Senate Bill S7523

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

                                  7523

                            I N  S E N A T E

                              May 15, 2014
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  GOLDEN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services

AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation  to  directing  the
  office of children and family services to establish workload standards
  for child protective services workers

  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 PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT APPLY
TO THE REGULATIONS OF THE OFFICE OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES  ESTAB-
LISHING WORKLOAD STANDARDS FOR CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES WORKERS PROMUL-
GATED  PURSUANT  TO  PARAGRAPH  (C)  OF SUBDIVISION FOUR OF SECTION FOUR
HUNDRED TWENTY-ONE OF THIS CHAPTER.
  S 2. Subdivision 4 of section  421  of  the  social  services  law  is
amended by adding a new paragraph (c) to read as follows:
  (C)  PROMULGATE  REGULATIONS  RELATING TO WORKLOAD STANDARDS FOR CHILD
PROTECTIVE SERVICES, WHICH SHALL BE NO MORE THAN  FIFTEEN  ACTIVE  CASES
PER  MONTH  PER  FULL  TIME CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES WORKER. NOTHING IN
THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO FORBID THE OFFICE FROM PROMULGATING
REGULATIONS THAT REQUIRE AN  AVERAGE  WORKLOAD  STANDARD  OF  LESS  THAN
FIFTEEN  ACTIVE  CASES PER MONTH PER FULL TIME CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES
WORKER.
  S 3. 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,
SUBJECT  TO  THE  PROVISIONS  OF  PARAGRAPH  (C)  OF SUBDIVISION FOUR OF

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

                                                           LBD15145-01-4

S. 7523                             2

SECTION FOUR HUNDRED TWENTY-ONE OF THIS TITLE, of sufficient  qualifica-
tions  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  individual  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  pursuant  to subdivisions four and
five of section four hundred twenty-one of this title.
  S 4. This act shall take effect on the  seven  hundred  thirtieth  day
after it shall have become a law.