STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 784 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 8, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. PERSAUD -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to the termination of certain subsidies provided to adoptive parents for disabled or hard to place children; and to amend a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the social services law relating to the adoption subsidies provided for disabled or hard to place children, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 8745 and A. 3580-A, in relation to the effectiveness thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subparagraphs (ii), (iii) and (iv) of paragraph (c-2) and 2 paragraphs (c-3) and (c-4) of subdivision 1 of section 453 of the social 3 services law, as added by a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the 4 social services law relating to the adoption subsidies provided for 5 disabled or hard to place children, as proposed in legislative bills 6 numbers S. 8745 and A. 3580-A, are amended to read as follows: 7 (ii) The adoptive parents shall be given an opportunity to respond to 8 the notice. Upon receiving confirmation that the parents continue to 9 meet their legal obligations to provide support to the child, the 10 department will take no further action to [reduce, suspend, or] termi- 11 nate the subsidy. If the parents fail to confirm that they continue to 12 meet their legal obligations to provide support to the child, the social 13 services official shall review all available information in order to 14 confirm the parents' continued eligibility to receive the subsidy. 15 (iii) If the child is not in foster care and, based on a review of the 16 available information, the social services official determines that the 17 adoptive parents are no longer legally responsible for the support of 18 the child or that the child is no longer receiving any support from the 19 adoptive parents, the social services official shall terminate the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD02686-01-5
S. 784 2 1 [assistance] subsidy provided to the adoptive parents pursuant to this 2 section. The adoptive parents may appeal the termination of [assist- 3 ance] subsidy to the department in accordance with section twenty-two of 4 this chapter. 5 (iv) If the child is in foster care and the social services official 6 determines that the child is no longer receiving any support from the 7 adoptive parents, the social services official [may reduce, suspend, or] 8 shall terminate the [assistance] subsidy provided to the adoptive 9 parents pursuant to this section. The adoptive parents may appeal the 10 termination of [assistance] subsidy to the department in accordance with 11 section twenty-two of this chapter. 12 (v) If [assistance] a subsidy is [reduced, suspended or] terminated 13 pursuant to this paragraph and the child is returned from foster care to 14 the care of the adoptive parents, the social services official shall 15 resume [assistance] such subsidy effective from the date when the child 16 was returned to the adoptive parent's care. 17 (c-3) If the social services official terminates the adoption [assist- 18 ance] subsidy provided to adoptive parents pursuant to paragraph (c-2) 19 of this subdivision and the child resides with another person who has 20 been granted physical custody or appointed as guardian of the child, the 21 social services official shall [enter into], pursuant to a written 22 agreement [to], make adoption [assistance] subsidy payments to the 23 custodian or guardian; provided, however, that no person shall receive 24 an adoption subsidy payment for any child for whom they previously had 25 parental rights which were terminated pursuant to a proceeding under 26 section three hundred eighty-four-b of this article or for whom they 27 previously had parental rights which were surrendered pursuant to a 28 written instrument executed in accordance with [section] sections three 29 hundred eighty-three-c of or three hundred eighty-four this article. 30 Such payments shall be made retroactive from the termination of [assist- 31 ance] subsidy to the adoptive parents pursuant to paragraph (c-2) of 32 this subdivision and shall be made until the child's twenty-first birth- 33 day. A custodian or guardian who receives adoption [assistance] subsidy 34 payments pursuant to this paragraph shall be subject to the same 35 requirements that apply to adoptive parents under this section. 36 (c-4) If the social services official terminates the adoption [assist- 37 ance] subsidy provided to adoptive parents pursuant to paragraph (c-2) 38 of this subdivision after the eighteenth birthday and before the twen- 39 ty-first birthday of the adopted child, and no person other than the 40 adoptive parents has legal custody or guardianship of the child, the 41 social services official shall make payments to the child: 42 (i) through direct payments to the child, if the social services offi- 43 cial determines the child demonstrates the ability to manage such direct 44 payments; or 45 (ii) to a representative payee certified by the social services offi- 46 cial in accordance with paragraph (g) of this subdivision. 47 § 2. Clause (B) of subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (g) of subdivision 48 1 of section 453 of the social services law, as amended by a chapter of 49 the laws of 2024 amending the social services law relating to the 50 adoption subsidies provided for disabled or hard to place children, as 51 proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 8745 and A. 3580-A, is amended 52 to read as follows: 53 (B) If the twenty-first birthday of the child occurs while awaiting 54 the certification of a representative payee, the child shall be entitled 55 to retroactive direct payment of subsidy payments since the death of the 56 adoptive parent or parents or the termination of [assistance] the subsi-
S. 784 3 1 dy to the adoptive parent or parents pursuant to paragraph (c-2) of this 2 subdivision after the eighteenth birthday of the child. 3 § 3. Section 4 of a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the social 4 services law relating to the adoption subsidies provided for disabled or 5 hard to place children, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 8745 6 and A. 3580-A, is amended to read as follows: 7 § 4. This act shall take effect [immediately] on the ninetieth day 8 after it shall have become a law; provided however that: 9 (a) the office of children and family services shall submit to the 10 United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration 11 for Children, Youth and Families, an amendment to the state title IV-E 12 state plan regarding the provisions of this act; 13 (b) notwithstanding any other provision of law, subparagraph (v) of 14 paragraph (c-2) and paragraphs (c-3) and (c-4) of subdivision 1 of 15 section 453 of the social services law, as added by section one of this 16 act, and section two of this act shall not take effect unless and until 17 ninety days following the date that the United States Department of 18 Health and Human Services, Administration for Children, Youth and Fami- 19 lies approves a title IV-E state plan amendment regarding [the] such 20 provisions of this act; and 21 (c) the office of children and family services shall notify the legis- 22 lative bill drafting commission upon the occurrence of the submission 23 set forth in this section in order that the commission may maintain an 24 accurate and timely effective data base of the official text of the laws 25 of the state of New York in furtherance of effectuating the provisions 26 of section 44 of the legislative law and section 70-b of the public 27 officers law. 28 (d) Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of 29 any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on 30 its effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before 31 such effective date. 32 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that 33 section one of this act shall take effect on the same date and in the 34 same manner as a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the social 35 services law relating to the adoption subsidies provided for disabled or 36 hard to place children, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 8745 37 and A. 3580-A, takes effect.