S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
                                  6326
                            I N  S E N A T E
                            January 26, 2012
                               ___________
Introduced  by  Sen.  LANZA  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Mental Health and Develop-
  mental Disabilities
AN ACT to amend the  mental  hygiene  law  and  the  executive  law,  in
  relation  to  directing the commissioner of the office for people with
  developmental disabilities to promulgate regulations  authorizing  the
  denial  or disapproval of certain employment or volunteer applications
  following a criminal history report for such applicant
  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
  Section  1.    Section  13.19  of the mental hygiene law is amended by
adding a new subdivision (f) to read as follows:
  (F) THE COMMISSIONER SHALL  PROMULGATE  REGULATIONS  (I)  REQUIRING  A
CRIMINAL HISTORY REPORT FOR ANY PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEE OR VOLUNTEER IN THE
OFFICE  WHO WILL HAVE REGULAR DIRECT PATIENT CONTACT; AND (II) AUTHORIZ-
ING THE DENIAL OR DISAPPROVAL  OF  ANY  APPLICATION  FOR  EMPLOYMENT  OR
VOLUNTEER  SERVICE  IN  THE OFFICE FOR A POSITION THAT WILL HAVE REGULAR
DIRECT PATIENT CONTACT WHERE A CRIMINAL HISTORY REPORT  CONCERNING  SUCH
PROSPECTIVE  EMPLOYEE  OR VOLUNTEER REVEALS A CONVICTION FOR ANY OFFENSE
THE COMMISSIONER DETERMINES WOULD  MAKE  SUCH  PROSPECTIVE  EMPLOYEE  OR
VOLUNTEER UNFIT FOR EMPLOYMENT BY THE OFFICE.
  S  2.  Subdivision 8-a of section 837 of the executive law, as amended
by chapter 561 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:
  8-a. Charge a fee when, pursuant to statute or the regulations of  the
division,  it  conducts  a  search  of  its criminal history records and
returns a report thereon in connection with an application  for  employ-
ment  or for a license or permit. The division shall adopt and may, from
time to time, amend a schedule of such fees which shall  be  in  amounts
determined  by  the  division  to  be  reasonably related to the cost of
conducting such searches and returning reports thereon but, in no event,
shall  any  such  fee  exceed  twenty-five  dollars  and  an  additional
surcharge  of  fifty  dollars.  The  comptroller is hereby authorized to
deposit such fees into the general fund,  provided,  however,  that  the
monies received by the division of criminal justice services for payment
 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              
             
                          
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S. 6326                             2
of  the  additional surcharge shall be deposited in equal amounts to the
general fund  and  to  the  fingerprint  identification  and  technology
account.  Notwithstanding  the foregoing, the division shall not request
or  accept  any  fee  for searching its records and supplying a criminal
history report pursuant to section two hundred fifty-one-b of the gener-
al business law relating to participating in flight instruction  at  any
aeronautical  facility, flight school or institution of higher learning,
NOR FOR SEARCHING ITS RECORDS AND SUPPLYING A  CRIMINAL  HISTORY  REPORT
PURSUANT  TO  REGULATIONS  ADOPTED  UNDER  SECTION  13.19  OF THE MENTAL
HYGIENE LAW.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.