S 8651: Establishes the office of New York state benefits coordination to document and track all benefit programs in the state, and establish a state benefits portal and universal benefits application.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8651  IN SENATE January 7, 2026 ___________ Introduced by Sen. CLEARE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to establishing the office of New York state benefits coordination The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The executive law is amended by adding a new article 26-C 2 to read as follows: 3 ARTICLE 26-C 4 OFFICE OF NEW YORK STATE BENEFITS COORDINATION 5 Section 760. Definitions. 6 761. Office of New York state benefits coordination; director. 7 762. Powers and duties. 8 763. State benefits portal. 9 764. Cooperation and assistance. 10 § 760. Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following 11 terms shall have the following meanings: 12 1. "Director" shall mean the director of the office of New York state 13 benefits coordination. 14 2. "Office" shall mean the office of New York state benefits coordi- 15 nation. 16 § 761. Office of New York state benefits coordination; director. There 17 is hereby created an office of New York state benefits coordination in 18 the executive department. The head of the office shall be the director 19 of New York state benefits coordination who shall be appointed by, and 20 hold office at the pleasure of, the governor. The director shall receive 21 a salary to be fixed by the governor within the amount appropriated 22 therefor. The director may appoint such deputies, assistants, consult- 23 ants and other employees as may be needed for the performance of the 24 duties of the office and the director and may prescribe their powers and 25 duties and fix their compensation within the amount appropriated there- 26 for. Such office may have an office seal. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD14183-01-5 
 S. 8651 2 1 § 762. Powers and duties. The office shall have the following powers 2 and duties: 3 1. Documenting all existing benefit programs across state government. 4 2. Maintaining a single portal website identifying all state benefit 5 programs, with a staffed phone line for non-digital access. 6 3. Tracking benefit program funding and performance metrics. 7 4. Tracking pharmaceutical price negotiation and control efforts at 8 the federal and state level. 9 5. Maintaining a database of provider resources including usage and 10 performance data for such providers, where available. 11 6. Operating a universal benefits application that streamlines appli- 12 cation processes and forms and is available in accessible formats, 13 multiple languages, and submittable online. Such application shall be 14 administered in coordination with all applicable agencies, and shall be 15 able to be made available at multiple points of entry in the health 16 care, commercial, nonprofit, and social service systems, as determined 17 by the director. Such application shall be designed with health literacy 18 and other culturally competent concerns tested on diverse cohorts of 19 older adults and individuals with disabilities. 20 § 763. State benefits portal. The portal website established pursuant 21 to subdivision two of section seven hundred sixty-two of this article 22 shall include: 23 1. Wellness, mental/behavioral health, substance use disorder and 24 social isolation screening tools, including a wellness screening website 25 and mobile application that can also be printed for completion by hand. 26 Such screening tools shall include current, readily available, 27 evidence-based screening tools for mental health, substance use disor- 28 der, loneliness, and suicide prevention and shall facilitate an appro- 29 priate individualized response. Individualized responses shall be avail- 30 able in multiple languages in compliance with section two hundred two-a 31 of this chapter. 32 2. A provider-facing portal website for providers to assist or evalu- 33 ate applicants. 34 3. Tracking data regarding individuals cross-enrolled in multiple 35 benefits. 36 4. Integration with programs to assist with benefits education and 37 applications. 38 5. A centralized repository for technology resources, trainings and 39 supports. 40 6. Identification of benefits that an applicant may qualify for, even 41 if they have not specifically applied for them. 42 7. Integration with transportation coordination applications. 43 8. Expanding outreach, communications, marketing, and assistance for 44 individuals, including increased funding for the health insurance and 45 information counseling and assistance program (HIICAP), facilitated 46 enrollment for the aged, blind, and disabled (FE-ABD), and accessible 47 nonprofit assistors, in compliance with section five hundred eight of 48 the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, that help people enroll in bene- 49 fits for older adults that also address the changing needs as people age 50 such as long-term care and home and community based services. 51 § 764. Cooperation and assistance. All agencies, authorities, and 52 institutions of the state shall cooperate and provide such assistance to 53 the office as the director may request. 54 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 55 it shall have become a law.