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

                                  7904

                       2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              June 7, 2013
                               ___________

Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER -- (at request of the Commission on Qual-
  ity  of  Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities) -- read once
  and referred to the Committee on Mental Health

AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law and the social services  law,  in
  relation  to making technical changes to the protection of people with
  special needs act

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

  Section 1. Subdivision (a) of section 31.35 of the mental hygiene law,
as  amended  by  chapter  575 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as
follows:
  (a) Every provider of services who contracts with or  is  approved  or
otherwise authorized by the office OF MENTAL HEALTH to provide services,
except  (1)  a department facility, (2) a hospital as defined in article
twenty-eight of the public health law, or (3)  a  licensed  professional
under  title  eight  of the education law who does not have employees or
volunteers who will have regular and substantial unsupervised  or  unre-
stricted  physical  contact with the clients of such provider, and every
applicant to be such a provider of  services  except  (i)  a  department
facility,  (ii)  a  hospital  as  defined in article twenty-eight of the
public health law, or (iii) a licensed professional under title eight of
the education law who does not have employees  or  volunteers  who  will
have  regular  and  substantial  unsupervised  or  unrestricted physical
contact with the clients  of  such  provider,  shall  request  that  the
[office]  JUSTICE CENTER FOR THE PROTECTION OF PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL NEEDS
check, and upon such request [the  office]  SUCH  JUSTICE  CENTER  shall
request and shall be authorized to receive from the division of criminal
justice services criminal history information, as such phrase is defined
in   paragraph   (c)   of  subdivision  one  of  section  eight  hundred
forty-five-b of the executive law, concerning each prospective operator,
employee or volunteer  of  such  provider  who  will  have  regular  and

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD09487-05-3
              

A. 7904                             2

substantial  unsupervised  or  unrestricted  physical  contact  with the
clients of such provider. For purposes of this section, "operator" shall
include any natural person with an ownership interest in the provider of
services.
  S  2.  Paragraph  (e)  of  subdivision  4 of section 488 of the social
services law, as added by section 1 of part B of chapter 501 of the laws
of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
  (e) the New York state school for the blind and  the  New  York  state
school for the deaf, which operate pursuant to articles eighty-seven and
eighty-eight of the education law; an institution for the instruction of
the  deaf and the blind which has a residential component and is subject
to the visitation of the commissioner of education pursuant  to  article
eighty-five of the education law with respect to its day and residential
components; special act school districts serving students with disabili-
ties;  or  in-state  private  schools  which  have  been approved by the
commissioner of education for special education  services  or  programs,
and  which have a residential program[, including a school approved on a
child-specific  basis  for  emergency  interim  placements  pursuant  to
governing  state  regulations,  with  respect to its day and residential
components].
  S 3. Subdivision 1 of section 378-a of the  social  services  law,  as
amended  by  section  4 of part F of chapter 501 of the laws of 2012, is
amended and a new subdivision 1-a is added to read as follows:
  1. Every authorized agency which operates a  residential  program  for
children  LICENSED  OR  CERTIFIED  BY  THE OFFICE OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY
SERVICES, and the office of children and family services IN RELATION  TO
ANY JUVENILE JUSTICE PROGRAM IT OPERATES, shall request that the justice
center  for  the protection of people with special needs check, and upon
such request, such justice center shall request and shall be  authorized
to receive from the division of criminal justice services AND THE FEDER-
AL  BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION criminal history information, as such phrase
is defined in paragraph (c) of subdivision one of section eight  hundred
forty-five-b  of the executive law concerning each prospective operator,
employee or volunteer of such A residential program who will have  regu-
lar  and  substantial unsupervised or unrestricted physical contact with
children in such program. For the purposes of this  section,  "operator"
shall  include  any  natural  person  with  an ownership interest in the
authorized agency. Access to and the use of such  information  shall  be
governed  by the provisions of section eight hundred forty-five-b of the
executive law.
  1-A. EXCLUDING THE  AUTHORIZED  AGENCIES  AUTHORIZED  TO  REQUEST  AND
RECEIVE CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS
SECTION,  AND  SUBJECT  TO  THE RULES AND REGULATIONS OF THE DIVISION OF
CRIMINAL JUSTICE SERVICES, AN AUTHORIZED AGENCY DEFINED  IN  SUBDIVISION
TEN OF SECTION THREE HUNDRED SEVENTY-ONE OF THIS TITLE SHALL HAVE ACCESS
TO  CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION, AS SUCH PHRASE IS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH
(C) OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION  EIGHT  HUNDRED  FORTY-FIVE-B  OF  THE
EXECUTIVE  LAW, PERTAINING TO PERSONS WHO HAVE APPLIED FOR AND ARE UNDER
ACTIVE CONSIDERATION FOR EMPLOYMENT BY SUCH AUTHORIZED AGENCY  IN  POSI-
TIONS  WHERE  SUCH  PERSONS  WILL  HAVE  THE  POTENTIAL  FOR REGULAR AND
SUBSTANTIAL UNSUPERVISED AND UNRESTRICTED PHYSICAL CONTACT WITH CHILDREN
IN THE PROGRAM.  UPON RECEIPT OF SUCH CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION,  THE
AUTHORIZED  AGENCY SHALL PROVIDE THE PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEE WITH A COPY OF
SUCH CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION AND A COPY OF  ARTICLE  TWENTY-THREE-A
OF THE CORRECTION LAW AND INFORM SUCH PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEE OF HIS OR HER
RIGHT  TO SEEK CORRECTION OF ANY INCORRECT INFORMATION CONTAINED IN SUCH

A. 7904                             3

CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE REGULATIONS AND  PROCEDURES
ESTABLISHED BY THE DIVISION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SERVICES. THE AUTHORIZED
AGENCY  SHALL  DESIGNATE  ONE  OR TWO PERSONS IN ITS EMPLOY WHO SHALL BE
AUTHORIZED  TO REQUEST, RECEIVE AND REVIEW THE CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMA-
TION PURSUANT TO  THIS  SUBDIVISION,  AND  ONLY  SUCH  PERSONS  AND  THE
PROSPECTIVE  EMPLOYEE  TO WHICH THE CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION RELATES
SHALL HAVE ACCESS TO SUCH  INFORMATION;  PROVIDED,  HOWEVER,  THAT  SUCH
CRIMINAL  HISTORY  INFORMATION  MAY  BE  DISCLOSED  TO  OTHER  PERSONNEL
EMPOWERED BY THE AGENCY TO MAKE DECISIONS CONCERNING PROSPECTIVE EMPLOY-
EES. THE AUTHORIZED AGENCY SHALL NOTIFY THE DIVISION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE
SERVICES OF EACH PERSON AUTHORIZED  TO  HAVE  ACCESS  TO  SUCH  CRIMINAL
HISTORY  INFORMATION  PURSUANT  TO THIS SUBDIVISION. EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE
PROVIDED IN THIS SUBDIVISION, SUCH CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION SHALL BE
CONFIDENTIAL AND ANY PERSON WHO WILLFULLY PERMITS THE  RELEASE  OF  SUCH
CONFIDENTIAL  CRIMINAL  HISTORY  INFORMATION TO PERSONS NOT PERMITTED BY
THIS SUBDIVISION TO RECEIVE SUCH INFORMATION SHALL BE GUILTY OF A MISDE-
MEANOR.
  S 4. This act shall take effect on the  same  date  and  in  the  same
manner  as  part A of chapter 501 of the laws of 2012, as amended, takes
effect, provided that section two of this act shall take effect  on  the
same date and in the same manner as part B of chapter 501 of the laws of
2012, as amended, takes effect and provided, further, that section three
of this act shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as
part F of chapter 501 of the laws of 2012, as amended, takes effect.