Senate Bill S1598

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

                                 1598--A

                       2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                            January 10, 2011
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sens.  MONTGOMERY,  HASSELL-THOMPSON  --  read twice and
  ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee  on
  Social   Services  --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
  reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation  to  standards  for
  workloads for child protective services caseworkers

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

  Section 1. Section 20-a of the social services law, as added by  chap-
ter 107 of the laws of 1971, is amended to read as follows:
  S 20-a.  Local personnel; limitations on department's power.  Notwith-
standing  any  inconsistent  provision  of  this chapter, the board, the
commissioner or the department, acting singly or in  unison,  shall  not
have  the  power,  directly  or  indirectly  to  prescribe the number of
persons to be employed in any social  services  district  providing  the
district  complies  with the minimum federal standards relating thereto.
PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT THE OFFICE OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES SHALL
HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO PROMULGATE REGULATIONS THAT SET WORKLOAD STANDARDS
FOR CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES,  FOSTER  CARE,  PREVENTIVE  SERVICES  AND
ADOPTION SERVICES, WHICH STANDARDS ARE BASED ON THE NEW YORK STATE WORK-
LOAD STUDY. THE OFFICE SHALL SET WORKLOAD STANDARDS FOR CHILD PROTECTIVE
SERVICES  BY  OCTOBER  FIRST, TWO THOUSAND FOURTEEN.  NO COUNTY SHALL BE
REQUIRED TO INCREASE ITS CHILD PROTECTIVE WORKFORCE BY MORE  THAN  TWEN-
TY-FIVE  PERCENT  IN  ANY  GIVEN  STATE FISCAL YEAR, PROVIDED THAT EVERY
SOCIAL SERVICES DISTRICT SHALL COME INTO COMPLIANCE WITH THE ESTABLISHED
WORKLOAD STANDARDS BY JANUARY FIRST, TWO THOUSAND EIGHTEEN.
  S 2. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 1  of  section  423  of  the  social
services  law,  as amended by chapter 83 of the laws of 1995, is amended
to read as follows:
  (c) The child protective service shall have  a  sufficient  staff,  AS
REQUIRED BY CASELOAD STANDARDS ESTABLISHED BY THE OFFICE OF CHILDREN AND

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD03578-02-1
              

S. 1598--A                          2

FAMILY SERVICES, of sufficient qualifications to fulfill the purposes of
this  title and be organized in such a way as to maximize the continuity
of responsibility, care and service of individual workers  toward  indi-
vidual  children  and  families.  A  social services district shall have
flexibility in assigning staff to the child protective service  provided
that  each  staff  assigned to such service has the staff qualifications
and has received the training required by the  [department]  regulations
promulgated  BY  THE  OFFICE OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES pursuant to
subdivisions four and five of section four hundred  twenty-one  of  this
title.
  S  3.  This  act shall take effect immediately; provided however, that
the amendments to paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 of section 423  of  the
social  services  law  made by section two of this act shall take effect
October 1, 2014.