NY State Senate Bill 2019-S7031

Senate Bill S7031

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Requires background checks prior to employment in a position involving substantial contact with children while dressed as a children's character

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Crime Victims, Crime And Correction Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to crime victims, crime and correction

2019-S7031 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Crime Victims, Crime And Correction
Law Section:: Correction Law
Laws Affected:: Add §168-w, Cor L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S1875
2023-2024: S2758

2019-S7031 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires background checks for a person prior to employment in a position involving substantial contact with children while dressed as a children's character and provides certain penalties for violations.

2019-S7031 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S7031

SPONSOR: SKOUFIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the correction law, in relation to employment of sex
offenders in a position involving substantial contact with children
while dressed as a children's character

 
PURPOSE:

To require background checks for individuals who dress as Santa Claus,
the Easter bunny or other children's characters in order to protect
children from the possibility of sex offenders working in these posi-
tions

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Adds a new section 168-w to the Correction Law. The new
section:
1) Prohibits any sex offender from applying for or accepting a position

which involves substantial contact with children while dressed as chil-
dren's character
2) Defines "position", "children's character", and "substantial contact
with children"
3) Provides examples of such employment including but not limited to a
shopping mall event targeted towards children such as photos with Santa
4) Requires employers to check any potential employee seeking to assume
a position as a children's character that would require substantial
contact with children against the statewide registry of child abuse and
maltreatment, the statewide and national sex offender registries, and
the state and federal criminal history databases to ascertain if the
applicant has a conviction for sexual abuse of a child
5) Provides that any sex offender who applies for or accepts employment
in violation of this section will be guilty of a class A misdemeanor on
the first offense and a class D felony on a second or subsequent
conviction, and provides that any employer who knowingly employs a sex
offender in violation of this section shall, upon conviction, be guilty
of a class A misdemeanor.

Section 2: Effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Every year, hundreds of thousands of children around New York pose for
pictures with people dressed as Santa Claus, the Easter bunny, and other
children's characters at malls, festivals, and other events. In many
cases, the adults dressed as Santa or other children's characters are in
close physical contact with children, including having them sit on their
lap. But unlike most other instances where people work with children,
there is no requirement that people costumed as Santa and similar char-
acters be screened to see if they have a history of child sexual abuse.
Around the country, there have been incidents where sex offenders have
been hired as Santa, exposing children to significant risk. New York
needs to keep our children safe by requiring background checks for
anyone dressed as a children's character who interacts with children.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeeding the
date on which it shall have become a law.

2019-S7031 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7031
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Crime Victims,  Crime  and
   Correction
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the correction law, in relation to employment of sex
   offenders in a position involving substantial  contact  with  children
   while dressed as a children's character

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 168-w of the correction law, as relettered by chap-
 ter 604 of the laws of 2005, is renumbered 168-x and a new section 168-w
 is added to read as follows:
   § 168-W. EMPLOYMENT IN A POSITION INVOLVING SUBSTANTIAL  CONTACT  WITH
 CHILDREN  DRESSED  AS  A  CHILDREN'S CHARACTER. 1. NO SEX OFFENDER SHALL
 APPLY FOR OR ACCEPT A POSITION WHICH INVOLVES SUBSTANTIAL  CONTACT  WITH
 CHILDREN  WHILE  SAID  PERSON IS DRESSED AS A CHILDREN'S CHARACTER. SUCH
 POSITION SHALL INCLUDE ANY JOB, TASK OR OCCUPATION, WHICH BY ITS NATURE,
 REQUIRES A PERSON TO  BE  DRESSED  AS  A  CHILDREN'S  CHARACTER  AND  IN
 SUBSTANTIAL  CONTACT  WITH CHILDREN IN THE REGULAR PERFORMANCE OF HIS OR
 HER DUTIES OR DEALINGS IN SUCH POSITION. THIS SECTION SHALL  ALSO  APPLY
 TO  ANY PERSON SEEKING A PERMIT OR PERMISSION TO EXECUTE ANY ACTIVITY OR
 PERFORMANCE WHILE DRESSED AS A CHILDREN'S CHARACTER THAT WOULD PRESENT A
 DIRECT CONTACT WITH CHILDREN.
   2. AS USED IN THIS SECTION, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOW-
 ING MEANINGS:
   A. "POSITION" SHALL APPLY TO ANY PERSON SEEKING EMPLOYMENT EITHER PAID
 OR UNPAID, ANY PERSON SEEKING TO VOLUNTEER,  OR  ANY  PERSON  SEEKING  A
 PERMIT OR PERMISSION THAT WOULD PRESENT A SUBSTANTIAL CONTACT WITH CHIL-
 DREN WHILE DRESSED AS A CHILDREN'S CHARACTER.
   B.  "CHILDREN'S  CHARACTER" SHALL MEAN ANY COSTUME WORN BY A PERSON TO
 DEPICT A SPECIFIC CHARACTER TO CHILDREN AND SHALL  INCLUDE  BUT  NOT  BE
 LIMITED TO:
   I. LEGENDARY FIGURES SUCH AS SANTA CLAUS OR THE EASTER BUNNY;
   II. MYTHICAL CHARACTERS; AND

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14448-01-9

 S. 7031                             2
 
   III.  ANY SUCH SIMILAR CHILDREN'S CHARACTER THAT A PERSON MAY DRESS AS
 FOR A POSITION WHICH INVOLVES SUBSTANTIAL CONTACT WITH CHILDREN.
   C. "SUBSTANTIAL CONTACT WITH CHILDREN" SHALL MEAN ALLOWING CHILDREN TO
 SIT  ON  SUCH  PERSON  DRESSED AS A CHARACTER'S LAP, HAVING PHOTOS TAKEN
 WITH CHILDREN WHILE SUCH PERSON IS DRESSED AS A CHILDREN'S CHARACTER  OR
 ANY  OTHER  ACTIVITY  THAT INVOLVES PHYSICAL CONTACT WITH CHILDREN WHILE
 SUCH PERSON IS DRESSED AS A CHILDREN'S CHARACTER.
   3. EXAMPLES OF SUCH EMPLOYMENT SHALL INCLUDE, BUT SHALL NOT BE LIMITED
 TO, BEING DRESSED AS A CHILDREN'S CHARACTER AT:
   A. ANY SHOPPING MALL OR SHOPPING CENTER  EVENT  SPECIFICALLY  TARGETED
 TOWARD  CHILDREN  INTERACTING  WITH  SUCH  A  CHARACTER, SUCH AS BUT NOT
 LIMITED TO PHOTOS WITH SANTA;
   B. ANY STORE EVENT  THAT  IS  SPECIFICALLY  TARGETED  TOWARD  CHILDREN
 INTERACTING WITH SUCH A CHARACTER;
   C.  ANY  SUCH  SIMILAR  EVENT THAT PROMOTES ACTIVITIES TARGETED TOWARD
 CHILDREN INTERACTING WITH SUCH A CHARACTER.
   4. EMPLOYERS, ORGANIZATIONS AND GOVERNMENT ENTITIES SHALL HAVE  ACCESS
 TO  THE  STATEWIDE CENTRAL REGISTRY OF CHILD ABUSE AND MALTREATMENT, THE
 NEW YORK STATE SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY, THE  CRIMINAL  HISTORY  REPOSITORY
 WITH  THE  DIVISION  OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SERVICES, THE NATIONAL CRIMINAL
 REPOSITORY WITH THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION AND THE NATIONAL SEX
 OFFENDER REGISTRY USING  THE  NATIONAL  CRIME  AND  INFORMATION  CENTER,
 ESTABLISHED UNDER THE ADAM WALSH CHILD PROTECTION AND SAFETY ACT OF 2006
 (42  U.S.C.  16901  ET  SEQ)  FOR THE PURPOSE OF PERFORMING A BACKGROUND
 CHECK FOR ANY CONVICTIONS OF SEXUAL ABUSE OF A  CHILD.  EVERY  EMPLOYER,
 ORGANIZATION  AND  GOVERNMENT ENTITY SHALL CHECK ANY POTENTIAL EMPLOYEES
 SEEKING TO ASSUME A POSITION THAT WILL BE IN  SUBSTANTIAL  CONTACT  WITH
 CHILDREN DRESSED AS A CHILDREN'S CHARACTER AGAINST THE STATEWIDE CENTRAL
 REGISTRY  OF CHILD ABUSE AND MALTREATMENT, THE NEW YORK STATE SEX OFFEN-
 DER REGISTRY, THE CRIMINAL HISTORY REPOSITORY WITH THE DIVISION OF CRIM-
 INAL JUSTICE SERVICES, THE NATIONAL CRIMINAL REPOSITORY WITH THE FEDERAL
 BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION AND THE NATIONAL SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY USING THE
 NATIONAL CRIME AND INFORMATION CENTER, ESTABLISHED UNDER THE ADAM  WALSH
 CHILD  PROTECTION  AND  SAFETY  ACT  OF 2006 (42 U.S.C. 16901 ET SEQ) TO
 ASCERTAIN IF SAID PERSON HAS A CONVICTION FOR SEXUAL ABUSE OF A CHILD.
   5. A. ANY SEX OFFENDER  WHO  APPLIES  FOR  OR  ACCEPTS  EMPLOYMENT  IN
 VIOLATION  OF THIS SECTION SHALL BE GUILTY OF A CLASS A MISDEMEANOR UPON
 THE FIRST CONVICTION THEREOF, AND UPON A SECOND OR SUBSEQUENT CONVICTION
 THEREOF SHALL BE GUILTY OF A CLASS D FELONY.
   B. ANY EMPLOYER WHO KNOWINGLY EMPLOYS A SEX OFFENDER IN  VIOLATION  OF
 THIS SECTION SHALL, UPON CONVICTION, BE GUILTY OF A CLASS A MISDEMEANOR.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.

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