Bill Text: NY A09191 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Provides that, 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 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.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 15-3)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-30 - enacting clause stricken [A09191 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A09191-Introduced.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          9191

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    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:

     1    Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 417 of the social services law, as
     2  amended by chapter 677 of the laws of 1985, paragraph (a) as amended  by
     3  chapter 329 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
     4    1. (a) Pursuant to the requirements and provisions of the family court
     5  act,  a  peace  officer, acting pursuant to his or her special duties, a
     6  police officer, a law enforcement official, or a designated employee  of
     7  a  city or county department of social services, or an agent or employee
     8  of an Indian tribe that has entered into an agreement with  the  depart-
     9  ment  pursuant  to  section thirty-nine of this chapter to provide child
    10  protective services shall take all appropriate  measures  to  protect  a
    11  child's life and health including, when appropriate, taking or keeping a
    12  child  in protective custody without the consent of a parent or guardian
    13  if such person has reasonable cause to believe that the circumstances or
    14  condition of the child are such that continuing in his or her  place  of
    15  residence  or in the care and custody of the parent, guardian, custodian
    16  or other person responsible for the child's care  presents  an  imminent
    17  danger to the child's life or health.  Provided, however, no child shall
    18  be  taken into protective custody based solely on conditions of poverty,
    19  including but not limited to the inability to provide or  obtain  cloth-
    20  ing,  home  or property repair, or childcare, unless there is willful or
    21  negligent action or failure to act and a nexus to  harm  such  that  the
    22  child  has suffered or there is a substantial risk the child will suffer
    23  serious physical, mental, or emotional impairment.
    24    (b) Any physician shall notify the appropriate police  authorities  or
    25  the  local  child  protective  service to take custody of any child such
    26  physician is treating whether or not  additional  medical  treatment  is
    27  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

     1  circumstances or condition of the child are such that continuing in  his
     2  or  her  place  of  residence  or in the care and custody of the parent,
     3  guardian, custodian or other person responsible  for  the  child's  care
     4  presents  an  imminent  danger to the child's life or health.  Provided,
     5  however, conditions of  poverty,  including  but  not  limited  to,  the
     6  inability  to  provide  or  obtain clothing, home or property repair, or
     7  childcare, shall not be  the  sole  determining  factor  when  providing
     8  notification  to  the  appropriate police authorities or the local child
     9  protective service unless there is willful or negligent action or  fail-
    10  ure to act and a nexus to harm such that the child has suffered or there
    11  is a substantial risk the child will suffer serious physical, mental, or
    12  emotional impairment.
    13    § 2. Section 1021 of the family court act, as amended by section 12 of
    14  part A of chapter 3 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
    15    § 1021. Temporary removal with consent. A peace officer, acting pursu-
    16  ant  to  his or her special duties, or a police officer or an agent of a
    17  duly authorized agency, association, society or institution  may  tempo-
    18  rarily  remove  a  child from the place where he or she is residing with
    19  the written consent of his or her parent or other person legally respon-
    20  sible for his or her care, if the child is suspected to be an abused  or
    21  neglected child under this article.  Provided however, no child shall be
    22  removed based solely on conditions of poverty, including but not limited
    23  to the inability to provide or obtain clothing, home or property repair,
    24  or  childcare, unless there is willful or negligent action or failure to
    25  act and a nexus to harm such that the child has suffered or there  is  a
    26  substantial  risk  the  child  will  suffer serious physical, mental, or
    27  emotional impairment.  The  officer  or  agent  shall,  coincident  with
    28  consent  or  removal,  give written notice to the parent or other person
    29  legally responsible for the child's care of the right to  apply  to  the
    30  family  court  for the return of the child pursuant to section one thou-
    31  sand twenty-eight of this [article] part, and of the right to be repres-
    32  ented by counsel and the procedures for those who are indigent to obtain
    33  counsel in proceedings brought pursuant to  this  article.  Such  notice
    34  shall  also include the name, title, organization, address and telephone
    35  number of the person removing the child; the name, address and telephone
    36  number of the authorized agency to which the child  will  be  taken,  if
    37  available;  and  the  telephone number of the person to be contacted for
    38  visits with the child. A copy of the instrument whereby  the  parent  or
    39  legally  responsible person has given such consent to such removal shall
    40  be appended to the petition alleging abuse or  neglect  of  the  removed
    41  child and made a part of the permanent court record of the proceeding. A
    42  copy  of such instrument and notice of the telephone number of the child
    43  protective agency to contact to ascertain the date, time  and  place  of
    44  the filing of the petition and of the hearing that will be held pursuant
    45  to  section  one  thousand  twenty-seven of this [article] part shall be
    46  given to the parent or legally responsible person. Unless the  child  is
    47  returned  sooner, a petition shall be filed within three court days from
    48  the date of removal. In such a case, a hearing shall be  held  no  later
    49  than  the  next court day after the petition is filed and findings shall
    50  be made as required pursuant to section  one  thousand  twenty-seven  of
    51  this [article] part.
    52    §  3.  Paragraph  (i) of subdivision (a) of section 1022 of the family
    53  court act, as amended by section 13 of part A of chapter 3 of  the  laws
    54  of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
    55    (i)  The  family  court  may  enter  an  order directing the temporary
    56  removal of a child from the place where he or she is residing before the

        A. 9191                             3

     1  filing of a petition under this article, if  (A)  the  parent  or  other
     2  person  legally  responsible  for  the child's care is absent or, though
     3  present, was asked and refused to consent to the  temporary  removal  of
     4  the child and was informed of an intent to apply for an order under this
     5  section  and of the information required by section one thousand twenty-
     6  three of this part; and
     7    (B) the child appears so to suffer from the abuse or neglect of his or
     8  her parent or other person legally responsible for his or her care  that
     9  his  or  her  immediate removal is necessary to avoid imminent danger to
    10  the child's life or health; provided however, no child shall be  removed
    11  based  solely on conditions of poverty, including but not limited to the
    12  inability to provide or obtain clothing, home  or  property  repair,  or
    13  childcare, unless there is willful or negligent action or failure to act
    14  and  a  nexus  to  harm  such  that the child has suffered or there is a
    15  substantial risk the child will  suffer  serious  physical,  mental,  or
    16  emotional impairment; and
    17    (C) there is not enough time to file a petition and hold a preliminary
    18  hearing under section one thousand twenty-seven of this part.
    19    §  4.  Subdivision  (a)  of  section  1024 of the family court act, as
    20  amended by chapter 329 of the laws  of  2009,  is  amended  to  read  as
    21  follows:
    22    (a)  A  peace  officer,  acting pursuant to his or her special duties,
    23  police officer, or a law enforcement official, or a designated  employee
    24  of  a city or county department of social services shall take all neces-
    25  sary measures to protect a child's life or health including, when appro-
    26  priate, taking or keeping a child in protective custody, and any  physi-
    27  cian shall notify the local department of social services or appropriate
    28  police authorities to take custody of any child such physician is treat-
    29  ing,  without  an  order  under  section one thousand twenty-two of this
    30  [article] part and without the consent of the  parent  or  other  person
    31  legally  responsible  for  the  child's  care, regardless of whether the
    32  parent or other person legally  responsible  for  the  child's  care  is
    33  absent,  if  (i)  such  person  has reasonable cause to believe that the
    34  child is in such circumstance or condition that his or her continuing in
    35  said place of residence or in the care and  custody  of  the  parent  or
    36  person  legally  responsible  for  the child's care presents an imminent
    37  danger to the child's life or health; provided however, no  child  shall
    38  be  removed  based  solely  on  conditions of poverty, including but not
    39  limited to the inability to provide or obtain clothing, home or property
    40  repair, or childcare, unless there is willful  or  negligent  action  or
    41  failure  to  act and a nexus to harm such that the child has suffered or
    42  there is a substantial risk the  child  will  suffer  serious  physical,
    43  mental, or emotional impairment; and
    44    (ii)  there is not time enough to apply for an order under section one
    45  thousand twenty-two of this [article] part.
    46    § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
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