S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
                                  7211
                            I N  S E N A T E
                               May 6, 2014
                               ___________
Introduced  by  Sen.  FELDER -- 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 reports of child
  abuse or maltreatment
  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 shall be immediately transmitted orally or electronically by
the  office  of  children  and  family services to the appropriate local
child protective service for investigation. 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
 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              
             
                          
                                                                           LBD14868-02-4
S. 7211                             2
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]
ARTICLE eleven of this [section] CHAPTER.  THE PERSON CALLING  SHALL  BE
ASKED  IF  THEY  HAVE  A REASONABLE SUSPICION THAT THE PERSON OR PERSONS
ALLEGED TO BE ABUSING OR MALTREATING A CHILD OR CHILDREN IS  OR  ARE  ON
PROBATION  OR  PAROLE.  IN  THE  CASE THAT THE PERSON CALLING HAS SUCH A
REASONABLE SUSPICION, SUCH INFORMATION SHALL BE INCLUDED IN  THE  REPORT
TRANSMITTED  TO  THE  LOCAL  CHILD  PROTECTIVE  SERVICE.  If  the report
involves either (i) an allegation of an abused child described in  para-
graph  (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. Subparagraph (k) of paragraph (A) of subdivision 4 of section 422
of  the  social  services law, as amended by section 153 of subpart B of
part C of chapter 62 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
  (k) a probation service OR THE STATE BOARD OF  PAROLE  WHERE  A  CHILD
PROTECTIVE  SERVICE HAS REASON TO BELIEVE THAT THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT
IS OR MAY BE ON PROBATION OR  PAROLE,  OR  IF  A  PROBATION  SERVICE  IS
conducting  an  investigation  pursuant  to  article  three  or seven or
section six hundred fifty-three of the family court act where  there  is
reason  to suspect the child or the child's sibling may have been abused
or maltreated and such child  or  sibling,  parent,  guardian  or  other
person  legally  responsible for the child is a person named in an indi-
cated report of child abuse or maltreatment and that such information is
necessary for the making of a determination  or  recommendation  to  the
court;  or  a  probation  service  regarding  a  person about whom it is
conducting an investigation pursuant to article three hundred ninety  of
the  criminal procedure law, or a probation service or the department of
corrections and community supervision regarding a  person  to  whom  the
service or department is providing supervision pursuant to article sixty
of  the  penal  law  or  article  eight of the correction law, where the
subject of investigation or supervision has been convicted of  a  felony
under article one hundred twenty, one hundred twenty-five or one hundred
thirty-five  of the penal law or any felony or misdemeanor under article
one hundred thirty, two hundred thirty-five, two hundred forty-five, two
hundred sixty or two hundred sixty-three of the penal law, or  has  been
indicted  for  any such felony and, as a result, has been convicted of a
crime under the penal law, where the service or department requests  the
information  upon  a certification that such information is necessary to
conduct its investigation, that there is  reasonable  cause  to  believe
that  the  subject  of  an  investigation is the subject of an indicated
report and that there is reasonable cause to believe that  such  records
are  necessary  to  the  investigation  by  the probation service or the
department, provided, however, that  only  indicated  reports  shall  be
furnished pursuant to this subdivision;
S. 7211                             3
  S  3.  Paragraph  (a)  of  subdivision  6 of section 424 of the social
services law, as amended by chapter 602 of the laws of 2008, is  amended
to read as follows:
  (a)  upon  receipt  of  such report, commence or cause the appropriate
society for the prevention of cruelty to children  to  commence,  within
twenty-four  hours,  an appropriate investigation which shall include an
evaluation of the environment of the child named in the report  and  any
other  children in the same home and a determination of the risk to such
children if they continue to remain in the existing home environment, as
well as a determination of the nature, extent and cause of any condition
enumerated in such report and the name, age and condition of other chil-
dren in the home, and, after seeing to the safety of the child or  chil-
dren,  forthwith  notify  the  subjects  of the report and other persons
named in the report in writing of the existence of the report and  their
respective  rights pursuant to this title in regard to amendment.  IF AT
ANY TIME DURING SUCH INVESTIGATION, THERE IS REASONABLE CAUSE TO BELIEVE
THE SUBJECT OF THE REPORT IS ON PROBATION OR PAROLE, THE  CHILD  PROTEC-
TIVE  SERVICE  SHALL PROVIDE NOTICE TO THE APPROPRIATE PROBATION SERVICE
OR THE STATE BOARD OF PAROLE  OF  THE  EXISTENCE  OF  SUCH  REPORT,  AND
PROVIDE  A  COPY  THEREOF  AND  THE  STATUS OF THE INVESTIGATION TO SUCH
SERVICE OR BOARD.
  S 4. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth  day  after  it  shall
have become a law.