NY State Senate Bill 2025-S602

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 08, 2025	referred to social services

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A501
Current Committee:: Senate Social Services
Law Section:: Social Services Law
Laws Affected:: Add §131-ww, amd §§131-w & 131-r, Soc Serv L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S8622, A9372

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to the payment of shelter and rent arrears; provides that all shelter arrears payments authorized for applicants to receive an emergency grant to pay for rent, property taxes or mortgage arrears shall be limited to once every year unless the district determines at its discretion that additional shelter arrears payments are necessary based on the individual circumstances.

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S602

SPONSOR: RYAN S
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the social services law, in relation to the payment of
shelter and rent arrears

 
PURPOSE:

This bill would amend certain eligibility criteria for accessing emer-
gency grants to pay for rent, property taxes, or mortgage arrears.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: amends the social service law to create a new section 131-ww.

Section 131-ww specifies that emergency grants for rental, mortgage, and
property tax arrears will be available to applicants once every year
(current regulations specify no more than once every five years) unless
the district uses discretion to allocate more funding. This section also
states that applicants will not be required to demonstrate an ability to

pay shelter expenses or prove that they can make repayments. The section
ends by instructing the commissioner to promulgate regulations in line
with the requirements of this section of law.

Section 2: amends section 131-w of the social services law to increase
the gross household income cap from 125% to 200% of the federal income
official poverty line.

Section 3: Amends subdivision 1 of section 131-r of the social services
law to change the way in which lottery winnings can be used to claw back
emergency grants for rental, mortgage, and property tax arrears. Pres-
ently, there is a lookback window of 10 years, and any winnings in
excess of $600 may be clawed back. This bill changes the lookback window
to five years, and increases the threshold at which winnings may be
clawed back to $20,000.

Section 4: establishes the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

New York State's housing costs arrears eligibility guidelines have been
in place for decades and apply an outdated set of standards to those
seeking funds to stay in their home. These antiquated standards are far
too narrow, and as a result, thousands of individuals who need help are
unable to access it.

New York State is battling a dual housing and homelessness crisis. As
rents continue to rise throughout the state, many families are struggl-
ing to keep up. While New York saw a sharp decline in the number of
evictions during the pandemic moratorium, eviction filings are now
rising at a startling pace. From a low of 69,346 filings during the peak
of the pandemic in 2021, statewide filings have risen drastically to
212,464 in 2023.

Evictions are disruptive for the community at every level. For individ-
uals, a forced move can take a toll both financially and on one's
health. At the community level, evictions disrupt the social cohesion of
neighborhoods. A constant churn in residents makes it much more diffi-
cult for neighbors to get to know and trust one another.

Upstate New York has been hit particularly hard by the housing and cost-
of living crisis. As a result, rather than coming about due to the
actions of a tenant or the lapse of a lease, most evictions are a result
of a tenant's inability to pay. In Buffalo city court, for example, over
the last 5 years, 85% of evictions were filed due to non-payment. Just
two years ago, in Erie County at large, non-payment was the cause of 83%
of eviction warrants that were issued. This figure is on par with many
other large counties throughout the state.  That means that for most
people facing an eviction, the only thing that will keep them in their
homes is access to housing costs arrears funds.

Eviction proceedings are costly and time consuming for everyone
involved: tenants, landlords, and the courts. None of the parties leaves
court feeling like they achieved their ideal outcome. Avoiding a court
case is better for all parties.

Not only is housing court time consuming and costly, forcing families
out of their homes and into the shelter system also generates huge costs
for the state and for localities. For each household in the shelter
system, the state pays almost $13,000 total. Given that the average
eviction is filed for a sum as small as $1,200, making housing costs
arrears funds more accessible will ultimately be a cost-saving measure
for the state. Since these funds are already dispersed and only going
unused due to obsolete restrictions, enacting this bill will result in
no additional cost to the state.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2024: S.8622/A.9372 Referred to Social Services

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    602
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. S. RYAN -- 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 the  payment  of
   shelter and rent arrears

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The social services law is amended by adding a new  section
 131-ww to read as follows:
   §  131-WW.  SHELTER  ARREARS.  1.  APPLICANTS MAY RECEIVE AN EMERGENCY
 GRANT TO PAY FOR RENT, PROPERTY TAXES OR  MORTGAGE  ARREARS  ONCE  EVERY
 YEAR  UNLESS  THE  DISTRICT DETERMINES AT ITS DISCRETION THAT ADDITIONAL
 SHELTER ARREARS PAYMENTS ARE NECESSARY BASED ON THE  INDIVIDUAL  CIRCUM-
 STANCES.
   2.  IN  AN  APPLICATION  FOR  AN  ALLOWANCE TO PAY SHELTER ARREARS, AN
 APPLICANT SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED TO DEMONSTRATE AN ABILITY TO REPAY SHEL-
 TER EXPENSES, RENT, PROPERTY TAXES, OR MORTGAGE PAYMENTS GOING  FORWARD,
 NOR  SHALL  A  DISTRICT CONSIDER AN APPLICANT'S ABILITY TO MAKE PAYMENTS
 UNDER ANY REPAYMENT AGREEMENT.
   3. UNREPAID SHELTER EXPENSES SHALL HAVE NO BEARING ON  AN  APPLICANT'S
 ELIGIBILITY TO RECEIVE ADDITIONAL LOANS.
   4.  THE COMMISSIONER SHALL PROMULGATE REGULATIONS CONSISTENT WITH THIS
 SECTION.
   § 2. Section 131-w of the social services law, as added by chapter  41
 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
   §  131-w.  Limitations in the payment of rent arrears. Districts shall
 not provide assistance to pay rent arrears, property taxes  or  mortgage
 arrears for persons not eligible for home relief, aid to dependent chil-
 dren,  emergency assistance to needy families with children or emergency
 assistance for aged, blind and disabled persons, except to  persons  who
 are  without income or resources immediately available to meet the emer-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

 S                                                          LBD01309-01-5
 S. 602                              2
 
 gency need[,] AND whose gross household  income  does  not  exceed  [one
 hundred  twenty-five] TWO HUNDRED percent of the federal income official
 poverty line [and who sign a repayment agreement agreeing to  repay  the
 assistance in a period not to exceed twelve months.  The districts shall
 enforce  the  repayment  agreements  by  any legal method available to a
 creditor, in addition to any rights it has pursuant  to  this  chapter].
 The  department  shall  promulgate regulations to implement this section
 which shall, among other things, [establish standards for  the  contents
 of  repayment agreements and] establish standards to ensure that assist-
 ance is provided only in emergency circumstances.
   § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 131-r of the  social  services  law,  as
 added by chapter 81 of the laws of 1995 and as designated by chapter 340
 of the laws of 2003, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  Any  person  who is receiving or has received, within the previous
 [ten] FIVE years, public assistance pursuant to the provisions  of  this
 article,  and  who wins a lottery prize of [six hundred] TWENTY THOUSAND
 dollars or more shall reimburse the department from  the  winnings,  for
 all  such  public  assistance  benefits  paid  to such person during the
 previous [ten] FIVE years; provided, however, that such crediting to the
 department shall in no event exceed fifty percent of the amount  of  the
 lottery  prize.  The commissioner shall enter into an agreement with the
 director of the lottery, pursuant to section sixteen hundred  thirteen-b
 of  the  tax  law,  for  the  crediting of lottery prizes against public
 assistance benefits. Nothing herein shall limit the ability of a  social
 services  district  to  make  recoveries  pursuant  to section [104] ONE
 HUNDRED FOUR or section [106-b] ONE HUNDRED SIX-B of this chapter.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S602

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Social Services Committee

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S602

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Sponsored By

Sean M. Ryan

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Social Services Committee

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S602 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments