STATE OF NEW YORK

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

ERIC T. SCHNEIDERMAN

DIVISION OF SOCIAL JUSTICE

ATTORNEY GENERAL

CIVIL RIGHTS BUREAU

December 30, 2014

VIA FIRST CLASS MAIL
Michael P. Hein
Ulster County Executive
Beatrice Havranek
Ulster County Attorney
County Office Building, 6th Floor
244 Fair Street
Kingston, NY 12401
Re:

Warrant Checks at Ulster County Buildings

Dear County Executive Hein & Ms. Havranek:

It has come to our attention that between October and November 2014, the Ulster County
Sheriffs Office conducted suspicionless warrant checks of individuals seeking access to the
Ulster County Department of Social Services (DSS) and the Office for the Aging. It is our
understanding that the Sheriffs Office had been retained to provide general security services at
the county building in which DSS and the Office of Aging are located, and that the current
contract between the county and the Sheriffs Office is scheduled to terminate on December 31,
2014.
As the chief law enforcement agency for the state of New York, our office is charged
with ensuring compliance with anti-discrimination laws, and enforcing state and federal laws
ensuring equal and nondiscriminatory treatment of individuals in New York State. Our office
has reviewed information and Census data to evaluate the impact of the warrant check program.
Our review indicates that the warrant check program may deter or deny individuals from
accessing vital social services that the county is mandated to provide. Furthermore, our review
also indicates that the warrant check program may disproportionately impact African-American
and Hispanic residents within the county in violation of civil rights law. We understand that the
county may currently be considering a new contract concerning security at county buildings

housing important social service agencies. This letter memorializes our offices grave concerns
regarding the lawfulness and propriety of a warrant check program in this context.
The goal of federal and state public benefits and social services law is to ensure that
persons seeking assistance in obtaining social services are able to freely and equally access such
services, without being deterred by additional or unnecessary qualification requirements. For
instance, federal law expressly requires that local social service agencies encourage applications
without delay and not impose additional qualification requirements.1 Separately, Article XVII of
the New York State Constitution provides that the aid, care and support of the needy are public
concerns and shall be provided [] in such manner and by such means, as the legislature may
from time to time determine.2 In addition, pursuant to the New York Social Services Law, the
benefits and services provided by social service agencies must be available to all individuals in
need of public assistance and care.3 This collective statutory framework and regulatory scheme
reflect an intent to ensure that individuals are provided unhindered and timely access to the
services they need.
Moreover, federal civil rights law prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and
national origin in the administration of programs and activities that receive federal financial
assistance. In particular, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.,
prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin in programs and activities
receiving federal financial assistance. The Ulster County DSS is indeed a recipient of such
federal funds. Accordingly, the agency may not discriminate against individuals seeking to
participate in a program or activity based on the individual's race, color, or national origin. 42
U.S.C. 2000d. Likewise, the agency may not, through contractual or other arrangement,
engage in or permit discriminatory conduct, including but not limited to, permitting barriers to
opportunity to participate in a program. Thus, a recipient may not allow a third party to erect
barriers, discriminate or otherwise inhibit participation in the operation of its programs.
As you know, many of the services and benefits provided by Ulster County DSS are
provided to individuals or families living below the poverty line. Data indicates that a
disproportionate number of persons below the poverty line within Ulster County are African
American or Latino. In particular, data indicates that 22.8% of African-American residents in
the county and 20.1% of Hispanic county residents fall below the poverty line, compared to only

E.g., 7 U.S.C 2020 (e)(2)(B)(iiii) (State shall permit an applicant household to apply to participate in the
[Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] on the same day that the household first contacts a [SNAP] office in
person during office hours); 42 U.S.C 1396a(a)(8) (State shall provide that all individuals wishing to make
application for medical assistance shall have opportunity to do so, and that such assistance shall be furnished with
reasonable promptness to all eligible individuals); 42 U.S.C 1396a(e)(13)(C)(iii)(III)-(IV) (when making
eligibility determinations, state shall use procedures that, to the maximum feasible extent, reduce the burden
imposed on the individual); and 7 C.F.R 273.2 (c)(i) (food stamps applicants must be able to apply for
participation in the program on the same day that they visit the program office). See also, e.g., Reynolds v. Giuliani,
35 F.Supp.2d 331 (S.D.N.Y. 1999) (class action suit alleging City of New York prevented otherwise eligible
individuals from obtaining food stamps, Medicaid and cash assistance by, inter alia, imposing unreasonable
application requirements.)
2
In Tucker v. Toia, 43 N.Y.2d 1 (1977), the Court of Appeals affirmed that this Article imposes upon the State a
clear and affirmative duty to aid the needy and that such a definite constitutional mandate cannot be ignored or
easily evaded in either its letter or its spirit.
3
N.Y. Social Services Law 62(1).