New York Senate Bill S02143 Latest Draft

   
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2143--A 2023-2024 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 18, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sen. PERSAUD -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services -- reported favorably from said committee and committed to the Committee on Finance -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to the creation of a self-sufficiency standard study The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The social services law is amended by adding a new section 2 131-cc to read as follows: 3 § 131-cc. Self-sufficiency standard study. 1. (a) A self-sufficiency 4 standard measures how much income is needed for a family of a given 5 composition in a given geographic location to adequately meet its basic 6 needs without public or private assistance. 7 (b) A self-sufficiency standard is a tool that can be used to: (i) 8 create a benchmark for measuring the effectiveness of anti-poverty 9 programs and policies; (ii) determine effective ways to allocate 10 resources that will lead to economic development that results in living 11 wage jobs; (iii) target the development of training and industries that 12 result in higher-wage jobs for New Yorkers; (iv) enhance education, job 13 training, and skills development programs; (v) counsel clients transi- 14 tioning from welfare and unemployment, through workforce development 15 programs and education and training, into self-sufficiency wage jobs; 16 and (vi) enhance online "budget calculator" tools that enable users to 17 strategize combinations of public and private supports and subsidies, 18 with training and education, and/or employment, to increase income and 19 economic security. 20 2. The department of labor shall contract with a third party, that 21 meets the requirements in subdivision four of this section, for the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD05265-05-3 
 S. 2143--A 2 1 collection and analysis of data that results in the calculation of basic 2 needs budgets. 3 3. Calculation of standard of basic needs budgets. (a) Standards of 4 basic needs budgets shall (i) measure the necessary income required to 5 maintain self-sufficiency without additional public or private support; 6 (ii) account for family size and composition; and (iii) utilize, to the 7 extent such information is available, the most up to date costs of basic 8 needs, including but not limited to housing, food, transportation, 9 health care, and child care, as well as taxes and tax credits, including 10 local, state and federal taxes and tax credits. 11 (b) In calculating the standard of basic needs budget, the contractor 12 shall utilize, to the extent practicable, data that is nationally stand- 13 ardized, calculated annually, and from reliable government or 14 academic/scholarly sources, such as the United States census bureau, 15 United States department of housing and urban development, or any other 16 data reported to state and federal agencies using standardized methodol- 17 ogy. These budgets should be varied geographically, by county, and data 18 permitting, sub-county areas, for every region in the state. 19 4. Third-party contractor. In selecting a third-party contractor, the 20 department of labor may consider the potential contractor's years of 21 experience; the number of calculations performed for other states; the 22 record of having produced such calculations and reports within the budg- 23 et and time constraints of previous contracts; the relevant skills, 24 experience, and education of the contractor's personnel; whether the 25 contractor is located in or affiliated with a college or university; and 26 such other factors as the department of labor deems relevant and appro- 27 priate to evaluate the qualifications of such third-party contractor. 28 5. The department of labor shall submit a report of the findings 29 required in subdivisions two and three of this section to the governor, 30 the speaker of the assembly and the temporary president of the senate, 31 no later than September first, two thousand twenty-six and biennially 32 thereafter. 33 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding 34 the date on which it shall have become a law.