S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
9191
I N A S S E M B L Y
February 12, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. HEVESI -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Children and Families
AN ACT to amend the social services law and the family court act, in
relation to prohibiting the removal of children into child protective
custody based solely on conditions of poverty
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 417 of the social services law, as
amended by chapter 677 of the laws of 1985, paragraph (a) as amended by
chapter 329 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
1. (a) Pursuant to the requirements and provisions of the family court
act, a peace officer, acting pursuant to his or her special duties, a
police officer, a law enforcement official, or a designated employee of
a city or county department of social services, or an agent or employee
of an Indian tribe that has entered into an agreement with the depart-
ment pursuant to section thirty-nine of this chapter to provide child
protective services shall take all appropriate measures to protect a
child's life and health including, when appropriate, taking or keeping a
child in protective custody without the consent of a parent or guardian
if such person has reasonable cause to believe that the circumstances or
condition of the child are such that continuing in his or her place of
residence or in the care and custody of the parent, guardian, custodian
or other person responsible for the child's care presents an imminent
danger to the child's life or health. PROVIDED, HOWEVER, NO CHILD SHALL
BE TAKEN INTO PROTECTIVE CUSTODY BASED SOLELY ON CONDITIONS OF POVERTY,
INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE INABILITY TO PROVIDE OR OBTAIN CLOTH-
ING, HOME OR PROPERTY REPAIR, OR CHILDCARE, UNLESS THERE IS WILLFUL OR
NEGLIGENT ACTION OR FAILURE TO ACT AND A NEXUS TO HARM SUCH THAT THE
CHILD HAS SUFFERED OR THERE IS A SUBSTANTIAL RISK THE CHILD WILL SUFFER
SERIOUS PHYSICAL, MENTAL, OR EMOTIONAL IMPAIRMENT.
(b) Any physician shall notify the appropriate police authorities or
the local child protective service to take custody of any child such
physician is treating whether or not additional medical treatment is
required, if such physician has reasonable cause to believe that the
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13989-02-4
A. 9191 2
circumstances or condition of the child are such that continuing in his
OR HER place of residence or in the care and custody of the parent,
guardian, custodian or other person responsible for the child's care
presents an imminent danger to the child's life or health. PROVIDED,
HOWEVER, CONDITIONS OF POVERTY, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
INABILITY TO PROVIDE OR OBTAIN CLOTHING, HOME OR PROPERTY REPAIR, OR
CHILDCARE, SHALL NOT BE THE SOLE DETERMINING FACTOR WHEN PROVIDING
NOTIFICATION TO THE APPROPRIATE POLICE AUTHORITIES OR THE LOCAL CHILD
PROTECTIVE SERVICE UNLESS THERE IS WILLFUL OR NEGLIGENT ACTION OR FAIL-
URE TO ACT AND A NEXUS TO HARM SUCH THAT THE CHILD HAS SUFFERED OR THERE
IS A SUBSTANTIAL RISK THE CHILD WILL SUFFER SERIOUS PHYSICAL, MENTAL, OR
EMOTIONAL IMPAIRMENT.
§ 2. Section 1021 of the family court act, as amended by section 12 of
part A of chapter 3 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
§ 1021. Temporary removal with consent. A peace officer, acting pursu-
ant to his or her special duties, or a police officer or an agent of a
duly authorized agency, association, society or institution may tempo-
rarily remove a child from the place where he or she is residing with
the written consent of his or her parent or other person legally respon-
sible for his or her care, if the child is suspected to be an abused or
neglected child under this article. PROVIDED HOWEVER, NO CHILD SHALL BE
REMOVED BASED SOLELY ON CONDITIONS OF POVERTY, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED
TO THE INABILITY TO PROVIDE OR OBTAIN CLOTHING, HOME OR PROPERTY REPAIR,
OR CHILDCARE, UNLESS THERE IS WILLFUL OR NEGLIGENT ACTION OR FAILURE TO
ACT AND A NEXUS TO HARM SUCH THAT THE CHILD HAS SUFFERED OR THERE IS A
SUBSTANTIAL RISK THE CHILD WILL SUFFER SERIOUS PHYSICAL, MENTAL, OR
EMOTIONAL IMPAIRMENT. The officer or agent shall, coincident with
consent or removal, give written notice to the parent or other person
legally responsible for the child's care of the right to apply to the
family court for the return of the child pursuant to section one thou-
sand twenty-eight of this [article] PART, and of the right to be repres-
ented by counsel and the procedures for those who are indigent to obtain
counsel in proceedings brought pursuant to this article. Such notice
shall also include the name, title, organization, address and telephone
number of the person removing the child; the name, address and telephone
number of the authorized agency to which the child will be taken, if
available; and the telephone number of the person to be contacted for
visits with the child. A copy of the instrument whereby the parent or
legally responsible person has given such consent to such removal shall
be appended to the petition alleging abuse or neglect of the removed
child and made a part of the permanent court record of the proceeding. A
copy of such instrument and notice of the telephone number of the child
protective agency to contact to ascertain the date, time and place of
the filing of the petition and of the hearing that will be held pursuant
to section one thousand twenty-seven of this [article] PART shall be
given to the parent or legally responsible person. Unless the child is
returned sooner, a petition shall be filed within three court days from
the date of removal. In such a case, a hearing shall be held no later
than the next court day after the petition is filed and findings shall
be made as required pursuant to section one thousand twenty-seven of
this [article] PART.
§ 3. Paragraph (i) of subdivision (a) of section 1022 of the family
court act, as amended by section 13 of part A of chapter 3 of the laws
of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
(i) The family court may enter an order directing the temporary
removal of a child from the place where he or she is residing before the
A. 9191 3
filing of a petition under this article, if (A) the parent or other
person legally responsible for the child's care is absent or, though
present, was asked and refused to consent to the temporary removal of
the child and was informed of an intent to apply for an order under this
section and of the information required by section one thousand twenty-
three of this part; and
(B) the child appears so to suffer from the abuse or neglect of his or
her parent or other person legally responsible for his or her care that
his or her immediate removal is necessary to avoid imminent danger to
the child's life or health; PROVIDED HOWEVER, NO CHILD SHALL BE REMOVED
BASED SOLELY ON CONDITIONS OF POVERTY, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE
INABILITY TO PROVIDE OR OBTAIN CLOTHING, HOME OR PROPERTY REPAIR, OR
CHILDCARE, UNLESS THERE IS WILLFUL OR NEGLIGENT ACTION OR FAILURE TO ACT
AND A NEXUS TO HARM SUCH THAT THE CHILD HAS SUFFERED OR THERE IS A
SUBSTANTIAL RISK THE CHILD WILL SUFFER SERIOUS PHYSICAL, MENTAL, OR
EMOTIONAL IMPAIRMENT; and
(C) there is not enough time to file a petition and hold a preliminary
hearing under section one thousand twenty-seven of this part.
§ 4. Subdivision (a) of section 1024 of the family court act, as
amended by chapter 329 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as
follows:
(a) A peace officer, acting pursuant to his or her special duties,
police officer, or a law enforcement official, or a designated employee
of a city or county department of social services shall take all neces-
sary measures to protect a child's life or health including, when appro-
priate, taking or keeping a child in protective custody, and any physi-
cian shall notify the local department of social services or appropriate
police authorities to take custody of any child such physician is treat-
ing, without an order under section one thousand twenty-two of this
[article] PART and without the consent of the parent or other person
legally responsible for the child's care, regardless of whether the
parent or other person legally responsible for the child's care is
absent, if (i) such person has reasonable cause to believe that the
child is in such circumstance or condition that his or her continuing in
said place of residence or in the care and custody of the parent or
person legally responsible for the child's care presents an imminent
danger to the child's life or health; PROVIDED HOWEVER, NO CHILD SHALL
BE REMOVED BASED SOLELY ON CONDITIONS OF POVERTY, INCLUDING BUT NOT
LIMITED TO THE INABILITY TO PROVIDE OR OBTAIN CLOTHING, HOME OR PROPERTY
REPAIR, OR CHILDCARE, UNLESS THERE IS WILLFUL OR NEGLIGENT ACTION OR
FAILURE TO ACT AND A NEXUS TO HARM SUCH THAT THE CHILD HAS SUFFERED OR
THERE IS A SUBSTANTIAL RISK THE CHILD WILL SUFFER SERIOUS PHYSICAL,
MENTAL, OR EMOTIONAL IMPAIRMENT; and
(ii) there is not time enough to apply for an order under section one
thousand twenty-two of this [article] PART.
§ 5. This act shall take effect immediately.