§ 2 — Statement of legislative findings and purposes

§ 2. Statement of legislative findings and purposes. It is hereby\nfound and declared that the provision of new and improved state\nfacilities relating to the care, maintenance and treatment of the\nmentally disabled must be accelerated if the state is to meet its\nresponsibilities in the face of an increasing state population, a\ngrowing awareness that mental disability can be treated effectively, and\nnew research advances in treatment methods. An expanded construction\nprogram is essential to relieve overcrowding in the state hospitals for\nthe mentally ill, to provide treatment and care for the increasing\npopulation of people with developmental disabilities in state schools,\nand to permit the establishment of special treatment programs for\nmentally ill and emotionally disturbed children and for the mentally ill\nblind and the mentally ill deaf. Existing state facilities require\nsubstantial modernization and structural change to accommodate new\nconcepts of treatment for the mentally disabled and special units for\nthe treatment of alcoholism and narcotics addiction. Larger and better\nequipped research facilities must be installed in order to insure that\nstate treatment units are in the forefront of applying and developing\nadvanced therapeutic methods. At the same time, improved training\nfacilities and quarters are needed to attract and retain the\nbest-qualified staff personnel.\n To assure that the required facilities are completed and ready for use\nas promptly as possible, the legislature hereby finds and declares that\nthere should be created a corporate governmental agency, constituting a\npublic benefit corporation, to be known as the "Facilities Development\nCorporation", which could receive and administer monies for the\nconstruction and improvement of mental hygiene facilities and provide\nsuch facilities in accordance with the foreseeable needs for the care,\nmaintenance and treatment of the mentally disabled. The legislature\nfurther finds and declares that while responsibility for the\nprofessional care, maintenance and treatment of the mentally disabled at\nall mental facilities should continue in the department of mental\nhygiene, exclusive possession, jurisdiction, control and supervision of\nthe physical facilities used therefor should be vested in the\ncorporation in order to facilitate the exercise of its powers.\n It is further found and declared that the provision of new and\nimproved community mental health and developmental disabilities\nfacilities must be accelerated, in order to provide comprehensive care\nand treatment of the mentally ill and developmentally disabled. Such\ncommunity mental health and developmental disabilities facilities should\nbe located close to the people they serve, in order to speed\nrehabilitation and restoration, by involving families and community\nresources to the extent practicable. Such an accelerated construction\nprogram will also help relieve overcrowding in state facilities for the\nmentally ill and developmentally disabled and will afford treatment and\ncare for the increasing number of people with developmental\ndisabilities. Such a program will increase the number of local\nfacilities for out-patient care and short-term in-patient care,\nincluding after care, diagnostic and rehabilitative services, training\nand research. While the responsibility for the professional care,\nmaintenance and treatment of the mentally ill and developmentally\ndisabled at all such community mental health and developmental\ndisabilities facilities should continue in the local governments,\nsubject to the provisions of article forty-one of title E of the mental\nhygiene law and the regulations of the commissioners of the offices of\nthe department having jurisdiction thereof, the legislature further\nfinds and declares that the Facilities Development Corporation should be\nempowered to aid cities and counties, at their request, to provide new\nand improved community mental health and developmental disabilities\nfacilities in order to insure their timely construction, acquisition,\nreconstruction, rehabilitation and improvement in relation to current\nand foreseeable needs and the emergence of new patterns of treatment and\ncare and should be empowered to receive and administer monies for such\npurpose.\n It is further found and declared that hospital and related services of\nmunicipalities are of vital concern to the health, safety and welfare of\nthe people of the state. Many municipal hospital facilities today are no\nlonger adequate to meet the needs of modern medical care. Because of the\nrapidity of technological change in the medical field, a great number of\nsuch facilities require substantial structural and functional changes.\nMany municipal hospitals are overcrowded in their ancillary service\nareas. Many still have large open wards, while the growth of\nhospitalization insurance has brought increased demand for semi-private\naccommodations. Many of such hospitals have permitted their buildings to\ndeteriorate prematurely and other suffer inefficiencies caused by\npiecemeal and uncoordinated additions. The educational programs of\nhospitals have become indispensable. Many hospitals are, in fact,\neducational institutions but their plants and equipment are not equal to\ntheir educational commitment. They lack facilities for needed\nconferences and seminars and their libraries and medical records\ndepartments do not meet the needs of individual studies and research.\nMany of such hospitals no longer have adequate protection against the\nhazards of fire, explosion and infection. Many of such hospitals lack\nfacilities for ambulant or wheelchair patients, and are inadequately\ndesigned for the tremendous increase in personnel traffic and movement\nof supplies and equipment within the hospital.\n It is further found and declared that the construction, modification,\nreconstruction and rehabilitation of municipal hospitals and related\nhealth care facilities, including the provision of equipment, are public\npurposes and are necessary for the protection of the health, safety and\nwelfare of the people of the state. To assure that such purposes are\ncarried out, it is further found and declared that the facilities\ndevelopment corporation created by this act should be empowered, in\ncooperation with the state, municipalities and the New York state\nhousing finance agency or the New York state medical care facilities\nfinance agency, as the case may be, to provide for the timely\nconstruction and modernization of municipal hospitals and related\nfacilities at a reasonable cost and in accordance with the health needs\nof the community.\n It is hereby found and declared that the acquisition, construction,\nreconstruction, rehabilitation and improvement of facilities for the\ndepartment of corrections and community supervision are public purposes\nwhich are essential to enable comprehensive modernization of the state's\nprograms of corrections. To assure that such purposes are carried out,\nit is further found and declared that the facilities development\ncorporation should be empowered in cooperation with the department of\ncorrections and community supervision to provide for the acquisition,\nconstruction, reconstruction, rehabilitation and improvement of\nfacilities for the department of corrections and community supervision.\n In order to accomplish all of these purposes, the legislature hereby\ndeclares that the existing corporate governmental agency constituting a\npublic benefit corporation, created by article two-B of the mental\nhygiene law, shall be reconstituted and continued as the facilities\ndevelopment corporation which corporation shall also have such\nadditional powers and duties as are granted to it in this act.\n