BILL NUMBER:  S6486

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the public health law, in relation
to funding early the intervention program

 PURPOSE :

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS : Section 1. Subdivisions 2 and 3 of section
2557 of the public health law, subdivision 2 as amended by section 9-a
of part A of chapter 56 of the laws of 2012 and subdivision 3 as
amended by section 7 of part B3 of chapter 62 of the laws of 2003, are
amended to read as follows:

2. The department shall reimburse the approved costs paid by a
municipality for the purposes of this title, other than those
reimbursable by the medical assistance program or by third party
payors, in an amount of (fifty) seventy-five percent of the amount
expended in accordance with the rules and regulations of the
commissioner; provided, however, that in the discretion of the
department and with the approval of the director of the division of
the budget, the department may reimburse municipalities in an amount
greater than fifty percent of the amount expended. Such state
reimbursement to the municipality shall not be paid prior to April
first of the year in which the approved costs are paid by the
municipality, provided, however that, subject to the approval of the
director of the budget, the department may pay such state aid
              

reimbursement to the municipality prior to such date. No less than
ninety percent of the annual savings from this early intervention
expenditure reduction to local municipalities, compared to the prior
year early intervention expenditures shall be used for property tax
levy reductions or property tax rebates, effective in the local
municipality's next fiscal year after the effective date of this
subdivision.  The minimum amount of annual property tax levy
reductions resulting from savings achieved as defined in this
subdivision, shall be determined by the comptroller and transmitted to
each local municipality one hundred eighty days in advance of the
start of the fiscal year for which the property tax reduction is to be
effective.

3. The department may perform audits, which may include site
visitation, to all or any of the following: municipalities; service
coordinators; evaluators or providers of early intervention services.
The department shall provide the municipalities with a copy of the
findings of such audits. Early intervention program state aid
reimbursement or portion thereof may be withheld if, on post-audit and
review, the commissioner finds that the early intervention services
were not provided or those provided were not in substantial
conformance with the rules and regulations established by the
commissioner or that the recipient of such services was not an
eligible child as defined in section twenty-five hundred forty-one of
this title. In the event that the commissioner determines that there
may be a withholding of state reimbursement to any municipality under
this section, he or she shall inform the state early intervention
coordinating council and the relevant local early intervention
coordinating council and shall consider alternative courses of action
recommended within sixty days by either body prior to withholding
state reimbursement.

§ 2. Subdivision 4 of section 2558 of the public health law, as
amended by section 10 of part A of chapter 56 of the laws of 2012, is
amended to read as follows:

4. Local contribution. The municipality of residence shall be
financially responsible for the local contribution in the amount of
(fifty) twenty-five percent of the amount expended provided, however,
that in the discretion of the department and with the approval of the
director of the division of the budget, in accordance with subdivision
two of section twenty-five hundred fifty-seven of this title, the
department may require that municipalities be financially responsible
for a local contribution in an amount less than fifty percent of the
amount expended. The commissioner shall certify to the comptroller the
amount of the local contribution owed by each municipality to the
state. The comptroller shall deduct the amount of such local
contribution first from any moneys due the municipality pursuant to
section twenty-five hundred fifty-six of this title and then from any
other moneys due or to become due to the municipality.

§ 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
have become a law.

 EXISTING LAW : None

 JUSTIFICATION : With the advent of a "two-percent property tax cap"
Counties, Municipalities, and School Districts are struggling to meet
the needs of their constituents as mandated costs continue to climb
while local budgets derived from property taxes cannot grow to meet
those needs. Early Intervention is a program that meets the health and
education needs of young people throughout the State. The program
assists students to be ready to be active and effective participants
in the State's Constitutionally mandated education of all State
residents. Given that education is a State mandate, it is appropriate
that the State Legislature move to continue to lower those mandated
costs on local governments, especially as we have "capped" those same
governments' ability to pay for these services.

While a seventy-five percent reimbursement is not full mandate relief,
it is a step in the right direction. This bill, meanwhile, will
require the savings for Counties to be mostly given back to property
tax payers. Ten percent of such savings can be utilized by Counties
for the growing costs in other sectors of their budgets. The property
tax is the number one tax grievance for New Yorkers. This bill will
make a significant dent in property taxes imposed at the County level.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY : New Bill

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS : To be determined

 LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS : To be determined

 EFFECTIVE DATE : This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day
after it shall have become a law