2023 New York Laws › SOS - Social Services › Article 5 - Assistance and Care › Title 8 - Emergency Assistance for Aged, Blind and Disabled Persons › 303 - Character and Adequacy.

§  303.  Character and adequacy. 1. It shall be the duty of the social
services official to provide emergency assistance,  in  accordance  with
regulations  of  the  department, to an eligible aged, blind or disabled
person who has one or more of the following needs:
(a) Replacement or repair, as the case may be, of clothing, furniture,
food, fuel and shelter; (including  repairs  to  homes  owned  by  aged,
blind,  and  disabled  persons  and  temporary  shelter  until necessary
repairs are completed or replacement shelter is secured), provided  such
clothing,  furniture, food, fuel or shelter was lost or rendered useless
as a result of burglary, theft or vandalism, or as  a  result  of  fire,
flood  or other similar catastrophe which could not have been forseen by
such person, and was not under his control. All such losses  shall  have
been  reported  to  and appropriately verified by local officials before
such replacement or repair;
(b) Replacement of  stolen  cash  if  reported  to  and  appropriately
verified by local officials;
(c)  Replacement  of lost or mismanaged cash by a person who by reason
of advanced age, illness, infirmity, mental weakness, physical handicap,
intemperance,  addiction  to  drugs,  or  other  cause,   has   suffered
substantial impairment of his ability to care for his property;
(d)  Payments  to  a  secured party in whose favor there is a security
interest, pursuant to the provisions of  article  nine  of  the  uniform
commercial code, on furniture or household equipment essential to making
living  accommodations habitable, in an amount not to exceed the cost of
replacement. Such payments shall be authorized only after  every  effort
has  been  made by the social services official to defer, cancel, reduce
or compromise payments on such security interests;
(e) Household moving expenses when a change of residence is  necessary
because  the health, welfare or safety of the eligible person or persons
is endangered and such move is not caused by eviction for nonpayment  of
rent, or when such move will substantially reduce rental costs;
(f)  Furniture  or  clothing which may be necessary in order to enable
such person to move to a private residence from a nursing home, hospital
or other institution;
(g) Household expenses essential to the maintenance of a home, in  the
case  of  a  person  whose supplemental security income benefit has been
reduced because he  has  been  placed  in  a  medical  facility.  Within
forty-five  days  following  placement  in  such  a facility, the social
services official shall  determine  whether,  and  payments  under  this
subdivision shall not continue unless, such person is expected to remain
in  such  a facility for less than one hundred eighty days following the
reduction in such benefits;
(h) Repair or replacement of  essential  household  heating,  cooking,
refrigeration,  water  supply,  personal  safety equipment, plumbing and
sanitary equipment;
(i) Security against nonpayment of rent or for damages, as a condition
to renting a housing accommodation, as provided in section  one  hundred
forty-three-c of this chapter;
(j) Broker's fees necessary to securing shelter;
(k) Essential storage of furniture and personal belongings during such
circumstances  as  relocation,  eviction or temporary shelter and for so
long as the circumstances necessitating the storage  continue  to  exist
and provided that eligibility for emergency assistance continues;
(l)  Household  expenses  (including  rent,  fuel for heating, gas and
electric utilities) incurred during the four month period prior  to  the
month  in  which such person initially applied for supplemental security
income benefits or additional  state  payments,  when  payment  of  such
household  expenses  is  necessary  to  prevent  eviction  or  a utility

shut-off or to restore such utility services, and, in the judgment of  a
social  services  official, other housing accommodations appropriate for
such person's best interests are not available in a particular area.
(m)  Household  expenses  (including  rent,  fuel for heating, gas and
electric utilities) incurred during the four  month  period  immediately
prior to the month in which such person applied for emergency assistance
for  adults  when  payment  of  such  household expenses is necessary to
prevent eviction or  a  utility  shutoff  or  to  restore  such  utility
services  and,  in  the  judgment  of  a social services official, other
housing accommodations appropriate for such person's best interests  are
not available in a particular area. A social services official shall not
grant emergency assistance under this paragraph if a person has received
a  grant under this paragraph within the preceding twelve months, unless
the granting of such assistance is recommended by  the  social  services
official  and  has  been  approved  by a duly designated official of the
department. For purposes of this paragraph, a person shall be deemed  to
have  received  a grant under this paragraph within the preceding twelve
months if he is residing in a household  with  another  person  who  has
received  a  grant  under  this  paragraph  within  the preceding twelve
months.
(n) Replacement of so much of a person's lost,  stolen  or  unreceived
federal  supplemental  security  income and/or additional state payments
check or checks up to a maximum of one-half  the  amount  of  each  such
check,  predicated  upon  the  estimated period of time required for the
receipt of the original check or replacement check. Such person shall be
required, as a condition of eligibility for such  emergency  assistance,
to  agree in writing to repay any amount granted as emergency assistance
pursuant to this  paragraph  and  paragraph  (o)  hereof  for  which  he
subsequently  receives the original or replacement check of supplemental
security income payment  and/or  additional  state  payments.  All  such
incidences of loss, theft or non-receipt shall have been reported to and
appropriately verified by local officials before such replacement.
(o)  Assistance  by monetary payment or food voucher, as determined by
the social services official, in an amount necessary to meet a  person's
nutritional  requirements  for  a  period  of  not  more  than one week,
pursuant  to  regulations  of  the   department   for   applicants   for
supplemental  security  income  and/or  additional state payments or for
emergency assistance pursuant to paragraph (n) of this subdivision. Such
assistance shall be provided within  twenty-four  hours  of  application
where  the  applicant  demonstrates  that he requires such assistance to
avoid hunger and has no cash or personal  assets  readily  reducible  to
cash with which to purchase food.
2.  The  maximum  grant  available for any emergency need specified in
subdivision one above shall be limited to the amount  and  paid  in  the
manner as specified by regulations of the department.