2010 New York Code
SOS - Social Services
Article 2 - (5 - 40) DEPARTMENT AND STATE BOARD OF SOCIAL WELFARE
20 - Powers and duties of the department.

§ 20. Powers and duties of the department.
    2. The department shall, as provided in this chapter:
    (a)  administer  all  the  forms  of public welfare work for which the
  state is responsible;
    (b)  supervise  all  social  services  work,  as  the  same   may   be
  administered  by  any  local  unit of government and the social services
  officials thereof within the state, advise them in  the  performance  of
  their  official  duties and regulate the financial assistance granted by
  the state in connection with said work;
    (c) distribute, reimburse and  grant  as  herein  provided  the  funds
  appropriated  by  the  legislature  for such participation and also such
  funds as may be received from the federal government for such purpose or
  purposes.
    3. The department is authorized:
    (a) to supervise local social services departments and  in  exercising
  such  supervision  the  department  shall  approve  or disapprove rules,
  regulations and procedures  made  by  local  social  services  officials
  within  thirty  days  after  filing  of same with the commissioner; such
  rules, regulations and procedures  shall  become  operative  immediately
  upon  approval  or  on  the  thirtieth  day after such submission to the
  commissioner unless the commissioner shall specifically disapprove  said
  rule,  regulation  or  procedure  as  being  inconsistent  with  law  or
  regulations of the department;
    (b) in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this  chapter  to  make
  reimbursements   of   local  welfare  costs  on  a  participating  basis
  established by law,  to  advance  grants  of  money  for  local  welfare
  purposes and to administer a discretionary fund for such purposes within
  the limit of available appropriations;
    (c)  to pay such per centum as the legislature shall determine, of the
  salaries of local administrative personnel as it shall determine  to  be
  qualified to perform the duties assigned;
    (d)  to  establish  rules,  regulations  and policies to carry out its
  powers and duties under this chapter;
    (e) to withhold or deny state reimbursement, in whole or in part, from
  or to any social services district or any city or town thereof,  in  the
  event  of  the  failure  of  either of them to comply with law, rules or
  regulations of the department relating to public assistance and care  or
  the administration thereof;
    (f)  to  promulgate  any  regulations  the commissioner determines are
  necessary, in accordance with the  provisions  of  section  one  hundred
  eleven-b  of  this chapter, and to withhold or deny state reimbursement,
  in whole or in part, from or to any social  services  district,  in  the
  event  of  the  failure  of  any  such  district  to  comply  with  such
  regulations relating to such  district's  organization,  administration,
  management  or program. Upon withholding or denying state reimbursement,
  the commissioner shall notify the temporary president of the senate, the
  speaker of the assembly and the chairmen of the senate finance committee
  and assembly ways and means committee;
    (g) to formulate plans for the recruitment, utilization  and  training
  of  volunteers  to  assist  in  performing  services and other duties in
  social services districts for the purpose of improving participation  in
  public welfare programs;
    (h) for the purpose of the proper administration of programs of public
  assistance  and  care,  to  enter  into agreements not inconsistent with
  federal law, with public agencies responsible for the administration  of
  public  assistance  and  care in any geographically contiguous state, to
  receive information from such public  agencies  which  is  substantially
  similar  to  information  obtained  by  the  department  from  the  wage

reporting system operated  by  the  state  department  of  taxation  and
  finance  pursuant  to  section  one hundred seventy-one-a of the tax law
  and, subject to the approval of the state  department  of  taxation  and
  finance,  to provide such public agencies with information obtained from
  such wage reporting system; provided, however, that  no  such  agreement
  shall  be  entered  into  with  a  public  agency  of any geographically
  contiguous state unless such state has by law established  standards  of
  confidentiality  which  are  substantially similar to those contained in
  this chapter  prohibiting  the  disclosure  of  such  information.  Upon
  receipt  of  wage  information from such public agencies, the department
  shall furnish such information to the local social services districts;
    (i)  to  assure  conformance  with  federal  law,  by  entering   into
  agreements  with  the  federal social security administration and public
  agencies in other states responsible for administering  the  food  stamp
  program  or  programs under title I, II, IV-A, IV-D, X, XIV, XVI, or XIX
  of the social security act under which the department will provide  such
  agencies,  when  required  by  federal  law  and  only  to the extent so
  required, with data which may be of use  in  establishing  or  verifying
  eligibility  for  or  benefit amounts in such programs or ability to pay
  support for a person receiving  support  collection  services  including
  data  obtained  from  the  wage  reporting  system operated by the state
  department of taxation and  finance  pursuant  to  section  one  hundred
  seventy-one-a of the tax law.
    4.  The Department shall not withhold state reimbursement from or deny
  state reimbursement to a social services district, until written  notice
  is  given  to the commissioner of the social services district affected,
  except when the reason for the proposed withholding or denying  is  that
  such  commissioner does not meet the minimum qualifications required for
  such position, to the body or officer that  appointed  or  purported  to
  appoint such commissioner:
    (a) entirely for any period; or
    (b) in whole or in part, on ten per centum or more of all the cases in
  receipt of public assistance in such district in any period; or
    (c)  in  whole  or  in part, on ten per centum or more of the cases in
  receipt of a specific category of assistance in  such  district  in  any
  period; or
    (d)  for  any  period,  in  an amount equal to or greater than ten per
  centum of the state reimbursement otherwise due the  district  for  such
  period.
    5.  (a)  In the case of the death of a child whose care and custody or
  custody and guardianship has been transferred to an  authorized  agency,
  or the death of a child for whom any local department of social services
  has an open child protective services or preventive services case, or in
  the case of a report made to the central register involving the death of
  a   child,  the  office  of  children  and  family  services  shall  (i)
  investigate or  provide  for  an  investigation  of  the  cause  of  and
  circumstances  surrounding  such  death, (ii) review such investigation,
  and (iii) prepare and issue a report  on  such  death,  except  where  a
  report  is  issued by an approved local or regional fatality review team
  in accordance with section four hundred twenty-two-b of this chapter.
    (b) Such report shall include (i) the cause  of  death,  whether  from
  natural  or  other  causes,  (ii)  identification of child protective or
  other services provided or actions taken regarding such child and his or
  her family, (iii) any extraordinary or pertinent information  concerning
  the  circumstances  of  the child's death, (iv) whether the child or the
  child's family had received assistance, care or services from the social
  services district prior to such child's death, (v) any action or further
  investigation undertaken by  the  department  or  by  the  local  social

services district since the death of the child, and (vi) as appropriate,
  recommendations for local or state administrative or policy changes.
    Such  report shall contain no information that would identify the name
  of the deceased child, his or her siblings, the parent or  other  person
  legally  responsible  for  the child or any other members of the child's
  household, but shall refer instead to the case, which may be denoted  in
  any  fashion  determined appropriate by the department or a local social
  services district. In making a fatality report available to  the  public
  pursuant  to  paragraph  (c)  of  this  subdivision,  the department may
  respond to a child specific request for such report if the  commissioner
  determines that such disclosure is not contrary to the best interests of
  the  deceased  child's  siblings  or  other  children  in the household,
  pursuant to subdivision five of section  four  hundred  twenty-two-a  of
  this  chapter. Except as it may apply directly to the cause of the death
  of the child, nothing herein shall be deemed to authorize the release or
  disclosure  to  the  public  of  the  substance  or   content   of   any
  psychological,  psychiatric,  therapeutic,  clinical or medical reports,
  evaluations or like materials or information pertaining to such child or
  the child's family.
    (c) No later than six months from the date of the death of such child,
  the department shall forward its report to the social services district,
  chief county executive officer, chairperson  of  the  local  legislative
  body  of  the  county  where  the  child's death occurred and the social
  services district which had care and custody or custody and guardianship
  of the child, if different. The department shall  notify  the  temporary
  president  of  the  senate  and  the  speaker  of the assembly as to the
  issuance of such reports and, in addition to the requirements of section
  seventeen of this chapter, shall submit an annual cumulative  report  to
  the  governor  and  the  legislature incorporating the data in the above
  reports and including appropriate  findings  and  recommendations.  Such
  reports  concerning  the  death  of  a child and such cumulative reports
  shall immediately thereafter be made available to the public after  such
  forwarding or submittal.
    (d) To enable the office of children and family services or a local or
  regional  fatality  review  team  to  prepare such report, the office of
  children and family services or a local or regional fatality review team
  may request and shall timely receive from departments,  boards,  bureaus
  or other agencies of the state, or any of its political subdivisions, or
  any   duly  authorized  agency,  or  any  other  agency  which  provided
  assistance, care or services to the deceased child such  information  as
  they are authorized to provide.
    6.  The  department  is  directed  to  seek appropriate approvals from
  federal officials to permit  commissioners  of  jurors  in  each  social
  services  district to obtain the names and addresses of persons applying
  for or receiving aid to dependent children,  medicaid,  or  home  relief
  authorized  by  this  chapter  for  purposes  of identifying prospective
  jurors. Upon  receiving  such  approval  or  upon  determining  that  no
  approval  is  necessary, notwithstanding sections one hundred thirty-six
  and three hundred sixty-nine  of  this  chapter,  the  department  shall
  provide  lists of such persons to the chief administrator of the courts,
  appointed pursuant to section two hundred ten of the judiciary law.  The
  lists  shall  be provided for the sole purpose of integration into lists
  of prospective jurors as provided by section five  hundred  six  of  the
  judiciary  law. The chief administrator of the courts shall upon request
  provide information from the lists to the commissioner of jurors in each
  county or, in a county within a city having a population of one  million
  or  more,  the  county  clerk  of said county, solely for the purpose of
  compiling lists of prospective jurors for the  appropriate  county.  The

lists shall be provided only pursuant to a cooperative agreement between
  the  chief  administrator  of  the  courts  and  the  commissioner  that
  guarantees that  all  necessary  steps  shall  be  taken  by  the  chief
  administrator  of the courts, the commissioners of jurors and the county
  clerks to ensure that the lists are kept confidential and that there  is
  no  unauthorized use or disclosure of such lists. Furthermore, the lists
  will  be  provided  only  if  the  chief  administrator  of  the  courts
  determines  that  the  lists  are  needed  for integration into lists of
  prospective jurors in one or more counties. Commissioners of jurors  and
  county clerks receiving such lists shall not use any information derived
  from  such  list  for any purpose other than for the selection of jurors
  and shall take appropriate steps to see that the confidentiality of such
  information is maintained.
    7. To the extent appropriations are available, the office of  children
  and  family  services  shall  conduct  a  public education campaign that
  emphasizes  zero  tolerance  for  child  abuse  and  maltreatment.  Such
  campaign shall include information about the signs and symptoms of child
  abuse  and maltreatment, the hotline available to report child abuse and
  maltreatment, and services that are available to  assist  families  with
  underlying  issues  that  may  lead  to  child  abuse  and  maltreatment
  including, but  not  limited  to,  substance  abuse  services,  domestic
  violence  services,  mental  health  services for adults and services to
  assist families with children in need of mental health  treatment.  Such
  campaign   may   include,   but  not  be  limited  to,  educational  and
  informational materials in print, audio,  video,  electronic  and  other
  media and public service announcements and advertisements.
    8. (a)  The  office  of  temporary  and  disability  assistance  shall
  promulgate  rules  and  regulations  for  the  administration  of   this
  subdivision.  The rules and regulations shall provide for the conditions
  under which local social services officials determine the  placement  of
  applicants  for  and  recipients  of public assistance for whom a notice
  pursuant to subdivision sixteen of section two hundred  fifty-nine-c  of
  the executive law, has been received and who are:
    (i) determined to be in immediate need of shelter; and
    (ii)  designated  a  level two or level three sex offender pursuant to
  article six-C of the correction law.
    (b) When making determinations in regard  to  the  placement  of  such
  individuals  in  shelter, local social services officials shall consider
  the following factors:
    (i) the location of other sex offenders required to register  pursuant
  to  the  sex  offender registration act, specifically whether there is a
  concentration of registered sex offenders in a certain residential  area
  or municipality;
    (ii)  the  number of registered sex offenders residing at a particular
  property;
    (iii) proximity of the entities with vulnerable populations;
    (iv) accessibility to family  members,  friends  or  other  supportive
  services,  including  but  not limited to locally available sex offender
  treatment programs with preference for  placement  of  such  individuals
  into  programs  that  have  demonstrated  effectiveness  in reducing sex
  offender recidivism and increasing public safety; and
    (v) investigation and approval of such placement by the state division
  of parole.