Int. No. 1089
By Council Members Morano, Maloney, Restler, Santosuosso, Marte, Ariola and Paladino
A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to creating an office of assistance for 9/11 first responders and survivors
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 21-158 to read as follows:
§ 21-158 Office of assistance for 9/11 first responders and survivors. a. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
Director. The term “director” means the director of the office.
First responders and survivors. The term “first responders and survivors” means first responders to, and survivors of, the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
Office. The term “office” means the office of assistance for 9/11 first responders and survivors established under subdivision b of this section.
b. Establishment of office. There shall be within the department an office of assistance for 9/11 first responders and survivors. Such office shall be headed by a director, who shall be appointed by the commissioner.
c. Powers and duties. The director shall have the power and duty to:
1. Connect individuals who are first responders and survivors with benefits and services, including but not limited to social services benefits, housing assistance, and healthcare referrals under programs established by the federal, New York state, and city governments;
2. Assist individuals who are first responders and survivors with establishing eligibility for benefits and services in which they are not yet enrolled;
3. Provide case management for such individuals regarding such benefits and services, including but not limited to advising individuals on selecting benefits and services; coordinating with, monitoring, and following up with providers of benefits and services; and being individuals’ primary point of contact with providers in resolving disputes relating to benefits and services;
4. Make efforts to secure priority access to such benefits and services for such individuals; and
5. Provide the services set forth in paragraphs 1 through 4 of this subdivision to any such individual who requests such services, in coordination with other agencies and with the federal and New York state governments, and in accordance with applicable eligibility standards established under applicable laws, regulations, and rules.
d. Receipt of request for service. Within 15 days after an individual requests services from the office, the director shall provide such individual with a receipt that includes, at a minimum:
1. The date of the request;
2. A description of the information the office received from such individual;
3. Next steps the office plans to take to provide services to such individual;
4. Any procedures for handling a dispute relating to a benefit or service for which such individual has applied and a statement that the office will be the primary point of contact with providers in resolving such dispute; and
5. Where such individual has provided information to the office regarding such individual’s submission of an application for a benefit or a service, a statement as to whether such application for such benefits and services is complete or incomplete, to the extent such information is available to the office, and if such application is incomplete, such statement shall identify any information or documents needed in order for the application to be deemed complete.
e. Advice on recertification of eligibility. In providing services, the office shall advise an individual to recertify such individual’s eligibility for a benefit or service for which such individual has applied no more frequently than mandated by applicable laws, regulations, or rules.
f. Manual for office staff. The director shall prepare a policy and procedures manual for office staff, and shall update such manual as deemed appropriate by the director on an annual basis. Such manual shall include, at a minimum:
1. Guidelines on maintaining the confidentiality of the identity of and information relating to each individual to which the office provides services;
2. Instructional materials relating to the medical and psychological needs of first responders and survivors;
3. Information on application procedures, eligibility standards, mandated and recommended time periods, and dispute resolution procedures for the provision of benefits and services to first responders and survivors; and
4. Advocacy resources available to first responders and survivors.
g. Monitoring of service delivery. The director shall establish a procedure for overseeing and monitoring the delivery of services provided by the office that includes, at a minimum, quality assurance measurements.
h. Bill of rights. 1. No later than 60 days after the effective date of the local law that added this section, the director, in coordination with other agencies and with the federal and New York state governments, shall establish a bill of rights for first responders and survivors. Such bill of rights shall include, at a minimum:
(a) An explanation of benefits and services in which first responders and survivors might be interested and for which first responders and survivors might be eligible;
(b) Approximate periods of time within which first responders and survivors can expect to receive such benefits and services;
(c) A statement that a first responder or survivor is permitted to examine the office’s records in connection with assistance provided by the office to such first responder or survivor;
(d) A statement that a first responder or survivor can request the office to escalate an issue pertaining to a benefit or service for which such first responder or survivor has applied, including but not limited to in connection with resolving a dispute relating to such benefit and service;
(e) A statement of any resources other than the office that a first responder or survivor can use for assistance with the provision of a benefit or a service for which such first responder or survivor has applied; and
(f) A summary of the rights and remedies for the redress of discrimination as provided for in title 8.
2. The director shall make such bill of rights available in English and each of the designated citywide languages, as such term is defined in section 23-1101.
3. The director shall conspicuously post such bill of rights at any physical location of the office that is open to the public and on the department’s website.
i. Reporting. No later than 1 year after the effective date of the local law that added this section, and annually thereafter, the director shall submit to the mayor and the speaker of the council, and post on the department’s website, a report that includes, at a minimum, the following information for the preceding calendar year:
1. The number of individuals who requested services from the office;
2. The types of services individuals requested from the office;
3. The number of individuals for which the director was able to secure priority access to a benefit or service, disaggregated by the type of benefit or service;
4. The number of instances in which an individual who submitted an application for a benefit or service with which the office assisted was provided such benefit or service;
5. The number of instances in which an individual who submitted an application for a benefit or service with which the office was assisted was denied such benefit or service;
6. Concerning benefits or services actually provided in connection with applications with which the office assisted, the average processing time, in days, from the date of application submission to the provision of the benefit or service and disaggregated by the type of benefit or service; and
7. Concerning benefits or services denied in connection with applications with which the office assisted, the average processing time, from the date of application submission to the date of denial of the application and disaggregated by the type of benefit or service.
§ 2. This local law takes effect immediately.
NAW
LS #23472
9/21/2026 9:09 AM