2023 New York Laws › SOS - Social Services › Article 2 - Department and State Board of Social Welfare › 34-A - Services Planning Requirements.

§  34-a.  Services  planning requirements. 1. (a) Each social services
district  shall  prepare  a  multi-year   consolidated   services   plan
encompassing  adult  services  and family and children's services, which
shall include diversion services  provided  pursuant  to  section  seven
hundred thirty-five of the family court act.
(b)  Commencing with the years following preparation of the multi-year
consolidated services plan, each local district shall also  be  required
to prepare an annual implementation report.
2. (a) The commissioner shall have authority to promulgate regulations
specifying  the  contents  of  both the multi-year services plan and the
annual implementation reports, provided however  that  such  regulations
shall   not  be  inconsistent  with  the  standards  of  review  by  the
commissioner of such plan and reports specified in subdivision  four  of
this section.
(b)  The  regulations  promulgated  pursuant  to paragraph (a) of this
subdivision  shall  require  the  multi-year  services  plan  and  where
appropriate  the  annual implementation reports, to include a summary of
the understanding between the local social  services  district  and  the
district attorney's office, which outlines the cooperative procedures to
be  followed  by  both parties in investigating incidents of child abuse
and maltreatment, consistent with their respective obligations  for  the
investigation or prosecution of such incidents, as otherwise required by
law.
3. (a) There shall be a public hearing on the multi-year services plan
or  each  annual  implementation  report. Commencing in nineteen hundred
eighty-two, such public hearing shall be held only  after  fifteen  days
notice  is  provided  in  a  newspaper of general circulation within the
county. Such notice shall specifically identify the times of the  public
hearing  in  which  the  child  protective  services  and other services
components of the multi-year  services  plan  or  annual  implementation
reports are to be considered.
(b) Commencing in nineteen hundred eighty-two, after such hearing, the
multi-year  services  plan or the annual implementation reports shall be
submitted for approval to the chief executive officer of the  county  or
to  the  legislative  body  in  those counties without a chief executive
officer. Full approval of the multi-year services plan or of the  annual
implementation report by the chief executive officer or legislative body
shall  be  required  before  submission  of  such  plan or report to the
commissioner.
(c) Commencing in nineteen hundred eighty-two, the multi-year services
plan or the annual implementation reports shall not be forwarded to  the
commissioner  until  at  least fifteen days have passed from the date of
the public hearing thereon.
4. (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of  this  subdivision,  the
commissioner  shall  review  both  the  multi-year services plan and the
annual implementation reports submitted by the social services district,
using standards consistent with the provisions of sections  one  hundred
thirty-one-1,  four hundred nine-d and four hundred twenty-three of this
chapter, and shall notify such district, in writing, of approval of such
plan or reports in whole or in part; provided,  however,  that  for  any
portions not approved, the commissioner shall in writing to the district
specify  the  portions not approved, the reasons for such determination,
the actions required for resubmittal of  such  portions,  and  the  time
period  of  resubmittal;  and  provided  further,  that disapproval of a
portion of such plan or report shall  not  render  the  entire  plan  or
report  invalid.  No  portion  of the multi-year services plan or of the
annual implementation reports shall be  finally  disapproved  until  the
district  has  had  at  least  one  opportunity  for  resubmittal.  Upon

resubmittal, or if no resubmittal is made within the time specified, the
commissioner may grant further extensions to the district to allow it to
resubmit  any  unapproved  portions,  or  may  finally  disapprove  such
portions.  Any social services district aggrieved by a final disapproval
of the commissioner under this section shall have the right  to  a  fair
hearing  in  accordance with the appropriate provisions of this chapter.
An adverse fair hearing decision shall be reviewable pursuant to article
seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules.  State  reimbursement
may  be  withheld for all or a portion of a local district's activities,
if the  multi-year  services  plan,  annual  implementation  report,  or
portions of either are disapproved.
(b)  The  commissioner  of  the office of children and family services
shall review and approve or disapprove the diversion services portion of
the plan jointly with the  director  of  the  office  of  probation  and
correctional  alternatives  or any other successor agency or entity. The
requirements for the portion  of  the  plan  and  report  regarding  the
provision  of  diversion  services  shall  be jointly established by the
commissioner of the office of  children  and  family  services  and  the
director of the office of probation and correctional alternatives or any
other successor agency or entity. The multi-year services plan and where
appropriate  the  annual  implementation  reports  shall be based upon a
written understanding between the local social services district and the
probation department which outlines the  cooperative  procedures  to  be
followed  by  both  parties  regarding  diversion  services  pursuant to
section seven hundred thirty-five of the family  court  act,  consistent
with their respective obligations as otherwise required by law.
5.  The  commissioner shall promulgate regulations concerning the time
by which:
(a) each local social services district shall  submit  its  multi-year
services plan and annual implementation report;
(b)  the  commissioner  shall,  in writing, notify a local district of
approval or disapproval of all or parts of  such  district's  multi-year
services plan or annual implementation reports; and
(c) each local social services district shall submit a revised version
of  its  multi-year  services  plan  or annual implementation report, or
parts thereof.
6. (a) Notwithstanding any other  provision  of  law,  the  office  of
children   and   family   services   shall   plan   for   the  statewide
implementation, by the thirty-first day of December, two thousand eight,
of the use by counties of a child and family services plan that combines
the multi-year consolidated services plan required by this  section  and
the  comprehensive  plan  required by section four hundred twenty of the
executive law into a single plan.
(b) All counties shall implement a county child  and  family  services
plan  prior to or by the two thousand eight plan year in accordance with
a schedule developed by the office of children and family  services  and
shall continue to implement such a plan thereafter. With the approval of
such office, a county may implement such a plan before the date required
by such schedule.
(c)  The  office  of  children  and  family  services  may  waive  any
regulatory requirements relating to the content and timing of multi-year
consolidated services plans and annual implementation reports  that  may
impede  the  ability  of a county to implement a county child and family
services plan.
(d) Nothing in this subdivision  shall  be  deemed  to  affect  county
planning requirements under the mental hygiene law.
7.  (a)  From monies appropriated to the office of children and family
services for the family and children's services foster care and adoption

program, the office shall  give  assistance  to  local  social  services
districts to enable them to collect statistics and to describe the steps
being  taken  regarding:  the  number  of  families  needing  preventive
services  as  provided  for in title four of article six of this chapter
for  which  services  are  provided;  the  effectiveness   of   specific
preventive services in preventing unnecessary foster care placements and
reducing  the length of stay in foster care; the efforts made to prevent
unnecessary placements; the use of the least  restrictive  settings  and
the  proximity of foster care placements to the child's home; the use of
kinship placements; the  placement  of  siblings  with  one  another  at
initial  placement  or  as  soon  thereafter  as possible; the number of
transfers of children in foster care  placements  and  the  reasons  for
those  transfers;  the number of families reunited in fulfillment of the
child's  service  goal  plan  and  the  length  of  placement  prior  to
reunification;  the  number of children prepared for independent living;
the number of children with adoption as a service plan goal; the  number
of  children  freed  for adoption and the length of time taken to secure
terminations of parental  rights;  the  number  of  children  placed  in
pre-adoptive  homes and the number of adoptions completed and the length
of time taken to complete them.
(b) Such data submitted to the office of children and family  services
shall  be  aggregated  and  submitted  with  a narrative report on these
children's services, to the governor and  the  majority  leader  of  the
senate  and  the  speaker  of  the assembly on or before July first, two
thousand five and semiannually thereafter.
8. The commissioner of the office  of  children  and  family  services
shall,  in conjunction with the commissioner of education, develop model
practices and procedures for local social services districts and  school
districts  regarding  the  reporting  and  investigation  of educational
neglect. Such model practices  and  procedures  shall  be  available  to
social  services  districts  and school districts and shall be posted on
the office of  children  and  family  services  website  and  the  state
department  of education website by September first, two thousand seven.
Each social services district shall, in conjunction  with  local  school
districts  within  its  district, submit written policies and procedures
regarding the reporting of educational neglect by each  school  district
within   such   social   services  district  and  the  investigation  of
educational neglect  allegations  by  child  protective  services.  Such
policies and procedures shall be submitted to the office of children and
family  services for review by January first, two thousand eight and the
office shall approve or disapprove such local policies  and  procedures,
based upon the model practices and procedures established in conjunction
with the state department of education, within sixty days of submission.
9.  (a)  If  a  social  services district proposes an amendment to the
child care portion of its child and family services  plan  that  reduces
eligibility  or  increases  the  family  share percentage for child care
services such district must: (i) no later than the first day the  public
notice  appears  in  a  newspaper  pursuant to subdivision three of this
section or  the  regulations  of  the  office  of  children  and  family
services,  as  applicable,  prominently post on the district's website a
notice of the proposed amendment describing the categories  of  families
whose  cases will be impacted; and (ii) at the time the public notice is
submitted  to  the  newspaper  for  publication   in   accordance   with
subdivision  three  of  this section or the regulations of the office of
children and family services, as applicable,  provide  a  copy  of  such
notice to the office of children and family services.
(b)  If  a social services district implements its process for closing
child care cases, as set forth in its approved child and family services

plan, due to the  district  determining  that  it  cannot  maintain  its
current  caseload because all of the available funds are projected to be
needed for open cases, the district must: (i) no later than the day  the
social  services  district begins to send individual notices to impacted
families in accordance with subdivision eight of  section  four  hundred
ten-w  of  this chapter, prominently post a notice on their website that
states that such district is implementing the child  care  case  closing
process  set  forth  in  its approved child and family services plan and
that describes the categories of families whose cases  will  be  closed;
and  (ii)  immediately  provide  a  copy of such notice to the office of
children and family services.
(c) The office of children and family services shall prominently  post
notices  received  pursuant to paragraphs (a) or (b) of this subdivision
on its website.