285. State aid for cooperation with correctional facilities. 1. Each public library system operating under an approved plan of service which has a state correctional facility or facilities within its area of service shall be awarded an annual grant of nine dollars twenty-five cents per capita for the inmate population of such facility or facilities to make available to the inmate population of such facility or facilities, in direct coordination with the correctional facilities libraries, the library resources of such system. The commissioner shall adopt any regulations necessary to carry out the purposes and provisions of this subdivision.
2. The commissioner is authorized to expend up to one hundred seventy-five thousand dollars annually to provide grants to public library systems operating under an approved plan of service for provision of services to county jail facilities. Such formula grants shall assist the library system in making available to the inmate population of such facility or facilities the library resources of such system. Such grants shall be available to each public library system in such manner as to insure that the ratio of the amount each system is eligible to receive equals the ratio of the number of inmates served by the county jail facility to the total number of inmates served by county jail facilities in the state as of July first of the year preceding the calendar year in which the state aid to public library systems is to be paid. Inmate populations shall be certified by the New York state commission of correction. The commissioner shall adopt any regulations necessary to carry out the purposes and provisions of this subdivision.
Last modified: February 3, 2019