2012 New York Consolidated Laws
SOS - Social Services
Article 6 - CHILDREN
Title 5-C - (410-U - 410-Z) BLOCK GRANT FOR CHILD CARE
410-X - Use of funds.

 
    § 410-x. Use of funds.  1. A social services district shall expend its
  allocation  from the block grant in a manner that provides for equitable
  access to child care assistance  funds  to  eligible  families,  and  in
  accordance  with  the applicable provisions in federal law regarding the
  portion of the funds which must be  spent  on  families  in  receipt  of
  family  assistance,  families who are attempting through work activities
  to transition off of family assistance and families at-risk of  becoming
  dependent  on  family  assistance and the portion which must be spent on
  other working low-income families. Each  social  services  district  may
  spend  no  more  than  five  percent  of  its block grant allocation for
  administrative activities. The term  "administrative  activities"  shall
  not include the costs of providing direct services.
    2.  (a)  A  social  services district may establish priorities for the
  families which will be eligible to receive funding;  provided  that  the
  priorities  provide that eligible families will receive equitable access
  to child care assistance funds  to  the  extent  that  these  funds  are
  available.
    (b)  A  social  services  district  shall set forth its priorities for
  child care assistance in the district's consolidated services plan.  The
  commissioner  of  the  office  of children and family services shall not
  approve any plan that does not provide for  equitable  access  to  child
  care assistance funds.
    (c)  A  social  services  district  shall  be  authorized to set aside
  portions of its block grant allocation to  serve  one  or  more  of  its
  priority  groups  and/or  to  discontinue funding to families with lower
  priorities in order to serve families with higher  priorities;  provided
  that  the  method  of  disbursement  to  priority  groups  provides that
  eligible families within a priority group will receive equitable  access
  to  child  care  assistance  funds  to  the  extent that these funds are
  available.
    (d) Each social services district shall  collect  and  submit  to  the
  commissioner  of  the office of children and family services in a manner
  to be specified by the commissioner of the office of children and family
  services  information  concerning  the  disbursement   of   child   care
  assistance  funds  showing geographic distribution of children receiving
  assistance within the district.
    (e) The commissioner of the office of  children  and  family  services
  shall submit a report to the governor, temporary president of the senate
  and  the  speaker  of the assembly on or before August thirty-first, two
  thousand one concerning the implementation of this section. This  report
  shall  include  information  concerning  the  disbursement of child care
  assistance funds showing geographic distribution of  children  receiving
  assistance within the state.
    3.  Child  care  assistance funded under the block grant must meet all
  applicable standards set forth in section three hundred ninety  of  this
  article  or  the  administrative code of the city of New York, including
  child day care in a child day care center, family day care  home,  group
  family  day  care  home,  school age child care program, or in home care
  which is not subject to licensure, certification or registration, or any
  other lawful form of care for less than twenty-four hours per  day.  The
  department  also is required to establish, in regulation, minimum health
  and safety requirements that must be met by  those  providers  providing
  child  care  assistance  funded  under  the  block  grant  which are not
  required to be licensed or registered under section three hundred ninety
  of this article or to be licensed under the administrative code  of  the
  city  of  New  York  and  to  those public assistance recipients who are
  providing child care assistance as part of their work activities  or  as
  community  service under title nine-B of article five of this chapter. A

  social services district may submit to the department justification  for
  a  need  to  impose additional minimum health and safety requirements on
  such providers and a plan to monitor  compliance  with  such  additional
  requirements.  No  such  additional  requirements  or  monitoring may be
  imposed without the written approval of the department. Social  services
  districts   shall  provide,  directly  or  through  referral,  technical
  assistance and relevant health and  safety  information  to  all  public
  assistance  recipients  who  voluntarily  choose  to  provide child care
  assistance as part of  their  work  activities  under  title  nine-B  of
  article five of this chapter.
    4.  The  amount to be paid or allowed for child care assistance funded
  under the block grant shall be the actual cost of care but no more  than
  the applicable market-related payment rate established by the department
  in regulations. The payment rates established by the department shall be
  sufficient  to  ensure  equal access for eligible children to comparable
  child care assistance in the substate area that are provided to children
  whose parents are not eligible to receive assistance under  any  federal
  or  state  programs.  Such  payment  rates  shall  take into account the
  variations in the costs of providing child care  in  different  settings
  and  to  children  of  different age groups, and the additional costs of
  providing child care for children with special needs.
    5. The department shall promulgate regulations under  which  provision
  for  child care assistance may be made by providing child care directly;
  through purchase of services contracts; by providing cash,  vouchers  or
  reimbursement  to  the  providers  of  child  care  or to the parents or
  caretaker relatives; or through such other arrangement as the department
  finds appropriate. Such regulations shall require the use  of  at  least
  one  method  by  which  child  care  arranged by the parent or caretaker
  relative can be paid.
    6. Pursuant to department regulations, child care assistance shall  be
  provided on a sliding fee basis based upon the family's ability to pay.
    7.  A  social  services  district  may  suspend  the  eligibility of a
  provider who is not required to be licensed or registered under  section
  three  hundred  ninety  of this article to provide child care assistance
  funded under the block grant, where the provider is  the  subject  of  a
  report  of  child  abuse  or maltreatment that is under investigation by
  child protective services.
    8. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the  contrary,  child  care
  assistance  payments made pursuant to this section may be made by direct
  deposit or debit card, as elected by  the  recipient,  and  administered
  electronically,  and  in  accordance with such guidelines, as may be set
  forth by regulation of the office of children and family  services.  The
  office  of  children  and  family  services  may enter into contracts on
  behalf of local social services districts for  such  direct  deposit  or
  debit  card  services  in  accordance  with section twenty-one-a of this
  chapter.