Assembly Bill A743

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    743
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. HEVESI -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Social Services
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  social services law, in relation to waiving the
   requirement of establishing paternity or a  child  support  order  for
   certain applicants or recipients of aid to dependent children
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 349-b of the social  services  law  is  amended  by
 adding a new subdivision 3 to read as follows:
   3.  WHEN  THE  APPLICANT  OR  RECIPIENT  HAS ESTABLISHED GOOD CAUSE TO
 REFUSE TO COOPERATE, THE SOCIAL SERVICES DISTRICT SHALL TAKE  NO  ACTION
 TO ESTABLISH PATERNITY OR A CHILD SUPPORT ORDER.
   §  2.  Subdivision  6  of  section  158 of the social services law, as
 amended by section 4 of part Z of chapter 57 of the  laws  of  2008,  is
 amended to read as follows:
   6.  In  addition to other eligibility requirements, each person who is
 applying for or receiving assistance under this title, and who is other-
 wise eligible for assistance under this title, shall be required,  as  a
 further condition of eligibility for such assistance:
   (i) to assign to the state and the social services district any rights
 to  support  that accrue during the period that a family receives safety
 net assistance from any other person as such applicant or recipient  may
 have  either on their own behalf or on behalf of any other family member
 for whom the applicant or recipient is applying for or receiving assist-
 ance; [and]
   (ii) to cooperate with the state and the social services official,  in
 accordance  with  standards  established by regulations of the office of
 temporary and disability assistance  consistent  with  federal  law  and
 regulations,  in  establishing the paternity of a child born out-of-wed-
 lock for whom assistance under  this  title  is  being  applied  for  or

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD01351-01-5
 A. 743                              2
 
 received,  in their efforts to locate any absent parent and in obtaining
 support payments or any other payments or property due such  person  and
 due each child for whom assistance under this title is being applied for
 or received, except that an applicant or recipient shall not be required
 to cooperate in such efforts in cases in which the social services offi-
 cial  has  determined,  in  accordance with criteria, including the best
 interests of the child, as established by regulations of the  office  of
 temporary  and  disability  assistance  consistent  with federal law and
 regulations, that such applicant or recipient has good cause  to  refuse
 to  cooperate. Each social services district shall inform applicants for
 and recipients of safety net assistance required to cooperate  with  the
 state  and local social services officials pursuant to the provisions of
 this paragraph, that where a proceeding to establish paternity has  been
 filed,  and  the allegation of paternity has been denied by the respond-
 ent, there shall be a stay of  all  paternity  proceedings  and  related
 social services district proceedings until sixty days after the birth of
 the  child.  Such  applicants and recipients shall also be informed that
 public assistance and care shall not be denied  during  a  stay  on  the
 basis  of  refusal to cooperate pursuant to the provisions of this para-
 graph[.]; AND
   (III) WHEN THE APPLICANT OR RECIPIENT HAS ESTABLISHED  GOOD  CAUSE  TO
 REFUSE  TO  COOPERATE, THE SOCIAL SERVICES DISTRICT SHALL TAKE NO ACTION
 TO ESTABLISH PATERNITY OR A CHILD SUPPORT ORDER.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.