Senate Bill S7043

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

                                  7043

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             April 21, 2014
                               ___________

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

AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to transmitting the
  history of record of all previous reports and previous  calls  to  the
  central  register  to  the appropriate local child protective services
  for investigation

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

  Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 422 of the social
services  law, as amended by chapter 574 of the laws of 2008, is amended
to read as follows:
  (a) The central register shall be capable of receiving telephone calls
alleging child abuse or  maltreatment  and  of  immediately  identifying
prior  reports  of child abuse or maltreatment and capable of monitoring
the provision of child protective service twenty-four hours a day, seven
days a week. To effectuate this purpose, but subject to  the  provisions
of  the  appropriate  local  plan  for the provision of child protective
services, there shall be a single statewide telephone  number  that  all
persons,  whether  mandated by the law or not, may use to make telephone
calls alleging child abuse or  maltreatment  and  that  all  persons  so
authorized  by this title may use for determining the existence of prior
reports in order to evaluate the condition or circumstances of a  child.
In  addition  to the single statewide telephone number, there shall be a
special unlisted express telephone  number  and  a  telephone  facsimile
number  for use only by persons mandated by law to make telephone calls,
or to transmit telephone facsimile information on a form provided by the
commissioner, alleging child abuse or maltreatment, and for use  by  all
persons  so  authorized  by  this title for determining the existence of
prior reports in order to evaluate the condition or circumstances  of  a
child.  When  any  allegations  contained  in such telephone calls could
reasonably constitute a report of  child  abuse  or  maltreatment,  such
allegations  AND THE RECORD OF ALL PREVIOUS REPORTS AND CALLS, INCLUDING
RECORDS OF CALLS NOT ACCEPTED FOR LOCAL DISTRICT INVESTIGATION,  TO  THE
CENTRAL  REGISTER  INVOLVING THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT OR CHILDREN NAMED

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

                                                           LBD14785-02-4

S. 7043                             2

IN THE REPORT, INCLUDING ALL PREVIOUS CALLS THAT CONTAIN ALLEGATIONS  OF
CHILD  ABUSE AND MALTREATMENT THAT ARE ALLEGED TO HAVE OCCURRED IN OTHER
COUNTIES AND DISTRICTS IN NEW YORK STATE, shall be immediately transmit-
ted  orally  or  electronically  by  the  office  of children and family
services to the appropriate local child protective service for  investi-
gation. The inability of the person calling the register to identify the
alleged perpetrator shall, in no circumstance, constitute the sole cause
for  the  register  to  reject  such allegation or fail to transmit such
allegation for investigation. If the records indicate a previous  report
concerning  a  subject  of the report, the child alleged to be abused or
maltreated, a sibling, other children in the  household,  other  persons
named  in  the  report  or  other pertinent information, the appropriate
local child protective service shall  be  immediately  notified  of  the
fact[, except as provided in subdivision eleven of this section]. If the
report involves either (i) an allegation of an abused child described in
paragraph  (i), (ii) or (iii) of subdivision (e) of section one thousand
twelve of the family court act or sexual abuse of a child or  the  death
of  a  child  or  (ii) suspected maltreatment which alleges any physical
harm when the report is made by a person required to report pursuant  to
section  four  hundred  thirteen  of this title within six months of any
other two reports that were indicated, or may still be pending,  involv-
ing  the  same child, sibling, or other children in the household or the
subject of the report, the office of children and family services  shall
identify the report as such and note any prior reports when transmitting
the report to the local child protective services for investigation.
  S  2. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding
the date on which it shall have become a law.