Section 35. Legal representation of individuals whose federal disability benefits have been denied or may be discontinued; advisory committee

1.
  a. There  is  hereby  established  within  the  department  an  advisory
  committee  on  legal  advocacy  (hereinafter  to  be  referred to as the
  "advisory committee") which shall  consist  of  nine  members  or  their
  designated  representatives. The advisory committee shall consist of the
  following  nine  members:  the  commissioner  of  mental   health,   the
  commissioner  of  mental retardation and developmental disabilities, the
  advocate for the disabled and six members appointed by the governor. The
  six  members   appointed   by   the   governor   shall   include   three
  representatives  of  interested  public  and  private  groups, and shall
  include three representatives of county government and the city  of  New
  York  to be appointed from a list of six names submitted by the New York
  state association of counties. The  commissioner  shall  coordinate  the
  functions  and  activities  of the department with those of the advisory
  committee.
    b.  The  advisory  committee  shall  make  recommendations   regarding
  criteria  for  selection  of  grant  applications,  review  applications
  awarded pursuant to the provisions of this section, make recommendations
  thereon to the commissioner and exercise and perform such other advisory
  functions as are related to  the  purposes  of  this  section;  provided
  however that the committee shall meet at least once every six months.
    2.  The  commissioner, after consultation with the advisory committee,
  shall make grants, within the amounts appropriated for that purpose,  to
  not-for-profit  legal  services corporations and not-for-profit agencies
  serving the disabled and local social services districts, to provide for
  representation of persons whose federal  disability  benefits  including
  supplemental  security  income  and social security disability insurance
  have been denied or may be discontinued for the purpose of  representing
  these  persons  in  appropriate  proceedings.  When the commissioner has
  contracted with  a  local  social  services  district  to  provide  such
  representation,  the legislative body of such district may authorize and
  make provision for the commissioner of social services of  the  district
  to  obtain necessary legal services on a fee for services basis or other
  appropriate basis which the department may approve. Such legal  services
  may   be   provided   by  not-for-profit  legal  services  corporations,
  not-for-profit agencies serving the disabled or private attorneys.
    3. The commissioner shall submit a  report  to  the  chairman  of  the
  senate finance committee and the chairman of the assembly ways and means
  committee  on  or  before  the  first  day  of October, nineteen hundred
  ninety-eight and biannually thereafter. Such a report shall include  but
  not  be  limited to a review of the basis for selection of participating
  entities; the administrative method used to carry out the  program;  the
  number  of  cases appealed by district; the disposition of such appeals;
  an identification of the savings and costs of the program to  the  state
  and  localities  by  district;  an evaluation of the continuing need for
  legal representation provided by the  program  and  recommendations  for
  possible  federal  and state legislative and regulatory actions relating
  thereto.
    4.  Responsibility  for  local  financial   participation   shall   be
  determined  by  the commissioner based on either costs of and the number
  of district residents served by each local  entity  or  the  alternative
  cost  allocation  procedure  deemed  appropriate  by the commissioner in
  consultation with the advisory committee.