expenditures made by or on behalf of social services districts for medical assistance for needy persons, and seven new subdivisions (c2) thru (c8) are added. The subsections reduce the medical assistance expenditure amounts for each social services district and implement an incremental five year plan in which the medical expenditure reduction amounts for each social services district is increased 20% per year. This section also provides that the savings from this reduction shall be used for property tax levy reductions or property tax rebates and the minimum amount of annual property tax levy reductions resulting from the savings shall be determined by the state comptroller and transmitted to each local government.
Section 2 provides the effective date.
Justification
In 2011 a series of resolutions and statements from a cross section of municipal governments in New York State, along with the New York State Association of Counties, brought forward the issue of New York's Medi- caid spending. They found that New York's Medicaid program spends in excess of $52 billion dollars a year, almost 20% of state spending, and the local share of about $7.3 billion would grow by 37% over the next five years. This figure is unsustainable to local governments and they are desperate in need of relief. Increased costs have precipitated a situation in New York where our population of 19.4 million exceeds the combined Medicaid expenditures of California with a population of 37.1 million and Texas with a population of 25 million. Increased costs illustrate the need for the state to have a greater role in managing Medicaid and reducing this mandates burden on localities thus it is essential that this bill pass.
Prior legislative history
2017-2018: S.1677A/A2236A
Fiscal implications
None.
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.