NY State Senate Bill 2009-S131

Senate Bill S131

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Relates to individuals who refuse to participate in an investigation being conducted by child protective services

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last 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
Jan 20, 2010	committee discharged and committed to children and families
Jan 06, 2010	referred to social services, children and families
Jan 16, 2009	referred to children and families
Jan 07, 2009	referred to social services, children and families

co-Sponsors

2009-S131 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A4418
Current Committee:: Senate Children And Families
Law Section:: Social Services Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §422-a, Soc Serv L
Versions Introduced in 2011-2012 Legislative Session:: S1669

2009-S131 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to individuals who refuse to participate in an investigation being conducted by child protective services; grants a twenty-four hour notice to the individual for the meeting or home visit; defines "blatant refusal"; declares that such refusal shall indicate a need for a more thorough investigation and shall be grounds for issuing an immediate warrant to enter such individual's home to investigate the safety and well-being of the child or children

2009-S131 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S131

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to individuals
who refuse to participate in an investigation being conducted by child
protective services


 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :
To create a system where a failure to participate (blatantly refusing
to allow an investigator in the home or meet with investigators) in a
child protective investigation would indicate that a more thorough
investigation is needed and would immediately issue a warrant:

 SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS :
Adds a new subsection (e) to section 422-a of the social service law.
Subsection (i) states that if a child protective worker identifies
themselves and is carrying an ID card proving that they are, in fact,
a child protective worker, and the subject of the investigation (i.e.
parent or guardian) blatantly refuses to meet with the worker or let
them into the home, the parent or guardian will have twenty-four hours
to comply with the request for a meeting or a home visit.

Subsection (ii) states that the child protective agency will be
responsible for informing the parent or guardian that the twenty-four
hours have lapsed. If the individual is still refusing to meet with

child protective workers than this should indicate a need for a more
thorough investigation and an immediate warrant will be issued in
order to evaluate the safety and well-being of the child or children.
This action will be taken upon the first blatant refusal of the parent
or guardian.  Blatant refusal is defined as verbally refusing a
meeting or refusing to meet with investigators by using physical
force.

 EFFECTS OF PRESENT LAW WHICH THIS BILL WOULD ALTER :
There is currently no action or lack of action that calls for an
immediate warrant for child protective workers to investigate a case
under current law. Presently, if the agency pursues a warrant or not
depends upon the judgment of each individual case worker's opinions on
each individual case.

This bill provides child protective workers with the power and
authority to pursue an immediate warrant if the subject of the
investigation (i.e. parent or guardian) blatantly refuse to
participate in the investigation by refusing to meet with workers or
by refusing a home visit. This would occur upon the first refusal to
participate and would provide an opportunity for child protective
workers to meet with the family in order to evaluate if the
child/children are in imminent danger.

 JUSTIFICATION :
After the tragic death of Nixzmary Brown, age 7, who was brutally
tortured and murdered by her stepfather, some sources have indicated
that her stepfather refused to comply with the child protective
worker's request for a meeting with the family within their home.
There was talk of pursuing a warrant, but child protective services
never followed through. It has now become clear that some of the
subjective nature of child protective investigations must be removed.

Defining specific circumstances that would issue an immediate warrant
would eliminate the subjectivity of when a warrant would be issued and
for what behaviors or actions. One specific' circumstance that should
be an indication that an immediate warrant be issued is a parent or
guardian's blatant refusal to meet with a investigator from child
protective services or allow such an investigator into their home.
Meeting with investigators, especially within the family's home,
provides critical information regarding the safety and well-being of
the child or children. These meetings are necessary in helping to keep
children out of harm's way.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
S.2156 of 2007 02/01/07 Referred to Social Services, Children &
Families

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS :
None.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately.

2009-S131 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                   131

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 7, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen. SAMPSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services,  Children
  and Families

AN  ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to individuals who
  refuse to participate in an investigation  being  conducted  by  child
  protective services

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 422-a of the social services  law,
as  added by chapter 12 of the laws of 1996 and paragraph (d) as amended
by chapter 136 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as follows:
  1.  Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law to the contrary,
the commissioner or a city or county social  services  commissioner  may
disclose  information  regarding the abuse or maltreatment of a child as
set forth in  this  section,  and  the  investigation  thereof  and  any
services  related  thereto  if he or she determines that such disclosure
shall not be contrary to the best interests of the  child,  the  child's
siblings or other children in the household and any one of the following
factors are present:
  (a)  the  subject  of  the  report  has  been charged in an accusatory
instrument with committing a crime related to a report maintained in the
statewide central register; or
  (b) the investigation of the abuse or maltreatment of the child by the
local child protective service or the  provision  of  services  by  such
service has been publicly disclosed in a report required to be disclosed
in  the  course of their official duties, by a law enforcement agency or
official, a district attorney, any other state  or  local  investigative
agency or official or by judge of the unified court system; or
  (c) there has been a prior knowing, voluntary, public disclosure by an
individual  concerning  a report of child abuse or maltreatment in which

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                           LBD01972-01-9

S. 131                              2

such individual is named as the subject of  the  report  as  defined  by
subdivision four of section four hundred twelve of this title; [or]
  (d)  the child named in the report has died or the report involves the
near fatality of a child. For the purposes of this section, "near fatal-
ity" means an act that results in the child being placed,  as  certified
by a physician, in serious or critical condition; OR
  (E)  (I)  WHERE  THE  CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE DECLARES
HIMSELF OR HERSELF AS AN EMPLOYEE OF SUCH CHILD PROTECTIVE  SERVICE  AND
PRESENTS  AN IDENTIFICATION CARD PROVING SUCH EMPLOYMENT AND AN INDIVID-
UAL BLATANTLY REFUSES TO ALLOW SUCH CHILD PROTECTIVE  SERVICE  REPRESEN-
TATIVE ENTRANCE INTO SUCH INDIVIDUAL'S HOME OR REFUSES TO MEET WITH SUCH
REPRESENTATIVE.   SUCH INDIVIDUAL WHO IS THE SUBJECT OF AN INVESTIGATION
AND WHO IS BLATANTLY REFUSING SHALL HAVE  TWENTY-FOUR  HOURS  TO  COMPLY
WITH SUCH MEETING OR HOME VISIT WITH SUCH REPRESENTATIVE.
  (II)  THE CHILD WELFARE AGENCY SHALL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR NOTIFYING SUCH
INDIVIDUAL THAT THE TWENTY-FOUR HOURS HAVE LAPSED. IF AT SUCH TIME, SUCH
INDIVIDUAL BLATANTLY REFUSES TO A MEETING OR HOME VISIT WITH SUCH REPRE-
SENTATIVE OF THE CHILD WELFARE AGENCY, SUCH  REFUSAL  SHALL  INDICATE  A
NEED  FOR A MORE THOROUGH INVESTIGATION AND SHALL BE GROUNDS FOR ISSUING
AN IMMEDIATE WARRANT TO ENTER SUCH INDIVIDUAL'S HOME TO INVESTIGATE  THE
SAFETY AND WELL-BEING OF THE CHILD OR CHILDREN.  THIS ACTION SHALL OCCUR
UPON  THE FIRST INSTANCE THAT SUCH INDIVIDUAL BLATANTLY REFUSES TO COOP-
ERATE WITH SUCH REPRESENTATIVE.   FOR  THE  PURPOSES  OF  THIS  SECTION,
"BLATANT  REFUSAL" MEANS VERBALLY REFUSING OR REFUSING BY USING PHYSICAL
FORCE.
  S 2. 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.

Senate Bill S131

Share this bill

Sponsored By

John L. Sampson