N.Y. Soc. Serv. Law § 460

§ 460. Declaration of policy and statement of purpose. Residential\ncare programs for adults and children of the highest quality,\nefficiently produced and properly utilized at a reasonable cost, are a\nmatter of vital concern to the people of this state. In order to more\neffectively protect and assure the life, health, safety and comfort of\nadults and children who must be cared for away from their own homes, the\ndepartment of social services acting directly or through social services\ndistricts, and with the cooperation of other state agencies, shall have\nthe comprehensive responsibility for the development and administration\nof programs, standards and methods of operation, and all other matters\nof state policy, with respect to residential care programs for children\nand adults and all facilities and agencies, whether public or private,\nwhich are subject to the provisions of this article. For the purposes of\nthis article, with respect to residential care programs for children,\nthe term "department" shall mean the office of children and family\nservices and with respect to residential care programs for adults, the\nterm shall mean the office of children and family services in relation\nto family type homes for adults and residential programs for victims of\ndomestic violence, the office of temporary and disability assistance in\nrelation to shelters for adults and shelters for families; and the\ndepartment of health in relation to all other residential care programs\nfor adults.\n