S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8063
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              April 22, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A. McMAHON, SIMON, STIRPE, BUTTENSCHON, WOERNER,
   GLICK, BORES, SHIMSKY,  SEAWRIGHT,  STECK,  BURKE  --  read  once  and
   referred to the Committee on Children and Families
 
 AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to establishing the
   "child abuse reporting expansion act"

   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  the  "child
 abuse reporting expansion act".
   §  2.  Paragraph  (a)  of  subdivision  1 of section 413 of the social
 services law, as amended by section 7 of part C of  chapter  57  of  the
 laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows:
   (a)  The  following  persons  and  officials are required to report or
 cause a report to be made in accordance with this title when  they  have
 reasonable  cause  to  suspect  that a child coming before them in their
 professional or official capacity is an abused or maltreated  child,  or
 when  they have reasonable cause to suspect that a child is an abused or
 maltreated child where  the  parent,  guardian,  custodian  [or],  other
 person  legally  responsible  for  such child comes before them in their
 professional or official capacity and  states  from  personal  knowledge
 facts,  conditions  or circumstances which, if correct, would render the
 child an abused or maltreated child: any physician; registered physician
 assistant; surgeon; medical examiner; coroner; dentist;  dental  hygien-
 ist; osteopath; optometrist; chiropractor; podiatrist; resident; intern;
 psychologist; registered nurse; social worker; emergency medical techni-
 cian;  licensed  creative  arts  therapist; licensed marriage and family
 therapist; licensed mental  health  counselor;  licensed  psychoanalyst;
 licensed  behavior analyst; certified behavior analyst assistant; hospi-
 tal personnel engaged in the admission, examination, care  or  treatment
 of  persons;  a  Christian  Science practitioner; CLERGY MEMBER OR OTHER
 MINISTER OF ANY RELIGION; school official, which  includes  but  is  not
 limited  to  school  teacher, school guidance counselor, school psychol-
 ogist, school social worker, school nurse, school administrator or other
 school personnel required to hold a teaching or  administrative  license
 
              

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD07412-01-5
 A. 8063                             2
 
 or  certificate;  full or part-time compensated school employee required
 to hold a temporary coaching license or  professional  coaching  certif-
 icate;  social  services worker; employee of a publicly-funded emergency
 shelter  for  families with children; director of a children's overnight
 camp, summer day camp or traveling summer day camp, as  such  camps  are
 defined in section thirteen hundred ninety-two of the public health law;
 day care center worker; school-age child care worker; provider of family
 or  group  family  day care; employee or volunteer in a residential care
 facility for children that is licensed, certified  or  operated  by  the
 office  of  children  and  family  services;  or any other child care or
 foster care worker; mental health professional; substance abuse  counse-
 lor;  alcoholism  counselor;  all  persons credentialed by the office of
 alcoholism and substance abuse services; employees, who are expected  to
 have  regular and substantial contact with children, of a health home or
 health home care management agency contracting with  a  health  home  as
 designated  by  the  department  of  health and authorized under section
 three hundred sixty-five-l of this chapter or such employees who provide
 home and community based services under a demonstration program pursuant
 to section eleven hundred fifteen of the federal social security act who
 are expected to have regular  and  substantial  contact  with  children;
 peace  officer;  police officer; district attorney or assistant district
 attorney; investigator employed in the office of a district attorney; or
 other law enforcement official.
   § 2-a. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1   of   section   413   of    the
 social  services   law,   as   amended   by  chapter 733 of the  laws of
 2023, is amended to read as follows:
   (a) The following persons and officials  are  required  to  report  or
 cause  a  report to be made in accordance with this title when they have
 reasonable cause to suspect that a child coming  before  them  in  their
 professional  or  official capacity is an abused or maltreated child, or
 when they have reasonable cause to suspect that a child is an abused  or
 maltreated  child  where the parent, guardian, custodian or other person
 legally responsible for such child comes before them  in  their  profes-
 sional  or  official  capacity and states from personal knowledge facts,
 conditions or circumstances which, if correct, would render the child an
 abused or maltreated child: any physician; registered physician  assist-
 ant;  surgeon;  medical  examiner;  coroner;  dentist; dental hygienist;
 osteopath;  optometrist;  chiropractor;  podiatrist;  resident;  intern;
 athletic  trainer;  psychologist; registered nurse; social worker; emer-
 gency medical technician; licensed  creative  arts  therapist;  licensed
 marriage   and  family  therapist;  licensed  mental  health  counselor;
 licensed psychoanalyst; licensed behavior  analyst;  certified  behavior
 analyst assistant; hospital personnel engaged in the admission, examina-
 tion,  care  or  treatment of persons; a Christian Science practitioner;
 CLERGY MEMBER OR OTHER MINISTER OF ANY RELIGION; school official,  which
 includes  but  is not limited to school teacher, school guidance counse-
 lor, school psychologist, school social  worker,  school  nurse,  school
 administrator  or  other school personnel required to hold a teaching or
 administrative license or certificate;  full  or  part-time  compensated
 school employee required to hold a temporary coaching license or profes-
 sional coaching certificate; social services worker; employee of a publ-
 icly-funded  emergency shelter for families with children; director of a
 children's overnight camp, summer day camp or traveling summer day camp,
 as such camps are defined in section thirteen hundred ninety-two of  the
 public health law; day care center worker; school-age child care worker;
 provider  of family or group family day care; employee or volunteer in a
 A. 8063                             3
 
 residential care facility for children that is  licensed,  certified  or
 operated  by  the  office  of children and family services; or any other
 child care or foster care worker; mental health professional;  substance
 abuse  counselor;  alcoholism counselor; all persons credentialed by the
 office of alcoholism and substance abuse services;  employees,  who  are
 expected  to  have  regular  and substantial contact with children, of a
 health home or health home care management  agency  contracting  with  a
 health  home  as  designated  by the department of health and authorized
 under section three hundred sixty-five-l of this chapter or such employ-
 ees who provide home and community based services under a  demonstration
 program pursuant to section eleven hundred fifteen of the federal social
 security  act  who  are expected to have regular and substantial contact
 with children; peace  officer;  police  officer;  district  attorney  or
 assistant  district  attorney;  investigator employed in the office of a
 district attorney; or other law enforcement official.
   § 3. Subdivision 1 of section  413  of  the  social  services  law  is
 amended by adding five new paragraphs (e), (f), (g), (h) and (i) to read
 as follows:
   (E)  UNLESS THE PERSON CONFESSING OR CONFIDING WAIVES THE PRIVILEGE, A
 MEMBER OF THE CLERGY, OR OTHER MINISTER OF ANY RELIGION OR DULY  ACCRED-
 ITED  CHRISTIAN  SCIENCE  PRACTITIONER,  SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED TO MAKE A
 REPORT  AS  REQUIRED  BY  PARAGRAPH  (A)  OF  THIS  SUBDIVISION  IF  THE
 CONFESSION OR CONFIDENCE WAS MADE TO THE MEMBER OF THE CLERGY, MINISTER,
 OR  CHRISTIAN SCIENCE PRACTITIONER IN SUCH PERSON'S PROFESSIONAL CHARAC-
 TER AS SPIRITUAL ADVISOR.
   (F) WHEN A MEMBER OF THE CLERGY HAS REASONABLE CAUSE TO SUSPECT THAT A
 CHILD IS AN ABUSED  OR  MALTREATED  CHILD  BASED  UPON  ANY  INFORMATION
 RECEIVED  OTHER THAN THROUGH A CONFESSION OR CONFIDENCE MADE PURSUANT TO
 PARAGRAPH (E) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, THEN SUCH MEMBER OF THE CLERGY  SHALL
 PROMPTLY  MAKE A REPORT AS REQUIRED BY PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION
 NOTWITHSTANDING THE FACT  THAT  MEMBER  OF  THE  CLERGY  MAY  HAVE  ALSO
 RECEIVED  A  REPORT  OF  ABUSE  OR  MALTREATMENT THROUGH A CONFESSION OR
 CONFIDENCE MADE PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (E) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
   (G) THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH (E) OF THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL  NOT  BE
 DEEMED  TO  EXEMPT A MEMBER OF THE CLERGY FROM ANY OTHER REQUIREMENTS OF
 LAW TO PREVENT THE PERPETRATOR FROM COMMITTING ADDITIONAL ACTS OF ABUSE.
   (H) FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION THE TERM "MEMBER OF THE CLER-
 GY" SHALL HAVE THE SAME DEFINITION AS THE TERM "CLERGYMAN" AS SET  FORTH
 IN  SECTION TWO OF THE RELIGIOUS CORPORATIONS LAW AND SHALL ALSO INCLUDE
 ANY PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR SUPERVISING A MEMBER OF THE CLERGY OF A RELI-
 GIOUS INSTITUTION OR RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF  A  RELIGIOUS
 INSTITUTION.
   (I)  FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION THE TERM "RELIGIOUS INSTITU-
 TION" SHALL MEAN A RELIGIOUS CORPORATION CREATED TO ENABLE  ITS  MEMBERS
 TO  MEET  FOR DIVINE WORSHIP OR OTHER RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCES OR A CONGRE-
 GATION, SOCIETY, OR OTHER ASSEMBLAGE OF PERSONS WHO  ARE  ACCUSTOMED  TO
 STATEDLY MEET FOR DIVINE WORSHIP OR OTHER RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCES, WITHOUT
 HAVING BEEN INCORPORATED FOR THAT PURPOSE, AS PROVIDED IN SECTION TWO OF
 THE RELIGIOUS CORPORATIONS LAW.
   §  4.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
 the amendments to paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 413  of  the
 social  services law made by section two-a of this act shall take effect
 on the same date and in the same manner as section 12 of chapter 733  of
 the  laws of 2023, takes effect.