Assembly Bill A10608

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

                                10608--A

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              June 7, 2012
                               ___________

Introduced  by  COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Weinstein,
  Dinowitz, Lavine, Simotas, Zebrowski) -- (at request of the Office  of
  Court  Administration)  --  read once and referred to the Committee on
  Judiciary -- reported and referred to the Committee on Rules --  Rules
  Committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
  recommitted to the Committee on Rules

AN ACT to amend the correction  law  and  the  mental  hygiene  law,  in
  relation to the appointment of guardians

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

  Section 1.   Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph b  of  subdivision  2  of
section  168-b  of  the correction law, as amended by chapter 595 of the
laws of 2008 and as further amended by section 104 of part A of  chapter
62 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
  (iii)  a  court,  to  enable  the  court  to  promptly comply with the
provisions of paragraph (a-1) of subdivision one of section two  hundred
forty  of  the  domestic relations law, [and] subdivision (e) of section
six hundred fifty-one of the family court act, AND  SUBDIVISION  (G)  OF
SECTION 81.19 OF THE MENTAL HYGIENE LAW.
  S  2.  Section  81.19 of the mental hygiene law is amended by adding a
new subdivision (g) to read as follows:
  (G) 1. IN MAKING AN APPOINTMENT OR  CONSIDERING  A  REVOCATION  OF  AN
APPOINTMENT  UNDER THIS ARTICLE, THE COURT ALSO MAY OBTAIN AND CONSIDER,
AND MAY AUTHORIZE A COURT EVALUATOR TO REVIEW THE SAME AND REPORT TO THE
COURT CONCERNING, ANY OF THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION REGARDING THE GUARDI-
AN OR PROPOSED GUARDIAN, AND, IF THE  INCAPACITATED  PERSON  RESIDES  OR
WILL RESIDE WITH SUCH GUARDIAN OR PROPOSED GUARDIAN, ANY PERSON EIGHTEEN
YEARS  OR  OLDER  RESIDING IN THE GUARDIAN OR PROPOSED GUARDIAN'S HOUSE-
HOLD:
  (I) A CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD CHECK OF SUCH PERSON OR PERSONS; AND  IN
FURTHERANCE  THEREOF, THE COURT SHALL BE AUTHORIZED TO: (1) OBTAIN A SET
OF SUCH PERSON'S FINGERPRINTS; (2) DIRECT THAT THE DIVISION OF  CRIMINAL
JUSTICE  SERVICES  PROMPTLY  PROVIDE  TO  THE  COURT  A CRIMINAL HISTORY
RECORD, IF ANY, WITH RESPECT TO SUCH PERSON OR  A  STATEMENT  THAT  SUCH

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

                                                           LBD15240-05-2

A. 10608--A                         2

PERSON  HAS  NO  CRIMINAL  RECORD; AND (3) DIRECT THE SUBMISSION OF SUCH
PERSON'S FINGERPRINTS BY THE DIVISION OF CRIMINAL  JUSTICE  SERVICES  TO
THE  FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION FOR PURPOSES OF A NATIONWIDE CRIMI-
NAL  HISTORY  RECORD  CHECK  PURSUANT  TO AND CONSISTENT WITH PUBLIC LAW
92-544 TO DETERMINE IF SUCH PERSON HAS A CRIMINAL HISTORY IN  ANY  STATE
OR FEDERAL JURISDICTION;
  (II) REPORTS FOR SUCH PERSON OR PERSONS FROM THE SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY
ESTABLISHED AND MAINTAINED PURSUANT TO SECTION ONE HUNDRED SIXTY-EIGHT-B
OF THE CORRECTION LAW;
  (III)  INDICATED REPORTS FOR SUCH PERSON OR PERSONS FROM THE STATEWIDE
CENTRAL REGISTER OF CHILD ABUSE AND MALTREATMENT ESTABLISHED  AND  MAIN-
TAINED  PURSUANT  TO  SECTION  FOUR  HUNDRED  TWENTY-TWO  OF  THE SOCIAL
SERVICES LAW, UPON A FINDING BY THE COURT, PURSUANT TO  PARAGRAPH  E  OF
SUBDIVISION FOUR OF SUCH SECTION, THAT SUCH INFORMATION IS NECESSARY FOR
THE COURT TO DETERMINE WHETHER TO MAKE OR CONTINUE AN APPOINTMENT PURSU-
ANT TO THIS ARTICLE;
  (IV) REPORTS FOR SUCH PERSON OR PERSON FROM THE STATEWIDE COMPUTERIZED
REGISTRY  OF ORDERS OF PROTECTION ESTABLISHED AND MAINTAINED PURSUANT TO
SECTION TWO HUNDRED TWENTY-ONE-A OF THE EXECUTIVE LAW; AND
  (V) RELATED DECISIONS IN COURT PROCEEDINGS INITIATED PURSUANT TO ARTI-
CLE TEN OF THE FAMILY COURT ACT AND RELATED WARRANTS  ISSUED  UNDER  THE
FAMILY COURT ACT.
  2.  THE  COURT SHALL OBTAIN AND CONSIDER RECORDS AND REPORTS SPECIFIED
IN PARAGRAPH ONE OF THIS SUBDIVISION BETWEEN THE TIME THE JUDGE EXECUTES
THE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE AND THE HEARING DATE OF THE ORDER TO SHOW  CAUSE
IF A GUARDIAN OR GUARDIANS ARE PROPOSED IN THE PETITION OR, AS SOON AS A
GUARDIAN OR GUARDIANS ARE PROPOSED BY A PARTY TO THE PROCEEDING OR NOMI-
NATED  BY  THE  PERSON  ALLEGED TO BE INCAPACITATED, DURING A PROCEEDING
UNDER THIS ARTICLE.
  3. UPON CONSIDERATION OF ALL FACTORS BEARING ON THE BEST INTERESTS  OF
THE INCAPACITATED PERSON INCLUDING CONSIDERATION OF ALL RELEVANT FACTORS
IN  SECTION SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY-THREE OF THE CORRECTION LAW, THE RECORDS
AND REPORTS SPECIFIED IN PARAGRAPH ONE  OF  THIS  SUBDIVISION,  AND  THE
COURT  EVALUATOR'S  REPORT THEREON, AND AFTER NOTIFYING COUNSEL INVOLVED
IN THE PROCEEDING, OR IN THE EVENT OF A SELF-REPRESENTED PARTY NOTIFYING
SUCH PARTY, THE COURT MAY APPOINT,  REFUSE  TO  APPOINT  OR  REVOKE  THE
APPOINTMENT OF ANY PERSON AS GUARDIAN PURSUANT TO THIS ARTICLE.
  4.  WHERE  THE  COURT  REQUESTS A CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD FOR A PERSON
PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION, THE COURT SHALL PROVIDE  THE  SUBJECT  OF  THE
REQUEST  WITH  A  COPY  OF HIS OR HER CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD, IF ANY, A
REASONABLE TIME BEFORE CONSIDERATION OF SUCH RECORD UNDER THIS  SUBDIVI-
SION  AND  INFORM  SUCH PERSON OF HIS OR HER RIGHT TO SEEK CORRECTION OF
ANY INCORRECT INFORMATION CONTAINED IN SUCH  RECORD  PURSUANT  TO  REGU-
LATIONS  AND  PROCEDURES ESTABLISHED BY THE DIVISION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE
SERVICES.
  S 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
it shall have become a law.