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Requiring the department of social services to provide an application confirmation notice and document receipts for applications for benefits.
IntroductionEnactedCommittee on General Welfareintroduced 2024-12-19Local Law 2025/088
Enacted as Local Law 2025/088.
Official record · Legistar
Agenda: 2024-12-19Passed: 2025-06-27Enacted: 2025-06-27
Summary
This bill would require the Department of Social Services (DSS) to provide an application confirmation notice within 48 hours after submission, and document receipts within 5 days of submission, to any applicant for cash assistance or SNAP benefits. The application confirmation notice would include the date of the application submission, a description of the information received, and an acknowledgement of whether the application is complete, and if incomplete, information on how to complete the application. The document receipts would include the date the document was received, the type of document, the name of the individual whose information is contained in such document, and a determination of whether or not the document is legible. DSS would also be required to make an electronic copy of submitted documents available to the applicant to view.
This bill would also require DSS to produce a report on the resources that would be required to provide application confirmation notices and document receipts for additional benefits not already covered by the bill. The report would include an analysis of legal or operational barriers to providing application confirmation notices and document receipts, a determination of the minimum timeframe required by the department to implement this process, and an implementation plan to establish this process.
This bill would also correct numbering in the administrative code.
Committee on General Welfare — Human Resources Administration/Department of Social Services, Department of Homeless Services, and charitable institutions.
How it compares
44% of similar bills passed
22 passed · 28 died
This bill: 159 days in committee
Similar bills: median 284 days · 190 days when passed
Compared against 50 Introduction bills in Committee on General Welfare.
Ranked by how closely each matches this bill's topic — closest first:
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Sponsors (30)
Lifecycle
IntroducedIntroduced by Council
2024-12-19 · City Council
ActionReferred to Comm by Council
2024-12-19 · City Council
HeardHearing Held by Committee
2025-04-03 · Committee on General Welfare
HeldLaid Over by Committee
2025-04-03 · Committee on General Welfare
HeardHearing Held by Committee
2025-05-28 · Committee on General Welfare
ActionAmendment Proposed by Comm
2025-05-28 · Committee on General Welfare
ActionAmended by Committee
2025-05-28 · Committee on General Welfare
AdvancedApproved by Committee
2025-05-28 · Committee on General Welfare
AdvancedApproved by Council
2025-05-28 · City Council
ActionSent to Mayor by Council
2025-05-28 · City Council
AdvancedCity Charter Rule Adopted
2025-06-27 · Administration
ActionReturned Unsigned by Mayor
2025-06-30 · City Council
Votes (9)
Aye (8)
Chris BanksTiffany L. CabánDiana I. AyalaAlexa AvilésLincoln RestlerKevin C. RileySandra UngChi A. Ossé
Absent (1)
Althea V. Stevens
Heard at (4)
City Council · 2025-05-28 · 1:30 PM · Council Chambers - City Hall
Committee on General Welfare · 2025-05-28 · 9:30 AM · Council Chambers - City Hall
Committee on General Welfare · 2025-04-03 · 10:00 AM · Committee Room - City Hall
City Council · 2024-12-19 · 1:30 PM · Council Chambers - City Hall
Attachments (21)
Full text
Be it enacted by the Council as follows:
Section 1. Chapter 1 of title 21 of the administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new section 21-153 to read as follows:
� 21-153 Benefits application notice and document receipts. a. Application confirmation notice. No later than 48 hours after submission of a written or oral application to the department for cash assistance, including, but not limited to, emergency assistance as such term is defined in subdivision a of section 21-150, or supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits, the department shall provide the applicant with an application confirmation notice that shall include, at a minimum:
1. The date of the application submission;
2. A description of the information received; and
3. A statement indicating whether the application is complete or incomplete, and if incomplete, a list of all information and documents needed for the application to be deemed complete by the department.
b. Document receipts. Within 5 days of submission of a document related to an application for cash assistance, including, but not limited to, emergency assistance as such term is defined in subdivision a of section 21-150, or supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits, the department shall provide a receipt that shall include, at a minimum:
1. The date such document was received;
2. The type of document that was received; and
3. The names of the individuals whose information is contained in such documents.
c. Illegible documents. If the department determines that a document submitted as part of an application for cash assistance, including, but not limited to, emergency assistance as such term is defined in subdivision a of section 21-150, or supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits is illegible, the department shall notify the applicant that such document is illegible, and inform such applicant that such document must be resubmitted.
d. Electronic copy. For applications requiring an application confirmation notice pursuant to subdivision a of this section, the department shall permit the applicant to view an electronic copy of each document submitted by the applicant.
� 2. Report on additional benefits application notices and document receipts. No later than 1 year after the effective date of subdivisions a through c of section 21-153 of the administrative code, as added by this local law, the commissioner shall deliver to the mayor and the speaker of the council a report on the department resources that would be required to provide application confirmation notices and document receipts in the form and manner required by subdivisions a and b of section 21-153 of the administrative code, as added by this local law, for applications for all benefits and services provided, managed, or administered by the department that are not covered under such section. Such report shall include:
1. An analysis of any legal or operational barriers to providing such application confirmation notices and document receipts for applications for such benefits and services including any issues relating to confidentiality and data privacy;
2. A determination of the minimum timeframe required by the department to implement a process to provide such application confirmation notices and document receipts for applications for such benefits and services; and
3. An implementation plan to establish a process to provide such application confirmation notices and document receipts for applications for such benefits or services.
� 3. Section 21-132 of the administrative code of the city of New York, as added by local law number 82 for the year 2005, is redesignated 21-132.1.
� 4. This local law takes effect 180 days after it becomes law, except that subdivision d of section 1 takes effect 2 years after it becomes law.
KF/PR
LS #16317
5/20/2025 8:33pm
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