Legislation

§ 3201-b. Denial of a free public education prohibited; additional
prohibited practices. 1. For purposes of this section, the following
terms shall have the following meanings:

(a) "School" includes a school district, public school, charter
school, board of cooperative educational services, special act school
district as defined in section four thousand one of this chapter, or
state-operated school. For the purposes of subdivisions three through
eleven of this section, school also includes universal pre-kindergarten
programs authorized under this chapter that are operated by schools on
school property.

(b) "School property" means: in or within any building, structure,
athletic playing field, playground, parking lot, or land contained
within the real property boundary line of a school; or in or on a school
bus, as defined in section one hundred forty-two of the vehicle and
traffic law.

(c) "School function" means a school sponsored event or activity,
including if such event or activity occurs outside of school property.

(d) "Immigration authority" has the same meaning as such term is
defined in section three hundred nineteen of the executive law.

(e) "Immigration enforcement" has the same meaning as such term is
defined in section three hundred nineteen of the executive law.

(f) "Child" means a person entitled to attend the public schools of
this state under section three thousand two hundred two of this part.

(g) "School personnel" means any employee, agent, officer, or school
resource officer of a school or any volunteer or employee of any firm,
corporation, institution, or governmental agency who works on school
property.

(h) "School resource officer" means a school resource officer, school
safety officer, school security official, or any other substantially
similar position or office whose purpose is to provide improved public
safety and/or security on school property.

(i) "Immigration detainer" means any document, form, or other
communication requesting or directing that a school or school personnel
detain or maintain custody of an individual, for any period of time, for
pickup by or transfer to immigration authorities.

(j) "Civil immigration warrant" means any warrant for a violation of
civil immigration law that is not issued by a judge appointed pursuant
to Article III of the United States Constitution or a federal magistrate
judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 631.

(k) "Municipal government" means a municipal corporation or a
governing board as defined in section two of the general municipal law.

2. (a) No child shall be denied a free public education.
Notwithstanding any general, special or local law, rule or regulation of
the education department to the contrary, no child shall be refused
admission into, be deterred from participation in, have their admission
delayed to, or be excluded from any school in the state of New York on
account of such child's perceived or actual citizenship or immigration
status or the perceived or actual citizenship or immigration status of a
person in a parental relationship to such child.

(b) No school or school personnel shall undertake any action or use
any policies that have the intent or effect of deterring a student from
participation in or denying a student the benefits of any program or
activity on account of such student's perceived or actual citizenship or
immigration status or the perceived or actual citizenship or immigration
status of a person in a parental relationship to such student.

(c) No school or school personnel shall use policies or procedures or
engage in practices that have the intent or effect of excluding
participation of a person in a parental relationship to a student from
parental engagement activities or programs on account of their perceived
or actual citizenship or immigration status.

3. No school or school personnel shall:

(a) use school resources, including, but not limited to, time spent
while on duty on school property or at a school function for immigration
enforcement purposes;

(b) disclose any information, including actual records, about the
actual or perceived citizenship or immigration status of a student or a
person in a parental relationship to such student to any other person or
entity, including an immigration authority or any employee thereof,
except to comply with a court order issued by a judge appointed pursuant
to Article III of the United States Constitution or a federal magistrate
judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 631, or a judicial warrant
issued by a judge appointed pursuant to Article III of the United States
Constitution or federal magistrate judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
§ 631;

(c) threaten to disclose any information, including actual records,
about the actual or perceived citizenship or immigration status of a
student or a person associated with such student to any other person or
entity, including an immigration authority or any employee thereof;

(d) disclose to an immigration authority or any employee thereof the
personally identifiable information of a student or a person in a
parental relationship to such student, including, but not limited to,
name, social security number, physical description, associated
addresses, telephone number, financial information, medical information,
or place of employment or education except to comply with a court order
issued by a judge appointed pursuant to Article III of the United States
Constitution or a federal magistrate judge appointed pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 631, or a judicial warrant issued by a judge appointed pursuant
to Article III of the United States Constitution or federal magistrate
judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 631 or unless otherwise required
by law;

(e) inquire about a student or a person in a parental relationship to
such student about such person's citizenship, immigration status,
nationality, or country of origin, except to comply with a court order
issued by a judge appointed pursuant to Article III of the United States
Constitution or a federal magistrate judge appointed pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 631, or a judicial warrant issued by a judge appointed pursuant
to Article III of the United States Constitution or federal magistrate
judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 631; or as necessary to
administer a public program or benefit sought by such person; or when
registering an individual to vote and other election related matters; or
as otherwise required by law;

(f) collect information from a student or a person in a parental
relationship to such student about such student's or person's
citizenship, immigration status, nationality, or national origin except
to comply with a court order issued by a judge appointed pursuant to
Article III of the United States Constitution or a federal magistrate
judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 631, or a judicial warrant
issued by a judge appointed pursuant to Article III of the United States
Constitution or federal magistrate judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
§ 631; or as necessary to administer a public program or benefit sought
by such person; or when registering an individual to vote and other
election related matters; or as otherwise required by law;

(g) designate immigration status, citizenship, nationality, or
national origin as directory information; or

(h) employ registration and enrollment requirements or procedures that
have the intent or effect of disproportionately delaying or denying the
enrollment of non-citizen students.

4. (a) No school or school personnel shall grant permission to access
or facilitate access to non-public areas of school property or
facilities owned or operated by or under the control of a school to any
immigration authority engaging in immigration enforcement unless
presented with a judicial warrant signed by a judge appointed pursuant
to Article III of the United States Constitution or federal magistrate
judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 631, authorizing a search or
seeking the arrest of an individual present at the time the judicial
warrant is presented, or as otherwise required by law.

(b) Civil immigration warrants, immigration detainers, notices to
appear, or other non-judicial documents shall not constitute sufficient
authority to authorize an immigration authority or any employee thereof
to access non-public areas of school property or facilities owned or
operated by or under the control of a school for the purpose of engaging
in immigration enforcement.

5. (a) No school or school personnel shall grant permission for or
facilitate the release, transfer, surrender, escort of, or otherwise
deliver, a student into the custody of an immigration authority or any
employee thereof solely on the basis that a person in a parental
relationship to such student has been arrested, detained, or taken into
federal custody, unless there is a judicial warrant or court order,
issued by a federal or state court of competent jurisdiction,
specifically authorizing the removal, detention, or assumption of
custody of the student by an immigration authority or any employee
thereof.

(b) Civil immigration warrants, immigration detainers, notices to
appear, or other non-judicial documents shall not constitute sufficient
authority to release, transfer, surrender, escort, or otherwise deliver
a student into the custody of an immigration authority or any employee
thereof.

(c) (i) No school or school personnel shall assist immigration
authorities in locating, questioning, or detaining a student unless
presented with court orders issued by a judge appointed pursuant to
Article III of the United States Constitution or a federal magistrate
judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 631, or judicial warrants issued
by a judge appointed pursuant to Article III of the United States
Constitution or federal magistrate judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
§ 631, or to comply with requirements under existing law.

(ii) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit, restrict, or
impair the authority of state or local law enforcement to apprehend,
detain, or take into custody any individual, including a minor, pursuant
to a judicial warrant, court order, or lawful criminal investigation
conducted in accordance with applicable New York state criminal law and
procedure.

6. No school personnel shall use an immigration authority or any
employee thereof as interpreters or translators for law enforcement
matters relating to individuals that schools or such school personnel
interact with as part of their employment duties.

7. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to prohibit
or restrict a school or school personnel from sending to or receiving
from the United States department of homeland security or any other
federal, state, or local governmental entity information regarding the
citizenship or immigration status of an individual under 8 U.S.C. § 1373
and 8 U.S.C. § 1644.

8. The provisions of this section shall not prohibit school or school
personnel from complying with court orders or judicial warrants issued
by a judge appointed pursuant to Article III of the United States
Constitution or federal magistrate judge appointed pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
§ 631.

9. The provisions of this section shall apply notwithstanding any
other provisions of state or local law, charter, code, ordinance,
resolution, rule, or regulation to the contrary and shall not be
construed to in any way expand the authority of schools or school
personnel to participate in immigration enforcement. Provided, however,
that nothing in this article shall be construed to prevent or restrict a
municipal government or school from adopting, enacting, or enforcing
local policies, laws, resolutions, ordinances, or regulations which
comply with at least the applicable standards or requirements of this
section, or which exceed the provisions of this section, or which
further restrict the ability of schools or school personnel to
participate in immigration enforcement beyond the requirements set forth
in the chapter of the laws of two thousand twenty-six that added this
section.

10. Within forty-five days of the effective date of this section, the
department shall develop and publish on the department's website model
procedures that shall comply with the requirements of this section.

11. Within sixty days of the date the model procedures are published
on the department's website pursuant to subdivision ten of this section,
each school shall verify to the commissioner that they have developed
and implemented procedures that comply with the department's model
procedures and the requirements of this section, which shall include,
but not be limited to, procedures for reviewing and authorizing requests
from immigration authorities to enter school property or to take custody
of a student, including designating an individual who is responsible for
reviewing such requests, and procedures for notifying parents and
persons in a parental relationship about the rights of and protections
for students, parents, and persons in a parental relationship provided
by this section. Such procedures shall identify the actions the school
will take if the school or school personnel become aware that a person
in a parental relationship to a student will be unavailable to retrieve
the student from school or a school function because a person in a
parental relationship to the student has been detained by immigration
authorities or the student is not picked up as scheduled, and such
student is in need of an alternate plan for pickup. Such procedures
shall include, at a minimum, that the school shall not contact the
statewide central register for child abuse and maltreatment unless the
school has made reasonable efforts to contact all known individuals
authorized to retrieve the student and that the school will retain the
student on the premises until the student is picked up by an individual
authorized by the person in a parental relationship to such student or
by law.