Temporary and Disability Assistance, Office of

Agency Web Site: https://otda.ny.gov/

Mission

The Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA), working in close collaboration with the Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) and other agencies, helps low-income households achieve economic self-sufficiency through work, job training, and the provision of supportive services that help avert dependency on public assistance. OTDA also provides economic assistance to aged and disabled persons who are unable to work.

Organization and Staffing

OTDA’s central office is in Albany and has several field offices statewide. These offices provide direct operational support, supervision, and guidance to the State’s 58 local social services districts, which include each county and New York City. Social services districts are responsible for directly administering most public assistance programs, including those that serve people experiencing homelessness and refugees. Agency staff also provide legal and audit support.

Major Programs

Public Assistance

New York provides cash assistance to income-eligible individuals and families through the Family Assistance (FA) and Safety Net Assistance (SNA) programs. For income-eligible families with a minor child, ongoing cash assistance provided through the FA program is financed largely with Federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds for up to 60 months, pursuant to Federal statute. Families who have exhausted their 60-month time limit on FA, as well as income-eligible single adults and childless couples, can receive such assistance through the SNA program which is financed with State and local dollars. The FY 2026 caseload is estimated at approximately 688,000 recipients.

SSI State Supplement Program

New York's Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program supplements Federal SSI benefits to low-income elderly, blind, and disabled persons. The FY 2026 caseload is estimated at 630,000 recipients.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Summer-Electronic Benefits Transfer (S-EBT) Program

SNAP is a Federally mandated program that seeks to improve the nutritional level of low-income families and individuals by providing supplemental assistance to purchase food items. In New York, SNAP is directly administered by local social services districts, which are also responsible for administering programs to assist SNAP recipients in gaining the skills necessary to obtain and retain employment through training, education, and supportive services. The State implemented the Summer-Electronic Benefits Transfer (S-EBT) program to provide Federal benefits during summer months for supplemental assistance to purchase food for meals that would be otherwise subsidized during the school year for eligible families with school-aged children.

Homeless Housing and Assistance Program (HHAP)

HHAP provides grants to not-for-profit corporations and municipalities to expand and improve the supply of permanent, transitional, and emergency housing for people experiencing homelessness. HHAP also links its projects to other State and Federal funding sources to deliver appropriate support services to help tenants move toward greater self-sufficiency and economic stability.

Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP)

HEAP helps low-income households pay the cost of heating their homes. Eligibility is based on a number of factors, and eligible households may receive one regular benefit per year and emergency benefits, as available. The HEAP program also operates a heating equipment repair and replacement program, a heating equipment clean and tune program, and a cooling program during the summer months.

Child Support Services

The Child Support Services Program provides assistance with paternity and child support establishment, as well as the collection of child support. In addition, the Center operates an Access and Visitation program, which aids parents in development of successful parenting plans and visitation supervision and enforcement.

Budget Highlights

The FY 2026 Executive Budget recommends $7.7 billion for the Agency. This is a decrease of nearly $2.4 billion from the FY 2025 budget, primarily reflecting a return to normal operations following the $2.4 billion State investment included in the FY 2025 Budget to provide time-limited support for the projected costs of providing services and assistance to the eligible migrant population in New York City. Additional changes include increases to the Safety Net Assistance (SNA) program and funding to support various State of the State initiatives, offset by decreases due to eliminating one-time legislative adds and other time-limited programs.

The FY 2026 Executive Budget recommends a workforce of 2,053 FTEs, an increase of 116 FTEs from FY 2025, primarily due to increased staffing within the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH).

Major budget actions include:

• Support New Mothers. To combat maternal mortality challenges and support new mothers, the Executive Budget includes $8 million to provide postpartum boxes and $1.5 million to Baby2Baby for the purchase and distribution of for diapers to be distributed to eligible families.

• Establish the Birth Allowance for Beginning Year (BABY) Benefit. In an effort to improve maternal and infant health for the State's most under-served households, the Executive Budget invests $8.5 million annually to support an enhanced benefit of $100 per month throughout pregnancy and an additional $1,200 payment at birth for New Yorkers who receive Public Assistance.

• Create More Homeless Housing. The Budget increases funding by $25 million from $128 to $153 million for HHAP. This investment will create and maintain more housing for individuals and families who are experiencing homelessness and unable to secure adequate housing without special assistance.

• Continue Providing Summer Food Benefits to Students. The Summer-EBT (S-EBT) program will continue to operate for low-income students who are unable to receive free meals while schools are closed during summer months, with the State sharing 50 percent of administration costs with the Federal government. The program provided over $250 million in benefits to over 2 million children in its first year.

For more information on this agency's budget recommendations located in the Executive Budget Briefing Book, click on the following link:

Briefing Book – Human Services

Note: Most recent estimates as of 01/21/2025