Section 33.08. Personal needs allowance for residents of state psychiatric centers and state operated alcoholism facilities

(a) For the purposes of this section:
    1. "countable resources" shall mean cash or other liquid assets or any
  real or personal property that an individual or couple  owns  and  could
  convert  to  cash  to  be used for his or their support and maintenance,
  which is not excluded under federal law or regulations to determine  the
  need of an individual for supplemental security income benefits.
    2.  "countable income" shall mean all of a person's income, in cash or
  in kind, both earned and unearned, which is not excluded by federal  law
  or regulations in determining the need of an individual for supplemental
  security  income  benefits,  including  the  income  of the individual's
  eligible spouse, and, if the individual is a child,  certain  income  of
  such  individual's  parent or parents, provided however, such provisions
  of federal law or regulations  which  provide  a  twenty  dollar  income
  exclusion in each month shall not apply to this paragraph.
    3.  "earned  income"  shall mean wages and earnings from employment of
  the  person,  including  wages  or  earnings  from  participation  in  a
  sheltered workshop program.
    4.  "unearned  income"  shall  mean  all income of a person other than
  earned income.
    (b) Any inpatient of a hospital  operated  by  the  office  of  mental
  health  or  a  state  operated  alcoholism facility shall be entitled to
  receive a monthly  state  payment  for  personal  needs  for  each  full
  calendar  month  commencing  on  or  after  the  effective  date of this
  section, in  which  the  patient  is  in  such  hospital  or  alcoholism
  facility, if such patient also:
    1.  does not receive supplemental security income benefits pursuant to
  title sixteen of the federal social security act;
    2. does not have countable resources in an amount equal to or  greater
  than  the amount of resources an individual may have and remain eligible
  for supplemental security income benefits pursuant to title  sixteen  of
  the federal social security act;
    3.  has  countable income in a month of less than thirty-five dollars;
  and
    4. has applied for or agrees to apply  for  any  federal,  state,  and
  local  benefits  for  which  such patient may be entitled, provided that
  someone other than the patient may apply or  agree  to  apply  for  such
  benefits on behalf of the patient.
    (c)  The amount of such monthly state payment for personal needs shall
  be equal to  the  maximum  amount  of  countable  income  allowed  under
  paragraph  three  of  subdivision  (b)  of  this section reduced by such
  patient's actual countable income.
    (d) The director of a hospital shall have the power to take and retain
  any state payment for personal needs provided pursuant to  this  section
  in accordance with the provisions of section 33.07 of this article.
    (e)  The  commissioner  of  mental  health  is  authorized  to  obtain
  reimbursement for a personal needs allowance payment  made  pursuant  to
  this  section  for any month for which a patient subsequently receives a
  retroactive payment or benefit,  from  any  source.  Such  reimbursement
  shall not exceed the amount of the personal needs allowance payment made
  to the patient for such month.
    (f)  The commissioner of mental health is authorized, on behalf of the
  state, to enter into an agreement with  the  secretary  of  the  federal
  department  of  health  and  human services for the purpose of obtaining
  reimbursement for personal needs allowance  payments  made  pursuant  to
  this section for any month in which a patient is subsequently determined

  to be eligible to receive supplemental security income payments for such
  month.
    (g)  For  the purposes of this section, a person who has been admitted
  to central  New  York  psychiatric  center  from  a  state  correctional
  facility  or  county  jail  pursuant  to section four hundred two of the
  correction law shall not be considered a patient in a hospital  operated
  by  the  office of mental health. Notwithstanding any other provision of
  this section, a person  who  has  been  admitted  to  central  New  York
  psychiatric  center  from a county jail pursuant to section four hundred
  two of the correction law shall be entitled to receive a  monthly  state
  payment  for personal needs in an amount equal to, and calculated in the
  same manner as, an incentive allowance which is provided to an inmate of
  a state correctional institution pursuant to section two hundred of  the
  correction law.
    (h)  Any  patient  who is qualified to receive a monthly state payment
  for personal needs pursuant to this section shall be required to provide
  the commissioner of mental  health  with  information  relating  to  the
  amount  of  income  and  assets  of  such  patient.  If the commissioner
  discovers that assets or  income  of  the  patient  were  not  disclosed
  because  of  fraud  or negligence, he may collect the difference between
  the amount of such payments and the amount to which  the  patient  would
  otherwise have been eligible.
    (i)  The  commissioner  is  authorized  to  promulgate  regulations to
  provide for the time and manner of such payments for personal  needs  of
  such patients.