NY State Senate Bill 2023-S8223

Senate Bill S8223

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Makes migrant youth under the age of 25 eligible to receive housing vouchers under the family homelessness and eviction prevention supplement ("FHEPS") program

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Social Services Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 16, 2024	referred to social services

2023-S8223 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A5043
Current Committee:: Senate Social Services
Law Section:: Social Services Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §131-bb, Soc Serv L

2023-S8223 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Makes migrant youth under the age of 25 who are receiving runaway and homeless youth services eligible to receive housing vouchers under the family homelessness and eviction prevention supplement ("FHEPS") program.

2023-S8223 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8223

SPONSOR: RAMOS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the social services law, in relation to making family
homelessness and eviction prevention supplement ("FHEPS") vouchers
available to migrant youth

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To provide stable housing to young adult migrants through housing vouch-
ers

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill amends section 131-bb of the social services law
to require vouchers provided in New York City under the family homeless-
ness and eviction prevention supplement (FHEPS) program be made avail-
able to eligible runaway and homeless youth under the age of 25 who are
receiving, or who have previously received,services under section 532d
of the executive law. Such voucher program shall pay the full rent for

undocumented youth and partial rent for documented youth with stable
employment, provided that the maximum rent for such vouchers shall be
set at the United States department of housing and urban development's
fair market rent level.

Section 2 of the bill is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Although there has been much focus on the large number of undocumented
families and unaccompanied child migrants arriving in New York City,
many of the new arrivals to our city are between the especially vulner-
able ages of 18-24. These young people are arriving on their own,
perhaps because this is the age that adolescents living in poverty are
often left to fend for themselves. Almost all of them have faced the
trauma of starvation, neglect and violence in their home countries. Many
have recounted treacherous journeys, including the witnessing of multi-
ple dead bodies on their way to the United States. Runaway and Homeless
Youth (RHY) providers across the city have stepped in to meet the imme-
diate needs of this population, including food, clothing, and shelter,
as well as educational needs and medical and mental health care. Howev-
er, the ultimate goal of the RHY system is for youth to leave program-
ming with stable, permanent housing. Young migrants need access to long-
term housing as they wait for work authorization and their asylum and
other immigration cases to be adjudicated. Documented RHY need housing
vouchers to supplement their income.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT:

TBD

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S8223 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8223
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 16, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  RAMOS  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services
 
 AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation  to  making  family
   homelessness  and  eviction  prevention  supplement ("FHEPS") vouchers
   available to migrant youth
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section  131-bb  of  the social services law, as added by
 chapter 666 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows:
   § 131-bb.  Family  homelessness  and  eviction  prevention  supplement
 program.  1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary,
 for a local social services district with a population of  five  million
 or  more,  the  commissioner  shall designate such local social services
 district to make vouchers available to eligible families under the fami-
 ly homelessness and eviction prevention  supplement  ("FHEPS")  program,
 and  to administer the program in accordance with a plan approved pursu-
 ant to 18 N.Y.C.R.R. § 352.3(a)(3), provided however, that  the  maximum
 rent  for  such vouchers shall be set at the United States department of
 housing and urban development's fair market rent level.
   2. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER PROVISION OF LAW TO THE CONTRARY,  VOUCH-
 ERS  PROVIDED  UNDER  THE  FAMILY  HOMELESSNESS  AND EVICTION PREVENTION
 SUPPLEMENT ("FHEPS") PROGRAM UNDER SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION SHALL
 BE MADE AVAILABLE TO ELIGIBLE RUNAWAY AND HOMELESS YOUTH UNDER  THE  AGE
 OF  TWENTY-FIVE  WHO  ARE  RECEIVING,  OR  WHO HAVE PREVIOUSLY RECEIVED,
 SERVICES UNDER SECTION FIVE HUNDRED THIRTY-TWO-D OF THE  EXECUTIVE  LAW.
 SUCH VOUCHER PROGRAM SHALL PAY THE FULL RENT FOR UNDOCUMENTED YOUTH, AND
 PARTIAL  RENT  FOR DOCUMENTED YOUTH WHO HAVE STABLE EMPLOYMENT AS DETER-
 MINED BY THE COMMISSIONER, WHO ARE OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE UNDER THIS  SUBDI-
 VISION.  SUCH  VOUCHER PROGRAM SHALL BE ADMINISTERED BY THE COMMISSIONER
 IN ACCORDANCE WITH  A  PLAN  APPROVED  PURSUANT  TO  18  N.Y.C.R.R.    §
 352.3(A)(3),  PROVIDED  HOWEVER, THAT THE MAXIMUM RENT FOR SUCH VOUCHERS
 SHALL BE SET AT THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVEL-
 OPMENT'S FAIR MARKET RENT LEVEL.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09313-01-3

 S. 8223                             2
 
   3. The state shall reimburse the local social  services  district  for
 payments  made under the FHEPS program in a manner consistent with title
 two of this article.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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