* § 36-c. Savings plan for the city of New York. 1. Notwithstanding
any other provision of law to the contrary, in any social services
district with a city having a population of five million or more, the
social services district shall conduct a demonstration project as set
forth in this section, and shall evaluate and report on such project
annually, pursuant to a plan approved by the office of temporary and
disability assistance and the division of budget. A comprehensive report
shall be provided to the governor, the temporary president of the senate
and the speaker of the assembly by December thirty-first, two thousand
twenty-one. Such report shall include but not be limited to information
regarding the program such as the number of participants for the
previous three years; the percentage of participation as measured by the
number of participants making contributions into such savings plan; the
average amount payable to a participant upon leaving the program; the
average length of time a participant remained in the program; the number
of situations in which the participant moved out of the program but
reengaged in the program within the previous twelve months; the number
of participants leaving the program voluntarily and the number of
participants removed due to failure to comply; and any other
demonstrated outcomes of such program.

2. Such social services district, in lieu of applying that portion of
a temporary housing assistance recipient's earned income that, but for
the provisions of this section, would be applied to reduce the need for
the shelter component of temporary housing assistance provided in a
temporary emergency shelter, shall direct such a recipient to
participate in a savings plan with such funds and, as long as such funds
are not withdrawn, they shall not be applied to reduce the need for the
shelter component of the temporary housing assistance granted for the
duration of his or her residence in temporary emergency shelter;
provided, however, that the provisions of this section shall only apply
to a person receiving temporary housing assistance in a shelter or other
facility overseen by the New York city department of homeless services
or the New York city department of housing preservation and development.
Failure by a recipient of temporary housing assistance to contribute to
such a savings plan shall result in the discontinuance of temporary
housing assistance. Provided however, such discontinuance shall be
immediately curable by compliance with this section.

3. In such social services district, any such funds collected from the
earned income of a recipient of temporary housing assistance while he or
she is residing in a temporary emergency shelter shall be deposited in a
savings plan approved by the office of temporary and disability
assistance and the division of budget; shall be payable to the recipient
for the recipient's use to facilitate his or her transition to, or
stabilize his or her residence in, permanent housing upon his or her
discharge from shelter or upon verification of such recipient's date of
discharge from shelter; and shall be considered exempt as income or a
resource until the twelfth month following the month in which the
recipient ceases receiving temporary housing assistance in temporary
emergency shelter. Funds collected in such savings plans shall be
pooled, tracked individually, and maintained in a savings or
money-market account at interest rates set by the institution with which
such funds are deposited. Any savings and interest accrued in such
account or accounts shall be distributed to a temporary housing
assistance recipient upon his or her discharge from temporary emergency
shelter or upon verification of such recipient's date of discharge from
shelter, in accordance with the provisions of this section.

4. Such social services district shall be deemed in compliance with
section one hundred thirty-one-a of this chapter for reimbursement of
expenditures made for temporary housing assistance, provided the
district is conducting the project fully in accordance with the
provisions of this section. Unearned income of a recipient of temporary
housing assistance in such social services district shall not be applied
to the savings plan, and shall not be required to be applied to that
portion of the shelter costs not paid for with public assistance.
Temporary housing assistance recipients shall not be required to
contribute to the cost of such shelter, as provided for in this section.
Such project shall not be implemented so as to compromise the federal
benefits of a recipient or any of his or her household members.

5. Upon the effective date of this subdivision, such social services
district shall suspend implementation of the demonstration program,
provided that (a) the recipient's need for the shelter component of
temporary housing assistance shall not be reduced by the portion of a
recipient's earned income that the recipient would have been required
under subdivision two of this section to deposit in a savings plan, and
(b) funds collected from recipients pursuant to this section prior to
the effective date of this subdivision shall continue to be treated and
made payable to recipients in accordance with the provisions of
subdivision three of this section.

* NB Repealed March 31, 2030