Lawyers Manual - Unified Court System

Public Assistance and Housing 269
York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) licenses these
programs and the local social services district reimburses the approved
providers for per diem services rendered. 91
For a program to receive reimbursement from the local district, each
resident must make an application for public assistance at the time of admission,
regardless of her income or resources. 92 Residents already receiving TA benefits
merely have to alert their caseworker to their new living situation. If a resident
is ineligible for public assistance93 (or for at least a full grant), the domestic
violence program may be able to cover the cost of the resident’s stay with
different grants or funds from other sources, such as donations or unrestricted
operating funds. However, if the shelter is unable to secure other resources to
pay for the resident’s stay, the shelter may ask for payment directly from the
resident. 94 This budgeting should be done in accordance with public assistance
regulations (including income disregards, 95 which lower the resident’s
contributions), but is often done improperly causing the resident to pay more
money than is mandated by law. When working with a client who is required to
pay for her domestic violence shelter stay, it’s best to contact a welfare law
attorney to review the budgeting. Policy “strongly discourages” the local social
services district from seeking reimbursement for the cost of a resident’s
domestic violence shelter stay from a legally responsible abuser. 96
The nature and extent of residential domestic violence services varies by
community. 97 Some communities with smaller populations or limited shelter
needs operate safe homes networks in private homes, safe dwellings or
apartments, or domestic violence programs that provide shelter to both domestic
violence survivors and other homeless individuals. Other communities may have
one or more “approved” shelter providers offering services at a multiple bed
domestic violence shelter.
In addition to safe housing, these programs also offer supportive core services
such as crisis intervention, 24-hour hotlines, advocacy, court accompaniment,
individual counseling, transportation, support groups, case management, and
children’s services. Programs may also require residents to follow restrictive rules
and curfews. At some, attendance at support groups or other educational sessions
is mandatory. By law, street addresses of domestic violence residential programs
are confidential. 98
Unfortunately, shelters are only temporary solutions. Residents at these
programs may stay for up to 90 days with the possibility of one 45-day
extension. 99 In New York City, after the 135 total days residents may request an
additional 30-day extension, but approval for these requests are relatively rare.