BILL NUMBER: S10307
SPONSOR: WEBER
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to modernizing self-
direction funding limits within the office for people with developmental
disabilities by restoring purchasing power and establishing a mandatory
cost-of-living adjustment mechanism
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 adds a new section to the mental hygiene law requiring recali-
bration of all self-direction funding limits to reflect cumulative COLAs
since 2020, establishing enforceable minimum dollar floors for OTPS,
FRR, and key IDGS subcategories, and mandating annual COLA adjustments
going forward. It further provides for administrative oversight and
complaint procedures to support compliance. Section 2 sets the effective
date and requires immediate rulemaking preparation.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
The self-direction program is designed to provide flexible, individual-
ized supports for individuals with developmental disabilities. However,
funding limits governing key categories - including OTPS, FRR, and IDGS
subcategories such as Health Club Memberships, Camp, and Coaching and
Education - have not kept pace with inflation since at least 2020. The
current OTPS cap of $3,000 and FRR cap of $3,000 reflect values that
have been eroded by years of flat funding. The IDGS Memberships sub-cap
of $1,500, Camp sub-cap of $4,000, and Coaching sub-cap of $500 similar-
ly reflect pre-inflation figures that no longer align with actual costs.
This bill addresses that structural imbalance directly. The minimum
floors established in subdivision two are derived from current caps as
confirmed in the 2025 OPWDD Self-Direction Guidance and fiscal interme-
diary reimbursement guides, adjusted upward by approximately seventeen
percent to account for cumulative human services cost-of-living adjust-
ments enacted in state budgets from 2020 through 2025. Going forward,
the mandatory annual adjustment mechanism ensures that future erosion
does not recur.
The mandatory language of this bill - requiring adjustment rather than
permitting it - is intentional and necessary. Prior law authorized
adjustments but did not compel them, Families who rely on these funds to
access respite, memberships, camp programs, and other critical supports
cannot absorb the consequences of discretionary inaction. The mandatory
adjustment mechanism, paired with legislative and administrative over-
sight and a complaint pathway, provides meaningful accountability with-
out requiring judicial enforcement.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
This bill will increase expenditures for the self-direction program
proportionate to the gap between current cap levels and the COLA-adjust-
ed floors established herein. The cost is bounded by the defined minimum
floors and the COLA adjustment methodology, both of which are tied to
existing state policy. Current caps - $3,000 for OTPS, $3,000 for FRR,
$1,500 for Memberships, $4,000 for Camp, and $500 for Coaching and
Education - have already been included in prior-year state budgets; this
bill adjusts them to reflect the purchasing power those budgets
originally intended. To the extent the bill reduces family caregiver
strain and service gaps, it may also reduce higher-cost emergency inter-
ventions
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect April 1, 2027, provided that rulemaking and
administrative preparation shall begin upon enactment.