N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law § 41.18: Local services plan; state aid

§ 41.18 Local services plan; state aid.

(a) A local services plan is a plan for the rendition of local

services. Such a plan must have been developed by the local

governmental unit with the involvement of consumers, consumer groups,

voluntary agencies and other providers of services, in accordance with

the regulations of the commissioner and must be approved by the

commissioner in order to be eligible for state aid. A local services

plan shall contain a comprehensive proposal for annual and intermediate

range plans and expenditures by the local governmental unit and by

voluntary agencies pursuant to contract with such local governmental

unit. A local services plan shall contain provisions to assure that

there is planning and coordination with the delivery of community

support services to mentally ill persons, in accordance with section

41.47 of this article. An annual plan must be supported by specific

budgets.

(b) (i) Local governments shall be granted state aid, in accordance

with the provisions of this subdivision, for approved net operating

costs pursuant to an approved local services plan at the rate of fifty

percent of the amount incurred during the local fiscal year by such

local governments and by voluntary agencies pursuant to contract with

such local governments; provided, however, that a local government

having a population of less than two hundred thousand shall be granted

state aid at the rate of seventy-five percent for the first one hundred

thousand dollars of its approved net operating costs. Notwithstanding

the foregoing, local governments shall be granted state aid of one

hundred percent of the net operating costs expended by such local

governments and by voluntary agencies pursuant to contract with such

local governments for services to people with developmental disabilities

who were patients in a state facility for a continuous period of five or

more years following the first day of January, nineteen hundred

sixty-nine, provided that such services are rendered in accordance with

an approved local services plan. Such one hundred percent state aid for

services to such persons shall be also provided to a voluntary agency

pursuant to a direct contract between such agency and an office of the

department whenever such services provided pursuant to such direct

contract are rendered in accordance with an approved local services plan

for servicing such clients. For purposes of determining whether a person

has been a patient in such a facility for a continuous period of five

years or more, if a person who has been discharged or released from such

a facility is thereafter returned to such a facility within ninety days

of the discharge or release, the period of time between such discharge

or release and such return shall not constitute an interruption of, and

shall be counted as part of, the continuous period.

(ii) Notwithstanding the foregoing, local governments shall be granted

state aid of one hundred percent of the net operating costs expended by

such localities and by voluntary agencies pursuant to contract with such

local governments for approved demonstration projects, not to exceed

three years, for the purpose of conducting alcoholism and alcohol abuse

preventive, rehabilitative and treatment services; provided, however,

that the commissioner of alcoholism and substance abuse services may

extend the demonstration project for one additional year if it is

determined that such extension is necessary and would serve the public

interest.

(iii) Notwithstanding the foregoing, local governments and voluntary

agencies shall be granted state aid of one hundred percent of the net

operating costs expended by such localities and by voluntary agencies

pursuant to contracts with such local governments or with the office of

alcoholism and substance abuse services for alcohol crisis centers,

chemical dependency programs for youth, residential services for

recovering alcoholics and substance abusers and for alcoholism AIDS

coordinators. Such state aid may also be granted to programs transferred

from the task force on integrated projects for youth and chemical

dependency. Such state aid shall also be granted for non-residential

services determined to be necessary to serve the public interest by the

commissioner of alcoholism and substance abuse services provided by

local governments having a population of one hundred twenty-five

thousand or less as determined by the last preceding federal census, or

by voluntary agencies pursuant to contracts with such local governments.

(iv) The commissioner shall file a written explanation for action

taken pursuant to paragraphs (ii) and (iii) of this subdivision with the

director of the division of the budget, the chairman of the senate

finance committee and the chairman of the assembly ways and means

committee. Such one hundred percent state aid for approved demonstration

projects, alcohol crisis centers, chemical dependency programs for

youth, and non-residential rural alcoholism programs, shall also be

provided to a voluntary agency pursuant to a direct contract between

such agency and the office of alcoholism and substance abuse services

whenever such services provided pursuant to such direct contract are

rendered in accordance with an approved local services plan for

alcoholism and alcohol abuse preventive, rehabilitative and treatment

services. Upon completion of the approved demonstration project under

paragraph (ii) of this subdivision such program shall be eligible for

transitional funding so that the percentage of local contribution for

such project does not exceed twenty percent of the cost of such project

during the first year of transition, thirty-five percent of such costs

during the second year of transition, or fifty percent of such costs

during the third year of transition.

For purposes of this section, "chemical dependency program for youth"

shall mean a voluntary drug free setting for persons between the ages of

twelve and eighteen certified by the office of alcoholism and substance

abuse services.

(v) Notwithstanding the foregoing, local governments and voluntary

agencies may be granted state aid of up to one hundred percent of the

net operating costs expended by such localities and by voluntary

agencies pursuant to contracts with the office of mental health for

programs transferred from the task force on integrated projects for

youth and chemical dependency established pursuant to chapter eight

hundred twelve of the laws of nineteen hundred eighty-seven. Such aid

may include funds transferred from such task force to the office of

mental health.

(c) Local governments and voluntary agencies shall be granted state

aid for capital costs pursuant to an approved local services plan at a

rate not to exceed fifty percent of the amount eligible for state aid;

provided, however, that state aid for capital costs for that portion of

a general hospital which provides inpatient psychiatric services to the

mentally ill pursuant to an approved local services plan shall be

reimbursed at the rate of thirty-three and one-third percent.

(d) The liability of the state in any state fiscal year for state aid

pursuant to this section shall exclude chemical dependence services,

which are subject to article twenty-five of this chapter, and shall be

limited to the amounts appropriated for such state aid by the

legislature for such state fiscal year.

(e) In order to qualify for the state aid available as described in

subdivisions (b) and (c) of this section, a local services plan must

include provisions for the development of appropriate residential

accommodations, consistent with the present and anticipated needs of the

mentally disabled with the jurisdiction of the local governmental unit.

(f) No voluntary agency receiving state funds pursuant to this article

shall expend any state moneys except for value received and shall not

make any charitable contribution of state funds or use any state funds

to pay above market value for any goods or services, except as

authorized by the offices of the department.