Senate Bill S5471

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S5471

SPONSOR: GOUNARDES
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the social services law, in relation
to authorizing certain shelters to be reimbursed for housing a single
individual in a room intended for double occupancy

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill will provide temporary housing assistance to a single individ-
ual who meets the residential program providers' eligibility require-
ments for victims of domestic violence as defined in section four
hundred fifty nine-a of the social services law, while allowing the
program provider to be reimbursed by New York State for any payment
differential for housing a single individual in a room intended for
double occupancy in order to address the system-wide lack of shelter for
single adults.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

This bill will provide temporary housing assistance to a single individ-
              

ual who meets the residential program providers' eligibility require-
ments for victims of domestic violence as defined in section four
hundred fifty-nine-a of the social services law, while allowing the
program provider to be reimbursed by New York State for any payment
differential for housing a single individual in a room intended for
double occupancy in order to address the systemwide lack of shelter for
single adults.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The domestic violence emergency shelter system was originally created to
provide short-term respite for victims of domestic violence and their
families who were fleeing imminent danger. All across New York State,
but particularly in New York City, domestic violence shelters were
created over several decades to house families rather than single
adults. Non-profit providers who operate these shelters are reimbursed
by the State (OCFS) per person per night.

This reimbursement from the State is supposed to cover the entire cost
of operating those shelters, including rent, utilities, staffing, insur-
ance, and other inflationary factors. Any reduction in this reimburse-
ment severely impacts the ability of the provider to cover the cost of
operating the shelter. As a result, domestic violence emergency shelter
providers have major financial disincentives to "downsize" a
room/apartment in order to accommodate a smaller family size, including
most prominently single adult victims of domestic violence, human traf-
ficking, and sexual assault. As a result, single adult victims of these
and other crimes have a much more difficult time trying to access domes-
tic violence emergency shelters, and instead may be forced to remain in
an unsafe situation. This legislation will require the State to preserve
the full reimbursement to providers who "downsize" a room configured for
a family of two to accommodate a single adult victim of violence, and
will therefore help increase systemwide capacity for single adults who
otherwise faced serious obstacles to accessing this shelter system.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

TBD

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.