S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
7211
I N S E N A T E
May 6, 2014
___________
Introduced by Sen. FELDER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to reports of child
abuse or maltreatment
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 422 of the social
services law, as amended by chapter 574 of the laws of 2008, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The central register shall be capable of receiving telephone calls
alleging child abuse or maltreatment and of immediately identifying
prior reports of child abuse or maltreatment and capable of monitoring
the provision of child protective service twenty-four hours a day, seven
days a week. To effectuate this purpose, but subject to the provisions
of the appropriate local plan for the provision of child protective
services, there shall be a single statewide telephone number that all
persons, whether mandated by the law or not, may use to make telephone
calls alleging child abuse or maltreatment and that all persons so
authorized by this title may use for determining the existence of prior
reports in order to evaluate the condition or circumstances of a child.
In addition to the single statewide telephone number, there shall be a
special unlisted express telephone number and a telephone facsimile
number for use only by persons mandated by law to make telephone calls,
or to transmit telephone facsimile information on a form provided by the
commissioner, alleging child abuse or maltreatment, and for use by all
persons so authorized by this title for determining the existence of
prior reports in order to evaluate the condition or circumstances of a
child. When any allegations contained in such telephone calls could
reasonably constitute a report of child abuse or maltreatment, such
allegations shall be immediately transmitted orally or electronically by
the office of children and family services to the appropriate local
child protective service for investigation. The inability of the person
calling the register to identify the alleged perpetrator shall, in no
circumstance, constitute the sole cause for the register to reject such
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14868-02-4
S. 7211 2
allegation or fail to transmit such allegation for investigation. If the
records indicate a previous report concerning a subject of the report,
the child alleged to be abused or maltreated, a sibling, other children
in the household, other persons named in the report or other pertinent
information, the appropriate local child protective service shall be
immediately notified of the fact, except as provided in [subdivision]
ARTICLE eleven of this [section] CHAPTER. THE PERSON CALLING SHALL BE
ASKED IF THEY HAVE A REASONABLE SUSPICION THAT THE PERSON OR PERSONS
ALLEGED TO BE ABUSING OR MALTREATING A CHILD OR CHILDREN IS OR ARE ON
PROBATION OR PAROLE. IN THE CASE THAT THE PERSON CALLING HAS SUCH A
REASONABLE SUSPICION, SUCH INFORMATION SHALL BE INCLUDED IN THE REPORT
TRANSMITTED TO THE LOCAL CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICE. If the report
involves either (i) an allegation of an abused child described in para-
graph (i), (ii) or (iii) of subdivision (e) of section one thousand
twelve of the family court act or sexual abuse of a child or the death
of a child or (ii) suspected maltreatment which alleges any physical
harm when the report is made by a person required to report pursuant to
section four hundred thirteen of this title within six months of any
other two reports that were indicated, or may still be pending, involv-
ing the same child, sibling, or other children in the household or the
subject of the report, the office of children and family services shall
identify the report as such and note any prior reports when transmitting
the report to the local child protective services for investigation.
S 2. Subparagraph (k) of paragraph (A) of subdivision 4 of section 422
of the social services law, as amended by section 153 of subpart B of
part C of chapter 62 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
(k) a probation service OR THE STATE BOARD OF PAROLE WHERE A CHILD
PROTECTIVE SERVICE HAS REASON TO BELIEVE THAT THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT
IS OR MAY BE ON PROBATION OR PAROLE, OR IF A PROBATION SERVICE IS
conducting an investigation pursuant to article three or seven or
section six hundred fifty-three of the family court act where there is
reason to suspect the child or the child's sibling may have been abused
or maltreated and such child or sibling, parent, guardian or other
person legally responsible for the child is a person named in an indi-
cated report of child abuse or maltreatment and that such information is
necessary for the making of a determination or recommendation to the
court; or a probation service regarding a person about whom it is
conducting an investigation pursuant to article three hundred ninety of
the criminal procedure law, or a probation service or the department of
corrections and community supervision regarding a person to whom the
service or department is providing supervision pursuant to article sixty
of the penal law or article eight of the correction law, where the
subject of investigation or supervision has been convicted of a felony
under article one hundred twenty, one hundred twenty-five or one hundred
thirty-five of the penal law or any felony or misdemeanor under article
one hundred thirty, two hundred thirty-five, two hundred forty-five, two
hundred sixty or two hundred sixty-three of the penal law, or has been
indicted for any such felony and, as a result, has been convicted of a
crime under the penal law, where the service or department requests the
information upon a certification that such information is necessary to
conduct its investigation, that there is reasonable cause to believe
that the subject of an investigation is the subject of an indicated
report and that there is reasonable cause to believe that such records
are necessary to the investigation by the probation service or the
department, provided, however, that only indicated reports shall be
furnished pursuant to this subdivision;
S. 7211 3
S 3. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 6 of section 424 of the social
services law, as amended by chapter 602 of the laws of 2008, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) upon receipt of such report, commence or cause the appropriate
society for the prevention of cruelty to children to commence, within
twenty-four hours, an appropriate investigation which shall include an
evaluation of the environment of the child named in the report and any
other children in the same home and a determination of the risk to such
children if they continue to remain in the existing home environment, as
well as a determination of the nature, extent and cause of any condition
enumerated in such report and the name, age and condition of other chil-
dren in the home, and, after seeing to the safety of the child or chil-
dren, forthwith notify the subjects of the report and other persons
named in the report in writing of the existence of the report and their
respective rights pursuant to this title in regard to amendment. IF AT
ANY TIME DURING SUCH INVESTIGATION, THERE IS REASONABLE CAUSE TO BELIEVE
THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT IS ON PROBATION OR PAROLE, THE CHILD PROTEC-
TIVE SERVICE SHALL PROVIDE NOTICE TO THE APPROPRIATE PROBATION SERVICE
OR THE STATE BOARD OF PAROLE OF THE EXISTENCE OF SUCH REPORT, AND
PROVIDE A COPY THEREOF AND THE STATUS OF THE INVESTIGATION TO SUCH
SERVICE OR BOARD.
S 4. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
have become a law.