S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1028
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 10, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of A. SIMON, ABBATE, ARROYO, BLAKE, COOK, GOTTFRIED,
   JAFFEE, JOYNER, MONTESANO,  MOSLEY,  PERRY,  RAIA,  SKARTADOS,  STECK,
   WEPRIN  --  Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. CROUCH, GUNTHER, McDONOUGH,
   McLAUGHLIN, RIVERA, SALADINO -- read once and referred to the  Commit-
   tee on Children and Families

 AN  ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to requiring child
   protective services to document home visits with photographs
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.    This  act shall be known and may be cited as "Marchella
 Pierce's Law".
   § 2.  Subdivision 3 of section 421 of  the  social  services  law,  as
 amended  by chapter 718 of the laws of 1986, paragraph (a) as amended by
 chapter 110 of the laws of 1989 and the closing paragraph as amended  by
 chapter 320 of the laws of 1990, is amended to read as follows:
   3.  promulgate regulations setting forth requirements for the perform-
 ance by local social services  departments  of  the  duties  and  powers
 imposed  and  conferred upon them by the provisions of this title and of
 article ten of the family court act. Such  regulations  shall  establish
 uniform  requirements for the investigation of reports of child abuse or
 maltreatment under this title. The department shall  also  issue  guide-
 lines which shall set forth the circumstances or conditions under which:
   (a)  personal contact shall be made with the child named in the report
 and any other children in the  same  household,  including  interviewing
 such  child or children absent the subject of the report whenever possi-
 ble and appropriate;
   (b) photographs of visible physical injuries or trauma of children who
 may be the victims of abuse or maltreatment shall be taken  or  arranged
 for;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD00479-01-7

              

 A. 1028                             2
 
   (c)  medical  examination  of  a child who may be a victim of abuse or
 maltreatment and documentation of findings of such examination, shall be
 required.
   The department shall promulgate regulations to establish standards for
 intervention,  criteria  for  case  closings,  criteria  for determining
 whether or not to initiate a child protective proceeding,  and  criteria
 for  the  formulation  of  treatment plans and for the delivery of child
 protective services including specification of the services to be  clas-
 sified as child protective services, which shall also apply to any soci-
 ety  for  the prevention of cruelty to children which has entered into a
 currently valid contract with a local department of social  services  to
 investigate  child  abuse  or maltreatment reports. The department shall
 promulgate regulations establishing minimum standards and practices  for
 the  delivery of child protective services in connection with monitoring
 and supervising respondents and their families as ordered  by  a  family
 court  pursuant  to  section ten hundred thirty-nine and paragraphs (i),
 (iii), (iv) and (v) of subdivision (a) of section ten hundred  fifty-two
 of  the family court act.  THE DEPARTMENT SHALL REQUIRE THAT EVERY CASE-
 WORKER, CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES EMPLOYEE OR ANY PERSON ACTING PURSUANT
 TO A CONTRACT FOR SERVICES WITH A LOCAL SOCIAL SERVICES  DEPARTMENT  WHO
 HAS  CONTACT WITH A CHILD AS PART OF A TREATMENT PLAN OR SUPERVISION AND
 MONITORING, DOCUMENT EACH SUCH CONTACT WITH A PHOTOGRAPH  TAKEN  OF  THE
 CHILD DURING SUCH VISIT OR CONTACT. SUCH PHOTOGRAPH SHALL BE PART OF THE
 CONFIDENTIAL CASE RECORD FOR SUCH CHILD AND SHALL BE SUBJECT TO PERIODIC
 REVIEW BY THE SUPERVISOR OF THE CASE.  SUCH PHOTOGRAPH MUST BE OF SUFFI-
 CIENT  QUALITY  TO CLEARLY IDENTIFY THE CHILD, AND CONTAIN ACCURATE DATA
 WITH REGARD TO THE TIME AND DATE OF THE PHOTOGRAPH.  WHERE THE PARENT OR
 LEGAL GUARDIAN OF THE CHILD OBJECTS TO THE CASEWORKER  TAKING  A  PHOTO-
 GRAPH  OF  THE  CHILD  DURING  THE VISIT, THE CASEWORKER SHALL PROVIDE A
 FORM, SUPPLIED BY THE CASEWORKER'S AGENCY OF  EMPLOYMENT,  STATING  THAT
 THE  CASEWORKER CONDUCTED THE VISIT WITH THE CHILD AND VERIFIED THE WELL
 BEING OF THE CHILD. SUCH FORM SHALL BE SIGNED  AND  DATED  BY  BOTH  THE
 CHILD'S  PARENT OR LEGAL GUARDIAN AND THE CASEWORKER AT EACH VISIT WHERE
 A PHOTOGRAPH IS NOT TAKEN. Such regulations  shall  also  require  local
 child  protective  services  to comply with notification requirements of
 the family court act in connection with such monitoring and  supervisory
 responsibilities.
   § 3. Section 372 of the social services law is amended by adding a new
 subdivision 4-c to read as follows:
   4-C.  THE RECORDS MAINTAINED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION BY ANY CASEWORK-
 ER, CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES EMPLOYEE OR AUTHORIZED AGENCY  AS  DEFINED
 IN  SECTION THREE HUNDRED SEVENTY-ONE OF THIS TITLE WHO HAS CONTACT WITH
 A FOSTER CHILD AS PART OF A TREATMENT PLAN OR SUPERVISION  AND  MONITOR-
 ING,  SHALL  DOCUMENT  EACH  SUCH CONTACT WITH A PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN OF THE
 CHILD DURING SUCH VISIT OR CONTACT CONSISTENT WITH THE REQUIREMENTS  SET
 FORTH  IN  SUBDIVISION  THREE OF SECTION FOUR HUNDRED TWENTY-ONE OF THIS
 ARTICLE.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.