N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 18 § 407.5

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 45, November 2, 2024

Section 407.5 - Content of the plan

Each plan must contain the following components:

(a) Needs assessment.

(1) For the services specified in section 407.4 of this Part, the needs of families, children and adults for whom the social services district is or may be responsible must be assessed.

(2) The assessment must be based on but not limited to:

(i) previous years' needs assessments;

(ii) previous years' success or failure to achieve State objectives as specified in a department release;

(iii) manner of current service delivery;

(iv) statistical measure of the number of persons requiring services and care;

(v) characteristics of persons currently receiving service and care;

(vi) data obtained through the district's public participation process as required in subdivision (g) of this section; and

(vii) indicators of general social and economic conditions in the district.

(3) The needs assessment must include a numerical estimate of families, children and adults requiring each service listed in section 407.4 of this Part.

(4) Each social services district must provide a narrative description of how the numerical estimates were derived.

(b) Resource inventory.

(1) The plan must reflect the existing resources in the county and surrounding region which are available to provide services and care to children and their families, and to adults. Social services districts must review information which is provided by the department on the number and capacity of service providers and note any addition, deletions, changes or corrections to the resources listed.

(2) Each social services district must describe its organizational structure for family and children's services and for adult services, including the operational relationship of those units both to the commissioner and to other components of the department, and the number of full-time equivalent staff. For protective services for adults, the total number of professional staff involved in the provision of such service must also be indicated.

(c) District goals, objectives and activities.

(1) Each social services district must indicate in the plan, its goals, objectives and activities. These goals, objectives and activities must be established for foster care, child protective services, child preventive services, adoption services, protective services for adults and for at least two other services.

(2) Such goals, objectives and activities must be based on the needs assessment and resource inventory, and must be intended to ensure that:

(i) families are able to stay together and develop supportive relationships and maintain or achieve independence;

(ii) families with children in foster care are able to reunite and develop supportive relationships and maintain or achieve independence;

(iii) children whose families are unable to care adequately for them receive appropriate, stable, substitute care;

(iv) children in foster care who are unable to return to their families are provided permanent homes to develop the capacity to live independently upon achieving adulthood;

(v) elderly and disabled people are able to participate to the fullest possible extent in the life of their communities, particularly through the availability of a full range of in-home and community-based services; and

(vi) residential care for adults and the elderly is provided in a manner that reflects the full range of their social and medical needs, and that affords them the fullest possible opportunity for continued participation in community life.

(3) Objectives shall be stated in terms of outcomes for the client, and be expressed in measurable quantifiable terms. The majority of objectives will be for three years.

(4) For each service for which goals and objectives have been established, the district must describe the explicit activities which will be undertaken to meet the indicated objectives. The activities must be measurable, time limited and contain a defined target for achievement. Activities may include the development of new resources, expansion of existing resources, utilization of available resources, and modification of the district's organizational structure.

(5) Each social services district must, in a manner to be specified by the department, address issues identified by the department in its analysis of economic and social indicators.

(6) For those program procedures/functions which are required by Federal or State law or regulation and for which the social services district notes it is not in compliance with the legal assurance and program information section of the plan, the district must develop ways to achieve compliance and describe activities to be undertaken to achieve compliance.

(7) For those program areas which are noted as not current practice in the legal assurance and program information section of the plan, each social services district must describe activities to address at least two of these items.

(d) Program and fiscal requirements. For each service for which a needs assessment is completed, each social services district must identify in the plan projected program and fiscal requirements including:

(1) numbers of persons to receive each service;

(2) estimated expenditures for each service and identification of expected reimbursement from all sources; and

(3) method of provision for each service.

(e) Unmet needs. Each social services district must describe the major areas and issues of need which are not able to be addressed by its plan.

(f) Each social services district must include in the plan income eligibility standards for those services for which such standards are at a local district's option.

(g) Public participation. Each social services district must include in its plan a description of how public participation was achieved, and the mechanisms used to obtain public comment in accordance with the following:

(1) At least one public hearing on the plan must be held during the development and prior to the submission of the plan. Such public hearing(s) shall be held only after 15 days notice is provided in a newspaper of general circulation in the district. Such notice must specifically identify the times during the public hearing when the child protective services, adult services and family and children's services components of the plan are to be considered. The plan must include the date(s) of such hearing(s); how the hearing(s) was publicized; the number of persons who attended and a general description of their interests and affiliations; and the major issues raised at the hearing(s) and how these comments were used in the planning process.

(2) Local advisory councils established pursuant to Part 341 of this Subchapter must participate in the development of the plan. At a minimum, prior to submission of the plan, the local commissioner must present the plan to the council for review. The plan must contain the role and activities of the council in the development of the plan, the date(s) of the meeting(s) at which the plan is discussed, the issues discussed at each such meeting and their impact, if any, on the plan.

(3) As required by sections 423.3(a) and 473.2(b) of the Social Services Law, discussions and meetings with public, private and voluntary organizations which are involved in adult and family and children's services must be held to acquire their advice and consultation in the development of the plan. The plan must include the dates of such meetings, the organizations represented, the issues discussed and the degree to which such comments were incorporated into the planning process. At a minimum, such organizations must include: health and mental health agencies; aging, legal and law enforcement agencies; societies for the prevention of cruelty to children; family court judges; youth bureaus or boards; and departments of probation.

(h) Legal assurances and program information. Each social services district must include in its plan, legal assurances and program information which it is prepared to document on request of the department. These assurances and information must describe the district's operations of services programs required by Federal and State law and regulation.

(1) Each social services district must provide the following general legal assurances:

(i) All providers of services under the plan will operate fully in conformance with all applicable Federal, State and local fire, health, safety and sanitation and other standards prescribed in law or regulations. Where a social services district is required to provide licensure for the provision of services, agencies providing such services must be licensed.

(ii) All providers of services under the plan are required to operate each program or activity so that, when viewed in its entirety, the program or activity is readily accessible to and usable by handicapped persons.

(iii) Benefits and services available under the plan are provided in a nondiscriminatory manner as required by title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended.

(iv) The activities covered by the plan serve only those individuals and groups eligible under the provision of applicable State and Federal statutes.

(v) No requirements as to duration of residence or citizenship will be imposed as a condition of participation in the State's program for the provision of services.

(2) Each social services district must provide the following legally required program assurances:

(i) The district provides applicants for or recipients of services and care adequate and timely notice regarding denial, discontinuation, suspension, reduction or restriction of services, consistent with applicable statutes and regulations.

(ii) In accordance with Part 358 of this Chapter, applicants for or recipients of services and care have a right to a fair hearing to review the denial, discontinuation, suspension, reduction, restriction or adequacy of service/care or the failure to take timely action upon an application for service/care.

(iii) Title XX funded services are available to eligible individuals in every geographic area within the district. Where different services are made available to a specific category or individuals in different geographic areas, services are available to all eligible individuals in that category who reside in that area.

(3) Each social services district must assure implementation of each responsibility contained in Part 432 of this Subchapter concerning child protective services.

(4) Each social services district must assure implementation of each responsibility contained in Part 457 of this Subchapter concerning adult protective services.

(5) Each social services district must include in its plan a statement whether the following have been established for its protective services for adults program:

(i) a financial management system with written procedures;

(ii) the roles and responsibilities have been defined and written for the delivery of protective services for adults for the various divisions and offices of the social services district, including accounting, income maintenance, medical assistance, protective services for adults and all relevant services;

(iii) an interagency service delivery network has been developed with other appropriate agencies including, but not limited to, the Office for the Aging, the Department of Health, community mental health services, psychiatric center(s), legal services and appropriate law enforcement agencies, which at a minimum will:

(a) designate contact persons;

(b) establish referral procedures and follow-up mechanisms;

(c) indicate the locus of responsibility for cases with multi-agency needs; and

(d) include written policies and procedures and interagency agreements; and

(iv) a mechanism to ensure coordination between protective services for adults and the post institutional services planning (PISP) programs.

(i) Summary of actions to address change in funds. According to the format provided by the department, each social services district must show how a change in the amount of funds available to the district for services provided under the plan would be addressed in that district.

N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 18 § 407.5