NY State Senate Bill 2023-S8679A

Senate Bill S8679A

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Requires maintained records for certain children to include whether they have a developmental disability; requires a study of the number of children in foster care who have a developmental disability

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Children And Families Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

Please enter your contact information

First Name

Last Name

Email Address

A valid email address is required.

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
May 16, 2024	print number 8679a
May 16, 2024	amend (t) and recommit to children and families
Feb 28, 2024	referred to children and families

Bill Amendments

Original

A (Active)

2023-S8679 - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A8846
Current Committee:: Senate Children And Families
Law Section:: Social Services
Laws Affected:: Amd §372, Soc Serv L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:: S8046, A9080

2023-S8679 - Summary

Requires that every court, and every public board, commission, institution, or officer having powers or charged with duties in relation to abandoned, delinquent, destitute, neglected or dependent children who shall receive, accept or commit any child shall provide and keep a record showing if such child has a developmental disability; requires a study of the number of children in foster care who have a developmental disability.

2023-S8679 - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8679

SPONSOR: MANNION
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act in relation to a study of the number of children in foster care
who have a developmental disability

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

The purpose of this bill is to study the placement in foster care of
children who have a developmental disability.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of this bill would require the Commissioner of the Office of
Children and Family Services (OCFS), in consultation with the Commis-
sioner of the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD,)
to conduct a study to determine the number of children who have been
placed in foster care and who have been diagnosed with a developmental
disability. The study shall include an assessment of the demographics of
such children, and evaluation of the current guidelines and regulations

used to oversee the placement and treatment of such children, and an
analysis of the extent to which such age-appropriate children are
prepared for a transition from foster care to an independent living
situation.

Section 2 of this bill would define the term "developmental disability."

Section 3 of this bill would authorize the Commissioner of OCFS and the
Commissioner of OPWDD to acquire directly from the head of any depart-
ment, agency, or instrumentality of the State, available information
which the departments consider useful in the discharge of their duties,
and requires all departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the
State to furnish all information requested by the departments to the
extent permitted by law.

Section 4 of this bill would require the Commissioner of OCFS and the
Commissioner of OPWDD to submit a report of the findings of the study to
the Governor and legislative leaders of the Senate and Assembly no later
than one year following the effective date of this act. The report shall
also include recommendations on how to consistently maintain a record of
the number of children who have been placed in foster care who have been
diagnosed with a developmental disability, recommendations to improve
the placement and treatment of children in foster care. and recommenda-
tions to further develop existing guidelines and regulations to prepare
age-appropriate children who have a developmental disability for a tran-
sition to an independent living situation.

Section 5 of this bill provides that the effective date shall take
effect immediately.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Nationally, anywhere from 30's to 5n of the youth involved in child
protective services have some type of disability (e.g., intellectual and
Developmental Disability MD), emotional, behavioral).  Unfortunately, in
New York State there is currently no mechanism to identify which chil-
dren and youth involved with the child welfare system are diagnosed with
a disability. Understanding the breadth and depth of the problem of
persons with IDD in foster care is critical for several reasons.

First, individuals with IDD are more likely than their counterparts to
remain in foster care placements until they age out as adults.  There-
fore, it is critical for effective future planning for the youth and for
the service systems in the State to have an accurate understanding of
the number of individuals who will need connections to services and
service systems, including residential placement options.

Second, these children and youth with IDD may be placed in voluntary
placement as the only means for families to obtain needed supports for
their children; thus, these children are more likely to be in need of
continued services that specifically meet their unique needs.  This
group of youth are more likely to experience trauma, disruptions, live
in congregate care, and age out of the foster care system. Additionally,
individuals with IDD are highly susceptible to abuse. This includes
sexual abuse and particularly transactional sexual abuse with individ-
uals with IDD transitioning from child welfare setting.

Third, data collected between 2014 and 2016 through a grant funded by
the New York Developmental Disabilities Planning Council (DDPC) demon-
strated that individuals with IDD in New York are often unprepared for
transition out of foster care, have few if any community contacts in
their home communities, and lack access to needed mental health treat-
ment. These are all issues that will interfere with successful transi-
tion out of foster care and ensuring these individuals, who are already
at a significant disadvantage, will achieve any meaningful quality of
life.

Planning for transition to adulthood in New York schools for individuals
with IEPs starts at age 14. The process can be significantly enhanced if
there is clear identification of the youth that are in foster care with
IDD and the need for multiple systems to be at the table. This bill
would study the placement in foster care of children who have a develop-
mental disability.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2023-24: S.31119 (Mannion) - Veto Message 42.

2021-22: S.8046-A (Mannion) - Veto Message 59.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S8679 - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8679
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 28, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. MANNION -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families
 
 AN ACT in relation to a study of the number of children in  foster  care
   who have a developmental disability
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. The commissioner of  the  office  of  children  and  family
 services, in consultation with the commissioner of the office for people
 with  developmental disabilities, shall conduct a study to determine the
 number of children who have been placed in foster care and who have been
 diagnosed with a developmental disability. Such study shall include, but
 shall not be limited to, the following:
   (a) assessing the demographics of the children in foster care  with  a
 developmental disability, including, but not limited to, their county of
 residence,  age,  race  and gender identity, and determining whether the
 placement of such individuals in foster  care  was  voluntary  or  court
 ordered;
   (b)  evaluating the current guidelines and regulations used to oversee
 the placement and treatment of children with a developmental disability;
 and
   (c) analyzing the extent to which such  age-appropriate  children  are
 prepared  for  a  transition  from  foster care to an independent living
 situation.
   § 2. For purposes of this section,  "developmental  disability"  shall
 have  the same meaning as set forth in subdivision 22 of section 1.03 of
 the mental hygiene law.
   § 3. The commissioner of the office of children  and  family  services
 and  the  commissioner of the office for people with developmental disa-
 bilities may acquire directly from the head of any  department,  agency,
 or  instrumentality of the state, available non-identifiable information
 which the offices consider useful in the discharge of their duties.  All
 departments,  agencies, and instrumentalities of the state shall cooper-
 ate with the offices with respect to such information and shall  furnish
 all information requested by the offices to the extent permitted by law.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD05107-01-3
 S. 8679                             2
 
 Information  collected shall not reveal the name, social security number
 or any other information which may be used to identify the  children  or
 the family of the children.
   §  4.  The  commissioner of the office of children and family services
 and the commissioner of the office for people with  developmental  disa-
 bilities  shall  submit  a report of the findings of the study, with any
 personal and identifying information  redacted,  conducted  pursuant  to
 section one of this act, to the governor, the temporary president of the
 senate,  the  speaker  of  the  assembly and the minority leaders of the
 senate and assembly no later than one year following the effective  date
 of  this  act.  The  report shall also include recommendations on how to
 consistently maintain a record of the number of children who  have  been
 placed in foster care who have been diagnosed with a developmental disa-
 bility,  recommendations to improve the placement and treatment of chil-
 dren in foster care and  recommendations  to  further  develop  existing
 guidelines  and regulations to prepare age-appropriate children who have
 a developmental disability for a transition  to  an  independent  living
 situation.
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S8679A (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A8846
Current Committee:: Senate Children And Families
Law Section:: Social Services
Laws Affected:: Amd §372, Soc Serv L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:: S8046, A9080

2023-S8679A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S8679A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8679A

SPONSOR: MANNION
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the social services law, in relation to requiring main-
tained records for certain children to include whether they have a
developmental disability; and conducting a study on the number of chil-
dren in foster care who have a developmental disability

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

The purpose of this bill is to study the placement in foster care of
children who have a developmental disability.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of this bill would require that records for certain abandoned,
delinquent, destitute, neglected,or dependent children include if any
such child shall have a developmental disability.

Section 2 of this bill would require the Commissioner of the Office of

Children and Family Services (OCFS), in consultation with the Commis-
sioner of the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD,)
to conduct a study to determine the number of children who have been
placed in foster care and who have been diagnosed with a developmental
disability. The study shall include an assessment of the demographics of
such children, and evaluation of the current guidelines and regulations
used to oversee the placement and treatment of such children, and an
analysis of the extent to which such age-appropriate children are
prepared for a transition from foster care to an independent living
situation.

Section 3 of this bill would define the term "developmental disability."

Section 4 of this bill would authorize the Commissioner of OCFS and the
Commissioner of OPWDD to acquire directly from the head of any depart-
ment, agency, or instrumentality of the State, available information
which the departments consider useful in the discharge of their duties,
and requires all departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the
State to furnish all information requested by the departments to the
extent permitted by law.

Section 5 of this bill would require the Commissioner of OCFS and the
Commissioner of OPWDD to submit a report of the findings of the study to
the Governor and legislative leaders of the Senate and Assembly no later
than one year following the effective date of this act. The report shall
also include recommendations on how to consistently maintain a record of
the number of children who have been placed in foster care who have been
diagnosed with a developmental disability, recommendations to improve
the placement and treatment of children in foster care. and recommenda-
tions to further develop existing guidelines and regulations to prepare
age-appropriate children who have a developmental disability for a tran-
sition to an in dependent living situation.

Section 6 of this bill provides that the effective date shall take
effect immediately.

 
JUSTIFICATION:
Nationally, anywhere from 30% to 50% of the youth involved in child
protective services have some type of disability (e.g., Intellectual and
Developmental Disability (IDD), emotional, behavioral).  Unfortunately,
in New York State there is currently no mechanism to identify which
children and youth involved with the child welfare system are diagnosed
with a disability. Understanding the breadth and depth of the problem of
persons with IDD in foster care is critical for several reasons.

First, individuals with IDD are more likely than their counterparts to
remain in foster care placements until they age out as adults.  There-
fore, it is critical for effective future planning for the youth and for
the service systems in the State to have an accurate understanding of
the number of individuals who will need connections to services and
service systems, including residential placement options.

Second, these children and youth with IDD may be placed in voluntary
placement as the only means for families to obtain needed supports for
their children; thus, these children are more likely to be in need of
continued services that specifically meet their unique needs. This group
of youth are more likely to experience trauma, disruptions, live in
congregate care, and age out of the foster care system. Additionally,
individuals with IDD are highly susceptible to abuse. This includes
sexual abuse and particularly transactional sexual abuse with individ-
uals with IDD transitioning from child welfare setting.

Third, data collected between 2014 and 2016 through a grant funded by
the New York Developmental Disabilities Planning Council (DDPC) demon-
strated that individuals with IDD in New York are often unprepared for
transition out of foster care, have few if any community contacts in
their home communities, and lack access to needed mental health treat-
ment. These are all issues that will interfere with successful transi-
tion out of foster care and ensuring these individuals, who are already
at a significant disadvantage, will achieve any meaningful quality of
life.

Planning for transition to adulthood in New York schools for individuals
with IEPs starts at age 14. The process can be significantly enhanced if
there is clear identification of the youth that are in foster care with
IDD and the need for multiple systems to be at the table. This bill
would study the placement in foster care of children who have a develop-
mental disability.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2023-24: 5.3119 (Mannion) - Veto Message 42.

2021-22: S.8046-A (Mannion) - Veto Message 59.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S8679A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  8679--A
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 28, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. MANNION -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and  Families  --
   committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
   recommitted to said committee
 
 AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to requiring  main-
   tained  records  for  certain  children to include whether they have a
   developmental disability; and conducting a  study  on  the  number  of
   children in foster care who have a developmental disability
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Subdivision 1 of section 372 of the social  services  law,
 paragraph  (j) as amended by chapter 555 of the laws of 1978, is amended
 to read as follows:
   1. Every court, and every public board,  commission,  institution,  or
 officer  having  powers or charged with duties in relation to abandoned,
 delinquent,  destitute,  neglected  or  dependent  children  who   shall
 receive,  accept  or  commit  any  child shall provide and keep a record
 showing:
   (a) the full and true name of the child[,];
   (b) his OR HER sex and date and place of birth, if  ascertainable,  or
 his OR HER apparent age[,];
   (c) the full and true names and places of birth of his OR HER parents,
 and  their  actual residence if living, or their latest known residence,
 if deceased or whereabouts unknown and the name and actual residence  of
 any  other person having custody of the child, as nearly as the same can
 reasonably be ascertained[,];
   (d) the religious faith of the parents and of the child[,];
   (e) the name and address of any person, agency, institution  or  other
 organization  to  which the child is committed, placed out, boarded out,
 or otherwise given into care, custody or control[,];
   (f) the religious faith and occupation of the head  or  heads  of  the
 family  with  whom  the  child  is  placed  out or boarded out and their
 relationship, if any, to the child[,];
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05107-05-4

 S. 8679--A                          2
 
   (g) if any such child shall die, the date and cause of death and place
 of burial[,];
   (h)  any  further disposition or change in care, custody or control of
 the child[,];
   (i) the date or dates of reception and of any  subsequent  disposition
 or change in care, custody or control and, in case of adoption, the name
 and  title  of  the judge or surrogate making the order of adoption, the
 date of such order and the date and place of filing of such order[,];
   (j) the reasons for any act performed in reference to such child here-
 in required to be recorded, together with such  further  information  as
 the department may require; and shall make to the department upon blanks
 provided  by  the  department  reports of each such child placed out, or
 boarded out, containing the information herein required to be kept;  and
 shall  furnish  such  information  to any authorized agency to which any
 such child shall be committed or otherwise given into custody; AND
   (K) IF ANY SUCH CHILD SHALL HAVE A DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITY AS DEFINED
 PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWENTY-TWO OF SECTION 1.03 OF THE MENTAL HYGIENE
 LAW, AND, IF SO, THE TYPE OF SUCH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITY.
   § 2. The commissioner of the office of children and  family  services,
 in  consultation  with  the  commissioner  of the office for people with
 developmental disabilities, shall  conduct  a  study  to  determine  the
 number of children who have been placed in foster care and who have been
 diagnosed with a developmental disability. Such study shall include, but
 shall not be limited to, the following:
   (a)  assessing  the demographics of the children in foster care with a
 developmental disability, including, but not limited to, their county of
 residence, age, race and gender identity, and  determining  whether  the
 placement  of  such  individuals  in  foster care was voluntary or court
 ordered;
   (b) evaluating the current guidelines and regulations used to  oversee
 the placement and treatment of children with a developmental disability;
 and
   (c)  analyzing  the  extent to which such age-appropriate children are
 prepared for a transition from foster  care  to  an  independent  living
 situation.
   §  3.  For purposes of this act, "developmental disability" shall have
 the same meaning as set forth in subdivision 22 of section 1.03  of  the
 mental hygiene law.
   §  4.  The  commissioner of the office of children and family services
 and the commissioner of the office for people with  developmental  disa-
 bilities  may  acquire directly from the head of any department, agency,
 or instrumentality of the state, available non-identifiable  information
 which  the offices consider useful in the discharge of their duties. All
 departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the state shall  cooper-
 ate  with the offices with respect to such information and shall furnish
 all information requested by the offices to the extent permitted by law.
 Information collected shall not reveal the name, social security  number
 or  any  other information which may be used to identify the children or
 the family of the children.
   § 5. The commissioner of the office of children  and  family  services
 and  the  commissioner of the office for people with developmental disa-
 bilities shall submit a report of the findings of the  study,  with  any
 personal  and  identifying  information  redacted, conducted pursuant to
 section one of this act, to the governor, the temporary president of the
 senate, the speaker of the assembly and  the  minority  leaders  of  the
 senate  and assembly no later than one year following the effective date
 S. 8679--A                          3
 
 of this act. The report shall also include  recommendations  on  how  to
 consistently  maintain  a record of the number of children who have been
 placed in foster care who have been diagnosed with a developmental disa-
 bility,  recommendations to improve the placement and treatment of chil-
 dren in foster care and  recommendations  to  further  develop  existing
 guidelines  and regulations to prepare age-appropriate children who have
 a developmental disability for a transition  to  an  independent  living
 situation.
   § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.