Study Cost of Living Needs

Section 1. The social services law is amended by adding a new section 131-bb to read as follows:

§ 131-bb. Self-sufficiency standard study. 1. (a) A self-sufficiency standard measures how much income is needed for a family of a given composition in a given geographic location to adequately meet its basic needs without public or private assistance.

(b) A self-sufficiency standard is a tool that can be used to: (i) create a benchmark for measuring the effectiveness of anti-poverty programs and policies; (ii) determine effective ways to allocate resources that will lead to economic development that results in living wage jobs; (iii) target the development of training and industries that result in higher-wage jobs for New Yorkers; (iv) enhance education, job training, and skills development programs; (v) counsel clients transitioning from welfare and unemployment, through workforce development programs and education and training, into self-sufficiency wage jobs; and (vi) enhance online "budget calculator" tools that enable users to strategize combinations of public and private supports and subsidies, with training and education, and/or employment, to increase income and economic security.

2. The department of labor shall contract with a third party, that meets the requirements in subdivision four of this section, for the

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD00051-02-0

S. 5552--A 2

collection and analysis of data that results in the calculation of basic needs budgets.

3. Calculation of standard of basic needs budgets. (a) Standards of basic needs budgets shall (i) measure the necessary income required to maintain self-sufficiency without additional public or private support; (ii) account for family size and composition; and (iii) utilize, to the extent such information is available, the most up to date costs of basic needs, including but not limited to housing, food, transportation, health care, and child care, as well as taxes and tax credits, including local, state and federal taxes and tax credits.

(b) In calculating the standard of basic needs budget, the contractor shall utilize, to the extent practicable, data that is nationally standardized, calculated annually, and from reliable government or academic/scholarly sources, such as the United States census bureau, United States department of housing and urban development, or any other data reported to state and federal agencies using standardized methodology. These budgets should be varied geographically, by county, and data permitting, sub-county areas, for every region in the state.

4. Third-party contractor. To the extent practicable, the third party contractor shall have the following characteristics:

(a) at least twenty years' continuous experience in calculating a standard of basic needs budget, or substantially similar measurement, and related analyses;

(b) has performed such calculations for no fewer than thirty states, including New York state;

(c) can demonstrate a proven record of having produced such calculations and reports, within the budget and time constraints of previous contracts; and

(d) is located in or affiliated with a college or university and/or is managed by an individual or individuals with relevant skills, experience, and education that qualifies him or her to calculate the information required by this section.

5. The department of labor shall submit a report of the findings required in subdivisions two and three of this section to the governor, the speaker of the assembly and the temporary president of the senate, no later than September first, two thousand twenty-one and biennially thereafter.

§ 2. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.