Bill Text: NY A01987 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended

New York Assembly Bill 1987 (Prior Session Legislation)

NY State Legislature page for A01987

Bill Title: Requires the office of children and family services to examine the call history prior to making any determinations to report incidents of child abuse.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 15-0)

Status: (Passed) 2014-09-23 - signed chap.357 [A01987 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-A01987-Amended.html

                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        1987--A
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                      (PREFILED)
                                    January 9, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  M. of A. TITUS, WRIGHT, ABBATE, KAVANAGH, GALEF, HEVESI,
         LUPARDO -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. CAHILL, COOK, GUNTHER, HOOP-
         ER, MILLMAN, SWEENEY -- read once and referred  to  the  Committee  on
         Children  and Families -- recommitted to the Committee on Children and
         Families in accordance with Assembly  Rule  3,  sec.  2  --  committee
         discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
         to said committee
       AN  ACT  to amend the social services law, in relation to determinations
         made by the statewide central register of child abuse and maltreatment
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.    Paragraph  (a)  of  subdivision 2 of section 422 of the
    2  social services law, as amended by chapter 574 of the laws of  2008,  is
    3  amended to read as follows:
    4    (a) The central register shall be capable of receiving telephone calls
    5  alleging  child  abuse  or  maltreatment  and of immediately identifying
    6  prior reports of child abuse or maltreatment and capable  of  monitoring
    7  the provision of child protective service twenty-four hours a day, seven
    8  days  a  week. To effectuate this purpose, but subject to the provisions
    9  of the appropriate local plan for  the  provision  of  child  protective
   10  services,  there  shall  be a single statewide telephone number that all
   11  persons, whether mandated by the law or not, may use to  make  telephone
   12  calls  alleging  child  abuse  or  maltreatment  and that all persons so
   13  authorized by this title may use for determining the existence of  prior
   14  reports  in order to evaluate the condition or circumstances of a child.
   15  In addition to the single statewide telephone number, there shall  be  a
   16  special  unlisted  express  telephone  number  and a telephone facsimile
   17  number for use only by persons mandated by law to make telephone  calls,
   18  or to transmit telephone facsimile information on a form provided by the
   19  commissioner  OF  CHILDREN  AND FAMILY SERVICES, alleging child abuse or
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD01751-04-4
       A. 1987--A                          2
    1  maltreatment, and for use by all persons so authorized by this title for
    2  determining the existence of prior reports  in  order  to  evaluate  the
    3  condition or circumstances of a child. When any allegations contained in
    4  such telephone calls could reasonably constitute a report of child abuse
    5  or  maltreatment,  such  allegations  AND  ANY  PREVIOUS  REPORTS TO THE
    6  CENTRAL REGISTRY INVOLVING THE SUBJECT OF SUCH REPORT OR CHILDREN  NAMED
    7  IN  SUCH REPORT, INCLUDING ANY PREVIOUS REPORT CONTAINING ALLEGATIONS OF
    8  CHILD ABUSE AND MALTREATMENT ALLEGED TO HAVE OCCURRED IN OTHER  COUNTIES
    9  AND  DISTRICTS IN NEW YORK STATE shall be immediately transmitted orally
   10  or electronically by the office of children and family services  to  the
   11  appropriate  local  child  protective  service  for  investigation.  The
   12  inability of the person calling the register  to  identify  the  alleged
   13  perpetrator shall, in no circumstance, constitute the sole cause for the
   14  register  to  reject such allegation or fail to transmit such allegation
   15  for investigation.  If the records indicate a previous report concerning
   16  a subject of the report, the child alleged to be abused or maltreated, a
   17  sibling, other children in the household, other  persons  named  in  the
   18  report  or  other  pertinent  information,  the  appropriate local child
   19  protective service shall be immediately notified of the fact[, except as
   20  provided in subdivision eleven of this section]. If the report  involves
   21  either  (i) an allegation of an abused child described in paragraph (i),
   22  (ii) or (iii) of subdivision (e) of section one thousand twelve  of  the
   23  family  court  act or sexual abuse of a child or the death of a child or
   24  (ii) suspected maltreatment which alleges any  physical  harm  when  the
   25  report  is  made by a person required to report pursuant to section four
   26  hundred thirteen of this title  within  six  months  of  any  other  two
   27  reports that were indicated, or may still be pending, involving the same
   28  child, sibling, or other children in the household or the subject of the
   29  report,  the  office  of children and family services shall identify the
   30  report as such and note any prior reports when transmitting  the  report
   31  to the local child protective services for investigation.
   32    S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.