Specifies the persons authorized to visit facilities operated by the department of social services or a social services district and homeless projects; amends the definition of homeless project.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7994--A
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
September 1, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. FORREST, SHIMSKY -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Social Services -- recommitted to the Committee on Social
Services in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to persons author-
ized to visit facilities operated by the department of social services
or a social services district and homeless projects
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 42 of the social services law is amended by adding
2 a new subdivision 6 to read as follows:
3 6. "Emergency congregate housing" shall mean any location operated by
4 a state agency, city agency, or local municipality or a provider under
5 contract or similar agreement with a state agency, city agency, or local
6 municipality where individuals and families reside for more than nine-
7 ty-six continuous hours and where such individuals and families sleep in
8 a congregate setting with shared facilities, including but not limited
9 to sleeping quarters and bathrooms; provided, however, that emergency
10 congregate housing shall not include any location operated by the
11 department or a provider under contract or similar agreement with the
12 department.
13 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 42 of the social services law, as
14 amended by chapter 458 of the laws of 1986, is amended to read as
15 follows:
16 1. "Homeless project" shall mean emergency congregate housing or a
17 specific facility, including lands, buildings and improvements acquired,
18 constructed, renovated or rehabilitated and operated by a not-for-profit
19 corporation, charitable organization, wholly owned subsidiary of a not-
20 for-profit corporation or of a charitable organization, public corpo-
21 ration or a municipality to increase the availability of housing for
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13105-02-4
A. 7994--A 2
1 homeless persons, which may include other non-housing services such as
2 but not limited to dining, recreational, sanitary, social, medical and
3 mental health services as may be deemed by the commissioner to be essen-
4 tial to such a project.
5 § 3. The social services law is amended by adding a new section 40-a
6 to read as follows:
7 § 40-a. Persons authorized to visit facilities. Notwithstanding any
8 rule, regulation, or law to the contrary, the following persons shall be
9 authorized to visit at pleasure all facilities operated by the depart-
10 ment or a social services district, including adult care facilities as
11 defined in subdivision twenty-one of section two of this chapter and
12 homeless projects as defined in subdivision one of section forty-two of
13 this chapter: The governor and lieutenant-governor, comptroller and
14 attorney-general, members of the legislature and their accompanying
15 staff as requested by the member of the legislature if the member
16 requests to be so accompanied, members of the elected legislative body
17 of the county in which the facility is located and their accompanying
18 staff as requested by the member of such legislative body if the member
19 requests to be so accompanied, in city council and their accompanying
20 staff as requested by the city council member if the council member
21 requests to be so accompanied, judges of the court of appeals, justices
22 of the supreme court and county judges, district attorneys and every
23 clergyman or minister, as such terms are defined in section two of the
24 religious corporations law, having charge of a congregation in the coun-
25 ty in which such facility is located.
26 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
