NY Soc Serv L § 158 (2021)
2021 New York Laws SOS - Social Services Article 5 - Assistance and Care Title 3 - Home Relief 158 - Eligibility.

§  158. Eligibility. 1. A person is eligible for safety net assistance who is financially needy as determined in accordance with title  one  of this  article  and  the  regulations  promulgated  thereunder, is not in sanction status for a program authorized by this chapter and:  (a) resides in a family which is ineligible for family  assistance  or other  assistance  funded  by the federal temporary assistance for needy families block grant because an adult in the  family  has  exceeded  the maximum  durational limits on such assistance contained in section three hundred fifty of this chapter, or  (b) is an adult who would otherwise be eligible for family  assistance except that he or she does not reside with a dependent child, or  (c)  resides  in  a family that would otherwise be eligible for family assistance except that at least one adult or minor head of household has been determined in accordance with section  one  hundred  thirty-two  of this  article  to  be  abusing  illegal  substances  or  engaging in the habitual and excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages, or  (d) is under the age of eighteen, not living with his or her child and has no adult relatives with whom to reside, or  (e) resides in a family in  which  a  person  required  to  submit  to screening  or  evaluation  for  use  of  illegal drugs or excess alcohol consumption pursuant to section one hundred thirty-two of  this  article refused to comply, or  (f)  resides  in  a  family  which includes a person disqualified from receiving assistance pursuant to paragraph (f) of  subdivision  four  of section one hundred thirty-two of this article, or  (g)  is  a  qualified  alien  who  is ineligible to receive assistance funded under the temporary assistance for  needy  families  block  grant solely  because  of  section  four hundred three of the federal personal responsibility and work opportunity reconciliation  act  of  1996  (P.L. 104-193)  or  is an alien who is permanently residing under color of law but is not a qualified alien.   2. A person who shall be eligible for family assistance  according  to the  provisions  of  title  ten  of this article shall be granted family assistance and while receiving such aid shall not be eligible for safety net assistance. A person who is receiving federal supplemental  security income  payments  and/or additional state payments shall not be eligible for safety net assistance. A person who is  eligible  for  refugee  cash assistance  pursuant  to  the plan established pursuant to section three hundred fifty-eight of this article shall not be eligible for safety net assistance. An applicant for or recipient of safety net assistance shall be required, as a condition of eligibility for safety net assistance, to sign a written authorization  allowing  the  secretary  of  the  federal department  of  health  and human services to pay to the social services district his or her initial supplemental  security  income  payment  and allowing  the social services district to deduct from his or her initial payment the amount of safety net assistance granted for  any  month  for which   he  or  she  subsequently  is  determined  eligible  to  receive supplemental  security  income  benefits.  For  the  purposes  of   this subdivision  the term "initial payment" shall refer to the first payment of supplemental  security  income  benefits  after  a  person  files  an application  for  benefits  or after a person who has been terminated or suspended from eligibility for  supplemental  security  income  benefits subsequently has been found eligible for such benefits. An applicant for safety  net  assistance  who reasonably appears to meet the criteria for eligibility for federal supplemental security income payments shall also be required, as a condition of eligibility for safety net assistance, to apply for such payments and shall, if otherwise  eligible  therefor,  be eligible  for  safety  net  assistance  until  he  or she has received a  federal supplemental security income payment. Further, if  an  applicant for  safety net assistance is required to apply for federal supplemental security  payments  and  is  denied,  such  person  shall,  subject   to department regulation, also be required as a condition of eligibility to appeal his or her denial and exhaust his or her administrative remedies; such  person shall remain eligible for safety net assistance, so long as he or she otherwise remains eligible while his or her appeal is pending.   3. A person shall not be eligible for safety net  assistance  who  has made  a  voluntary assignment or transfer of property for the purpose of qualifying for such aid. A transfer of property made within one year  of the  date  of  application  shall  be presumed to have been made for the purpose of qualifying for such assistance.   4. Social services officials shall determine  eligibility  for  safety net  assistance  within  forty-five days of receiving an application for safety net assistance. Such officials shall notify applicants of  safety net  assistance  about  the availability of assistance to meet emergency circumstances or to prevent eviction.   5. Application for or receipt of safety net assistance  shall  operate as an assignment to the state and the social services district concerned of  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  assistance.  Applicants  for  or recipients of safety net assistance shall be informed that such application  for  or  receipt  of such  benefits will constitute such an assignment. Such assignment shall terminate with respect to current support rights upon a determination by the social services district that such person is no longer eligible  for safety  net  assistance, except with respect to the amount of any unpaid support obligation that has accrued during  the  period  that  a  family received safety net assistance.   6.  In  addition to other eligibility requirements, each person who is applying for or receiving  assistance  under  this  title,  and  who  is otherwise  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 assistance; 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-wedlock for whom assistance under this title is being applied for or 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 official 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  respondent,  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 paragraph.   7. As a condition  of  eligibility  for  the  receipt  of  safety  net assistance, every applicant for such assistance must:  (i)  sign  an  agreement which provides that, if it is determined that money is owed to the social services district because of overpayments of safety net assistance to the applicant while a recipient of  safety  net assistance,  the  applicant  agrees to repay any such money that remains due after the applicant ceases to receive safety net assistance; and  (ii) sign an assignment of future earnings on a form prescribed by the department to secure the repayment of  any  money  that  is  determined, after  providing  the  opportunity for a fair hearing in accordance with section twenty-two of this chapter, to be owed to  the  social  services district  because  of  overpayments  of  safety  net  assistance  to the applicant while a recipient of safety  net  assistance.  The  prescribed form  shall include the following notice: "THIS AGREEMENT AUTHORIZES THE SOCIAL SERVICES DISTRICT TO  RECOVER  ANY  OVERPAYMENT  OF  YOUR  PUBLIC ASSISTANCE BENEFITS BY COLLECTING THE AMOUNT OF THE OVERPAYMENT DIRECTLY FROM  YOUR  FUTURE WAGES. IF YOU FAIL TO MAKE THE PAYMENTS REQUIRED BY A REPAYMENT AGREEMENT BETWEEN YOU AND THE SOCIAL  SERVICES  DISTRICT,  THE SOCIAL SERVICES DISTRICT WILL FILE THIS AGREEMENT WITH YOUR EMPLOYER AND RECOVER  THE  OVERPAYMENT  DIRECTLY  FROM  YOUR WAGES." In addition, the assignment of future earnings and the enforcement  thereof  must  comply with  all  requirements of article three-A of the personal property law. The social services district may file the assignment of future  earnings with  the  employer  of  the assignor only if the assignor fails to make payments of money owed to the social  services  district  in  accordance with the agreement required in paragraph (i) of this subdivision.   8. No person who resides with his or her minor child shall be eligible for  safety net assistance except as provided in subdivision one of this section.