LeadingAge New York State Budget Review April 2017 | Page 9

ACF/AL
ACF/AL
SFY 2017-18 Final State Budget
Adult Care Facilities and Assisted Living
In addition to some of the overarching proposals mentioned earlier in this document, discussed below are
proposals that directly impact adult care facilities (ACFs) and assisted living. The final budget essentially
reflects the Governor’s proposals.
SSI Increases
We are disappointed that, despite our efforts, an increase in SSI for ACFs was not included in the final budget.
An increase had been included in both the Senate and Assembly proposals, and was an outstanding issue
during the last days of the budget negotiation, but unfortunately did not get included. We appreciate all that
members did to advocate for this issue.
ACF Quality Funding
The final budget includes the Executive Budget proposal to maintain the Enhancing the Quality of Adult
Living (EQUAL) quality program for ACFs at $6.5 million, the same amount as last year. EQUAL funding
has been available to adult homes and enriched housing programs that serve recipients of SSI or Safety Net
Assistance benefits, including Assisted Living Programs (ALPs) and Assisted Living Residences (ALRs). It
has been distributed based on a formula developed by DOH, based on the number of people in receipt of the
aforementioned benefits, as well as the size of the facility.
SSI Enriched Housing Subsidy
We are disappointed to report that the final budget essentially accepts the Executive budget proposal, with
slight modification. Rather than placing the subsidy into a pool of several programs, and cutting them by 20
percent, the subsidy is restored as a discrete line-item, but reduced by 20 percent. Historically, the program
has been appropriated at $475,000, this year’s funding level is $380,000. The subsidy pays $115 per month
per SSI recipient to operators of not-for-profit certified enriched housing programs, to the degree that
funding is available.
Criminal History Record Checks (CHRC)
The final budget accepts the Executive proposal to level fund services and expenses related to CHRCs for
ACFs at $1.3 milli on.
LeadingAge New York/April 2017
Page 8