New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
Title 18 - DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES
Chapter II - Regulations of the Department of Social Services
Subchapter L - Homeless Housing And Assistance Program
Part 900 - Shelters For Families With Children
Section 900.8 - Transfer and discharge from shelters for families
Universal Citation: 18 NY Comp Codes Rules and Regs ยง 900.8
Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) Involuntary discharge.
(1) Upon entry to a facility, each family
must be advised in writing of the rules of the facility and residents' rights
and obligations while residing in the facility. Each family must be advised in
writing of the consequences of failing to comply with the rules of the
facility, including discharge from the facility and, in certain circumstances,
discontinuance of temporary housing assistance.
(2) A facility operator may discharge a
family or family member involuntarily from a tier I or tier II facility when
the family or family member engages in the following types of conduct or
activities:
(i) acts which endanger the
health or safety of such person or others;
(ii) acts which substantially and repeatedly
interfere with the orderly operation of the facility, including violations of
the facility rules;
(iii)
unreasonably fails to actively seek or follow up on referrals to housing other
than temporary housing;
(iv)
unreasonably fails to cooperate in developing, carrying out and completing a
service or an independent living plan as required by the social services
district;
(v) possesses or sells
drugs illegally;
(vi) fails to
apply for public assistance benefits within two working days of admission to
the facility or to reapply for public assistance benefits within two working
days if the family's or family member's case is closed while residing in the
facility;
(vii) fails to pay the
shelter provider the family's share of the cost of temporary housing in the
amount determined by the social services district;
(viii) fails to constitute a family as
defined in section
900.2 of
this Part and cannot reasonably be expected to constitute a family within 30
days of the date it is determined the resident(s) does not constitute a
family;
(ix) is absent from the
facility for more than 48 hours without having complied with the facility's
rules concerning absences;
(x)
fails to comply with public assistance requirements, including, but not limited
to, those set forth in section
352.35(e)
of this Title, where the failure to comply results in discontinuance of public
assistance benefits;
(xi) steals or
deliberately destroys property belonging to another resident, staff, shelter
visitors, or deliberately destroys shelter property; or
(xii) is no longer medically appropriate to
reside in the facility.
(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2) of this
subdivision, in instances where a family's or family member's temporary housing
assistance has been discontinued pursuant to section
352.35
of this Title, the facility operator must discharge the family or family member
as directed by the social services district.
(4) If the family or family member is
currently residing in a tier I or tier II facility, and the family's or family
member's temporary housing assistance has not been discontinued pursuant to
section
352.35
of this Title, the family or family member may be involuntarily discharged to
another tier II facility or similar facility, a tier I facility as appropriate
or, if family shelter care is no longer appropriate, to other
housing.
(5) A decision to
discharge a family or family member involuntarily may be challenged in a
pre-discharge hearing conducted by the social services district, or its
designee, in accordance with procedures contained in the operational plan
approved by the office, unless the family's or family member's temporary
housing assistance has been discontinued pursuant to section
352.35
of this Title. If the social services district does not directly operate the
tier II facility, it may designate the operator of the facility to conduct such
discharge hearings. Where the social services district so designates the
operator, it is the operator's responsibility to ensure that such hearings are
conducted by an impartial adjudicator. The adjudicator may not be staff or an
employee of the facility in which the family or family member resided when the
notice of discharge was issued. The adjudicator must not have been a party to
the decision to discharge the family or family member, or be subordinate to the
person(s) who made the decision. The social services district must monitor
hearings conducted by adjudicators pursuant to procedures which have been
submitted to, and approved by, the office. If a pre-discharge hearing is
requested, and the family's or family member's temporary housing assistance has
not been discontinued pursuant to section
352.35
of this Title, the family or family member must be allowed to remain in a tier
II facility pending the issuance of the decision after hearing. All decisions
must be in writing on a form prescribed by the office.
(6) Unless the family's or family member's
temporary housing assistance has been discontinued pursuant to section
352.35
of this Title, no family or family member may be involuntarily discharged until
the following procedures are observed:
(i)
for families residing in tier II facilities, the family has been given written
notice on a form prescribed by the office of the discharge decision and of the
reasons therefor; such notice must include a statement that the family or
family member has a right to a pre- discharge hearing conducted by the social
services district, or the social services district's designee. If any such
hearing is requested, such notice must include a statement that the family or
family member has the right to remain in the facility pending the issuance of
the decision after hearing. Such notice must include a statement that if the
family or family member participates in such a hearing and receives an adverse
hearing decision, that the family or family member must leave the facility, but
may request a fair hearing held under Part 358 of this Title to challenge the
discharge decision and a statement describing how such a fair hearing may be
obtained;
(ii) the family's need
for protective services for adults, preventive services or protective services
for children, or for other social services has been evaluated and an
appropriate referral has been made if necessary; and
(iii) if criminal activity may have occurred,
the appropriate law enforcement agency has been contacted;
(iv) if the family member to be involuntarily
discharged is a minor child or the sole parent or caretaker relative of a child
under the age of 18, provision for care, services, and support for the minor
child and the family has been made consistent with the needs of the child and
family; such care, services, and support must be provided in a manner
consistent with current statute and regulation, including but not limited to
sections
430.9
(appropriate provision of mandated preventive services) and 430.10 (necessity
of placement) of this Title.
(7) A family or family member who has been
involuntarily discharged from a tier II facility and who has requested and
participated in a hearing as described in paragraph (6) of this subdivision
may, after such discharge, request a fair hearing from the office under Part
358 of this Title to review the decision to discharge, unless the family's or
family member's temporary housing assistance has been discontinued pursuant to
section
352.35
of this Title. If the family or family member's temporary housing assistance
has been discontinued pursuant to section
352.35
of this Title, such family or family member may request a fair hearing in
accordance with section
352.35(h)
of this Title.
(8) A family or
family member who has requested a fair hearing as described in paragraph (7) of
this subdivision and who is found by the fair hearing decision to have been
wrongfully discharged from the facility must be offered an opportunity to
return to the tier II facility from which the family or family member was
discharged as soon as an appropriate vacancy becomes available. No such
opportunity may be offered if the family or family member no longer meets the
requirements for residency in a tier II facility as set forth in section
900.6(f)
of this Part or if the family or family member has obtained permanent
housing.
(9) A family or family
member may be involuntarily discharged from a tier II facility without being
provided a hearing as described in paragraphs (6) and (7) of this subdivision
to review the discharge if the basis for the discharge is that the family or
family member is no longer medically appropriate to reside in the facility, as
determined by qualified medical personnel, the family or family member's
temporary housing assistance has been discontinued pursuant to the provisions
of section
352.35
of this Title or, the family or family member has been absent from the facility
for more than 48 hours without having complied with the facility's rules
concerning absence and has not been readmitted to the facility. The 48-hour
period begins at the start of the period of the unauthorized absence. A written
record of all unauthorized absences must be maintained by the facility: A
family or family member who is being discharged without being provided a
hearing pursuant to paragraph (6) of this subdivision must be provided, in
writing, with the reason for discharge.
(10) After receiving notification from the
social services district of its intention to discontinue temporary housing
assistance pursuant to the provisions of section
352.35
of this Title, a family or family member may not be involuntarily discharged
pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision without the approval of the
social services district.
(b) Transfers from tier II facilities.
(1) A family or family member residing in a
tier II facility may be transferred to another tier II facility or to a hotel
or motel regulated in accordance with section
352.3(e) through
(h) of this Title only if one of the
following conditions exists:
(i) the family
has requested such a transfer and provided a reason and justification for their
request, and appropriate space is available for the family. Such transfer is at
the discretion of the local social services district;
(ii) a family member has a systemic
communicable disease, illness, or readily communicable local infection which
cannot be properly isolated or quarantined in the family's current tier II
residence which necessitates a transfer to a facility which has been designed
in whole or in part to serve such conditions; or
(iii) a family member has a medical,
physical, or other special need which cannot be adequately served in the
family's current tier II facility.
(2) Except as provided in this section,
families may not be transferred from a tier II facility except to a permanent
housing arrangement.
(c)
(1) Whenever a family member is to be
transferred or discharged, the social services district must ensure that the
action to be taken is appropriate to the health, safety, and needs of that
family member and the family. Such action may include referral to appropriate
medical services, child welfare agency, adult protective or law enforcement
agency, or similar entity. All reasonable efforts must be made to keep the
family intact.
(2) Prior to any
transfer or discharge of a family member pursuant to subdivision (a) or (b) of
this section other than a discharge based upon a discontinuance of temporary
housing assistance as provided for in section
352.35
of this Title, social services district staff must advise the remaining family
members of all housing options available to them. Such options may include:
(i) transfer of all or part of the family
along with the family member;
(ii)
continued housing of the remaining family members in their current facility,
provided that the remaining family members constitute a family as defined in
this Part; or
(iii) placement in
other types of facilities.
(d) If, as a result of the transfer or discharge of a family member from a facility, the family members remaining in the facility no longer constitute a family as defined in this Part, the local social services district must make appropriate arrangements for those persons to be housed elsewhere in accordance with subdivision (c) of this section and with all other applicable provisions of this Title, unless such discharge is based on a discontinuance of temporary housing assistance pursuant to section 352.35 of the Title.
(e) Involuntary discharge from congregate shelters for homeless pregnant women.
(1) When a resident engages in conduct which
endangers the health or safety of such resident or others, repeatedly behaves
in a manner which substantially interferes with the orderly operation of the
shelter or is diagnosed as having a generalized systemic communicable disease
or a readily communicable local infection, the social services district must
discharge the resident to an appropriate alternate living arrangement, unless
such resident's temporary housing assistance is discontinued pursuant to
section
352.35
of this Title. Such arrangements are defined for the purposes of this Part as
being permanent housing, a hotel/motel, a tier II facility or other similar
facility. A resident also may be discharged to another congregate shelter for
homeless pregnant women, unless the basis for discharge is that the resident
has been diagnosed as having a generalized systemic communicable disease or a
readily communicable local infection.
(2) No resident may be discharged
involuntarily until the following procedures have been followed:
(i) the resident has been given written
notice of the discharge and the reasons for the discharge. Additionally,
residents who are to be discharged for endangering others or substantially
interfering with the orderly operation of the shelter must be notified that
they have the right to request a facility hearing to challenge the discharge
and if a hearing is requested, must be advised of the right to remain in the
shelter pending the issuance of the decision after the hearing;
(ii) a resident's need for protective
services for adults has been evaluated, and an appropriate referral has been
made, if necessary; and
(iii) if
criminal activity may have occurred, the appropriate law enforcement agency has
been contacted.
(3) The
district must maintain a written record of all involuntary
discharges.
(f) Automatic discharge from congregate shelters for homeless pregnant women. A resident will be deemed to be automatically discharged:
(1) when the resident gives birth to her
child;
(2) the pregnancy is
terminated; or
(3) when the
resident leaves the shelter prior to the completion or termination of her
pregnancy.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New York may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google
Privacy Policy and
Terms of Service apply.
