BILL NUMBER:  S5297

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the social services law and the penal law, in relation
to enhancing protections for persons with disabilities from sexual
abuse

This bill would amend the Social Services Law and the Penal Law to
enhance the Justice Center's ability to hold certain caregivers
responsible for having inappropriate sexual relationships with
vulnerable persons in the period of time immediately following
discharge from residential services.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1 of the bill would amend the definition of a "service
recipient" or "person receiving services" in Social Services Law (SSL)
§ 488(9) to include a six-month period after a service recipient has
stopped receiving services from a facility or provider agency when a
reported allegation of sexual abuse or neglect involves a
post-discharge relationship that violates the facility or provider
agency's policy.

Section 2 of the bill would amend Penal Law § 130.00(13) to add
credentialed alcoholism and substance abuse counselors (CASACs) to the
              

definition of a mental health care provider, so that a client or
patient of the CASAC cannot legally consent to certain sexual conduct
if the act of sexual conduct occurs during a treatment session,
consultation, interview, or examination.

Section 3 of the bill would set forth the effective date.

 JUSTIFICATION :

Under current law, the Justice Center is only authorized to hold
caregivers accountable for engaging in sexual and other personal
relationships with service recipients when: (i) a service recipient is
a resident in a facility or provider agency; or (ii) receive services
from a facility or provider agency. However, this does not account for
situations where inappropriate relationships between caregivers and
service recipients begin during treatment, but do not commence until
the service recipient is discharged -- a time when the service
recipient is particularly vulnerable.

This bill would address this issue by amending the definition of a
"service recipient" to include an individual who has received services
from a facility or provider agency within the six months prior to the
date of an alleged reportable incident, the reportable incident
involves sexual abuse or neglect, and this post-discharge relationship
between the service recipient and the caregiver violates the facility
or provider agency's policies, rules or regulations.  This will
further enhance the protections for vulnerable persons who may become
the victims of sexual or other inappropriate relationships with their
caregivers or former caregivers.

This bill would also address inappropriate relationships involving
CASACs, who are credentialed pursuant to Mental Hygiene Law § 19.07 to
provide alcoholism and/or substance abuse services in both residential
and non-residential settings. Under current law, if these services are
provided in a residential setting, Penal Law § 130.05(3)(i) deems the
individual receiving the services incapable of consenting to sexual
acts with the CASAC. If, however, the services are provided in a
non-residential setting, there is no similar incapacity to consent
provision, even if the sexual acts occurs in an inherently coercive
setting, such as during a counseling session.  This bill would add
CASACs to the list of mental health care providers set forth in Penal
Law § 130.00(13), so that the incapacity to consent provisions set
forth in Penal Law § 130.05(3)(h) would apply to sexual acts committed
during an outpatient treatment session, consultation, interview, or
examination involving a CASAC.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

This is a new bill.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

This bill would be implemented within existing resources.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
The bill would take effect 30 days after it is signed into law.