Bill Text: NY A01255 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to placement of former foster care youth during a certain state of emergency.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Passed) 2021-02-16 - signed chap.34 [A01255 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A01255-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1255

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                     January 7, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. HEVESI -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Children and Families

        AN  ACT  to amend the family court act and a chapter of the laws of 2020
          amending the family court act, relating to the placement of  a  former
          foster  care youth during a certain state of emergency, as proposed in
          legislative bills numbers S.8834 and A.10581-B, in relation to  place-
          ment  without  a  motion  and motions being heard and determined on an
          expedited basis and in relation to the effectiveness thereof

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Subdivision (e) of section 1055 of the family court act, as
     2  amended  by a chapter of the laws of 2020 amending the family court act,
     3  relating to the placement of a former foster care youth during a certain
     4  state of emergency, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S.8834  and
     5  A.10581-B, is amended to read as follows:
     6    (e)  (i)  No  placement  may  be  made or continued under this section
     7  beyond the child's eighteenth birthday without his or her consent and in
     8  no event past his or her twenty-first birthday. However, a former foster
     9  care youth under the age of twenty-one  who  was  previously  discharged
    10  from  foster  care due to a failure to consent to continuation of place-
    11  ment may make a motion pursuant to section one  thousand  ninety-one  of
    12  this  act  to  return to the custody of the local commissioner of social
    13  services or other officer, board or  department  authorized  to  receive
    14  children  as  public  charges. In such motion, the youth must consent to
    15  enrollment in and attendance at a vocational or educational  program  in
    16  accordance with paragraph two of subdivision (a) of section one thousand
    17  ninety-one of this act.
    18    (ii)  Provided,  however,  that during the state of emergency declared
    19  pursuant to Executive Order 202 of 2020, or any extension or  subsequent
    20  executive  order  issued in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19)
    21  pandemic[, a]:

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD07142-01-1
        A. 1255                             2

     1   (A) A former foster care youth under the  age  of  twenty-one  who  was
     2  previously  discharged  from  foster care due to a failure to consent to
     3  continuation of placement pursuant to section one thousand ninety-one of
     4  this act may:
     5    (1)  make a motion pursuant to section one thousand ninety-one of this
     6  act to return to  the  custody  of  the  local  commissioner  of  social
     7  services  or  other  officer,  board or department authorized to receive
     8  children as public charges which shall be heard  and  determined  on  an
     9  expedited basis; or
    10    (2)  request  to  return  to  the custody of the local commissioner of
    11  social services or other officer,  board  or  department  authorized  to
    12  receive  children  as public charges without making a motion pursuant to
    13  section one thousand ninety-one of this act [and].
    14    (B) To the extent federally allowable, any requirement  to  enroll  in
    15  and  attend  a vocational or educational program shall be waived for the
    16  duration of [the] such state of emergency[; provided  further,  however,
    17  that during a].
    18    (C)  During  such state of emergency, the local commissioner of social
    19  services or other officer, board or  department  authorized  to  receive
    20  children  as  public  charges  shall  be authorized to place such former
    21  foster care youth requesting to return to foster  care  placement[;  and
    22  provided  further,  however,  that  the  local  commissioner  of  social
    23  services or other officer, board or  department  authorized  to  receive
    24  children  as  public charges] without obtaining prior court approval and
    25  shall[, when determining whether to return such former foster care youth
    26  to foster care placement, take into consideration the factors the  court
    27  would take into consideration upon making such a determination to return
    28  a  child to foster care placement pursuant to section one thousand nine-
    29  ty-one of this act] grant that request upon  a  determination  that  the
    30  youth  has  met the requirements of subdivision (a) of section one thou-
    31  sand ninety-one of this act. Upon placement  of  a  former  foster  care
    32  youth  pursuant  to  this  paragraph, the agency shall file a motion for
    33  judicial approval of the placement  pursuant  to  section  one  thousand
    34  ninety-one of this act and to schedule the next permanency hearing.
    35    (D)  To the extent a former foster care youth is denied the request to
    36  return to the custody of the local commissioner of social  services,  or
    37  other  board  or  department  authorized  to  receive children as public
    38  charges pursuant to this paragraph,  [the]  nothing  in  this  paragraph
    39  shall  preclude  such  youth  [shall still have the opportunity to file]
    40  from subsequently filing a motion as authorized pursuant to section  one
    41  thousand  ninety-one  of  this  act, and the family court shall hear and
    42  determine such motion on an expedited basis.
    43    § 2. The opening paragraph of section 1091 of the family court act, as
    44  amended by a chapter of the laws of 2020 amending the family court  act,
    45  relating to the placement of a former foster care youth during a certain
    46  state  of emergency, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S.8834 and
    47  A.10581-B, is amended to read as follows:
    48    A motion to return a former foster care youth under the age  of  twen-
    49  ty-one,  who was discharged from foster care due to a failure to consent
    50  to continuation of placement, to the custody of the  local  commissioner
    51  of  social  services or other officer, board or department authorized to
    52  receive children as public charges, may be made by  such  former  foster
    53  care  youth,  or by a local social services official upon the consent of
    54  such former foster care youth, if there is a compelling reason for  such
    55  former  foster  care  youth  to return to foster care; provided however,
    56  that the court shall not entertain  a  motion  filed  after  twenty-four
        A. 1255                             3

     1  months  from  the  date of the first final discharge that occurred on or
     2  after the former  foster  care  youth's  eighteenth  birthday;  provided
     3  further,  however,  that during the state of emergency declared pursuant
     4  to  Executive Order 202 of 2020 or any extension or subsequent executive
     5  order issued in response to the novel coronavirus  (COVID-19)  pandemic,
     6  such  motion  shall  be  heard  and  determined  on  an expedited basis;
     7  provided further, a former foster care youth shall be entitled to return
     8  to the custody of the local commissioner of  social  services  or  other
     9  officer,  board  or  department authorized to receive children as public
    10  charges without making a motion pursuant to this  section  and,  to  the
    11  extent  federally  allowable, any requirement to enroll in and attend an
    12  educational or vocational program shall be waived for  the  duration  of
    13  [the]  such  state of emergency.   Subsequent to a former foster youth's
    14  return to placement without making a motion, as  authorized  under  this
    15  section  during  the  state  of emergency declared pursuant to Executive
    16  Order 202 of 2020 or any extension or subsequent executive order  issued
    17  in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, nothing herein
    18  shall  prohibit  the local social services district from filing a motion
    19  for requisite findings needed to subsequently claim reimbursement  under
    20  Title  IV-E  of  the  federal social security act to support the youth's
    21  care, and the family court shall hear and determine such motions  on  an
    22  expedited basis.
    23    §  3.  Section  3 of a chapter of the laws of 2020 amending the family
    24  court act, relating to the placement  of  a  former  foster  care  youth
    25  during  a  certain  state of emergency, as proposed in legislative bills
    26  numbers S.8834 and A.10581-B, is amended to read as follows:
    27    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall  expire  on  the
    28  same  date  and  in  the  same manner as the state of emergency declared
    29  pursuant to executive order 202 of 2020 or any extension  or  subsequent
    30  executive  order  issued in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19)
    31  pandemic when upon such date the provisions of this act shall be  deemed
    32  repealed; provided, however, that:
    33    a.  any request by a former foster care youth under the age of twenty-
    34  one who was previously discharged from foster care due to a  failure  to
    35  consent  to  continuation  of  placement pursuant to section 1091 of the
    36  family court act to return to the custody of the local  commissioner  of
    37  social  services  or  other  officer,  board or department authorized to
    38  receive children as public charges that has been received but not final-
    39  ly decided by such date shall  be  determined  in  accordance  with  the
    40  provisions of this act; and
    41    b.  effective  immediately, the office of children and family services
    42  and the office of court administration are hereby authorized to  promul-
    43  gate  such  rules  and  regulations as may be necessary to implement the
    44  provisions of this act on an emergency basis.
    45    § 4.  This act shall take effect on the same  date  and  in  the  same
    46  manner  as  a chapter of the laws of 2020 amending the family court act,
    47  relating to the placement of a former foster care youth during a certain
    48  state of emergency, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S.8834  and
    49  A.10581-B, takes effect.