Bill Text: NY A02298 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires nursery school operators providing service to more than three preschool children of 5 years of age or less for three hours or less per day per child to file with the office of children and family services; requires nursery schools to fingerprint applicants for the purpose of a search of criminal history records of the division of criminal justice services.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-2)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to children and families [A02298 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A02298-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2298 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 22, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, JAFFEE, ZEBROWSKI, MONTESANO -- Multi- Sponsored by -- M. of A. McDONOUGH, RIVERA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Children and Families AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to requiring filing with the office of children and family services by nursery school operators and authorizing certain nursery schools to submit finger- prints of applicants for the purpose of a search of criminal history records of the division of criminal justice services The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 390 of the social services law, as added by chapter 2 750 of the laws of 1990, paragraphs (d) and (e) of subdivision 1, para- 3 graph (a) and clause (A) of subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (d) of subdi- 4 vision 2, paragraph (b) of subdivision 3, paragraph (c) of subdivision 5 11 and paragraph (a) of subdivision 12 as amended and paragraph (e) of 6 subdivision 11 as added by chapter 117 of the laws of 2010, subpara- 7 graphs (i) and (ii) of paragraph (d) of subdivision 2, paragraphs (a), 8 (c) and (d) of subdivision 3, paragraph (a) of subdivision 4, subdivi- 9 sion 10, paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 11 as amended, subdivi- 10 sion 2-a and paragraph (d) of subdivision 11 as added and paragraphs (e) 11 and (f) of subdivision 3 as relettered by chapter 416 of the laws of 12 2000, paragraph (a) of subdivision 7 and subdivision 13 as amended by 13 chapter 160 of the laws of 2003, paragraph (b) of subdivision 12 as 14 added by chapter 319 of the laws of 2006, and as relettered by chapter 15 117 of the laws of 2010, and subdivision 8-a, as added by chapter 354 of 16 the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows: 17 § 390. Child day care and nursery schools; license [or], registration 18 or filing required. 1. Definitions. (a) (i) "Child day care" shall mean 19 care for a child on a regular basis provided away from the child's resi- 20 dence for less than twenty-four hours per day by someone other than the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD01826-01-9A. 2298 2 1 parent, step-parent, guardian, or relative within the third degree of 2 consanguinity of the parents or step-parents of such child. 3 (ii) Child day care shall not refer to care provided in: 4 (A) a day camp, as defined in the state sanitary code; 5 (B) an after-school program operated for the purpose of religious 6 education, sports, or recreation; 7 (C) a facility: 8 (1) providing day services under an operating certificate issued by 9 the [department] office; 10 (2) providing day treatment under an operating certificate issued by 11 the office of mental health or office [of mental retardation and] for 12 people with developmental disabilities; or 13 (D) a kindergarten, pre-kindergarten, [or nursery school for children14three years of age or older,] or after-school program for children oper- 15 ated by a public school district or by a private school or academy which 16 is providing elementary or secondary education or both, in accordance 17 with the compulsory education requirements of the education law, 18 provided that the kindergarten, pre-kindergarten, nursery school, or 19 after school program is located on the premises or campus where the 20 elementary or secondary education is provided. 21 (b) "Child day care provider" shall mean any individual, association, 22 corporation, partnership, institution or agency whose activities include 23 providing child day care or operating a home or facility where child day 24 care is provided. 25 (c) "Child day care center" shall mean any program or facility caring 26 for children for more than three hours per day per child in which child 27 day care is provided by a child day care provider except those programs 28 operating as a group family day care home as such term is defined in 29 paragraph (d) of this subdivision, a family day care home, as such term 30 is defined in paragraph (e) of this subdivision, and a school-age child 31 care program, as such term is defined in paragraph (f) of this subdivi- 32 sion. 33 (d) "Group family day care home" shall mean a program caring for chil- 34 dren for more than three hours per day per child in which child day care 35 is provided in a family home for seven to twelve children of all ages, 36 except for those programs operating as a family day care home, as such 37 term is defined in paragraph (e) of this subdivision, which care for 38 seven or eight children. A group family day care provider may provide 39 child day care services to four additional children if such additional 40 children are of school age and such children receive services only 41 before or after the period such children are ordinarily in school or 42 during school lunch periods, or school holidays, or during those periods 43 of the year in which school is not in session. There shall be one care- 44 giver for every two children under two years of age in the group family 45 home. A group family day care home must have at least one assistant to 46 the operator present when child day care is being provided to seven or 47 more children when none of the children are school age, or nine or more 48 children when at least two of the children are school age and such chil- 49 dren receive services only before or after the period such children are 50 ordinarily in school or during school lunch periods, or school holidays, 51 or during those periods of the year in which school is not in session. 52 This assistant shall be selected by the group family day care operator 53 and shall meet the qualifications established for such position by the 54 regulations of the office of children and family services. 55 (e) "Family day care home" shall mean a program caring for children 56 for more than three hours per day per child in which child day care isA. 2298 3 1 provided in a family home for three to six children. There shall be one 2 caregiver for every two children under two years of age in the family 3 day care home. A family day care provider may, however, care for seven 4 or eight children at any one time if no more than six of the children 5 are less than school age and the school-aged children receive care 6 primarily before or after the period such children are ordinarily in 7 school, during school lunch periods, on school holidays, or during those 8 periods of the year in which school is not in session in accordance with 9 the regulations of the office of children and family services and the 10 office inspects such home to determine whether the provider can care 11 adequately for seven or eight children. 12 (f) "School age child care" shall mean a program caring for more than 13 six school-aged children who are under thirteen years of age or who are 14 incapable of caring for themselves. Such programs shall be in operation 15 consistent with the local school calendar. School age child care 16 programs shall offer care during the school year to an enrolled group of 17 children at a permanent site before or after the period children 18 enrolled in such program are ordinarily in school or during school lunch 19 periods and may also provide such care on school holidays and those 20 periods of the year in which school is not in session. 21 (g) "Nursery school" shall mean any program or facility operated by an 22 individual, association, corporation, partnership, institution, or agen- 23 cy, not including the parent, stepparent, guardian, or relative within 24 the third degree of consanguinity, which provides early care and/or 25 education to three or more preschool children for three or less hours 26 per day per child. More than one adult shall be available at all times 27 when children are present at a nursery school program. 28 (h) "Preschool child" shall mean a child of five years of age or less. 29 (i) "Office" shall mean the office of children and family services. 30 2. (a) Child day care centers caring for seven or more children and 31 group family day care programs, as defined in subdivision one of this 32 section, shall obtain a license from the office of children and family 33 services and shall operate in accordance with the terms of such license 34 and the regulations of such office. Initial licenses shall be valid for 35 a period of up to two years; subsequent licenses shall be valid for a 36 period of up to four years so long as the provider remains substantially 37 in compliance with applicable law and regulations during such period. 38 (b) Family day care homes, child day care centers caring for at least 39 three but fewer than seven children, and school-age child care programs 40 shall register with the [department] office and shall operate in compli- 41 ance with the regulations of the [department] office. 42 (b-1) Nursery schools caring for at least three children shall file 43 with the office and shall operate in compliance with the regulations of 44 the office. 45 (c) Any child day care provider not required to obtain a license 46 pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subdivision or to register with the 47 [department] office pursuant to paragraph (b) of this subdivision may 48 register with the [department] office. 49 (d) (i) The office [of children and family services] shall promulgate 50 regulations for licensure and for registration of child day care and 51 filing for nursery schools pursuant to this section. Procedures for 52 obtaining a license or registration or renewing a license shall include 53 a satisfactory inspection of the facility by the office [of children and54family services] prior to issuance of the license or registration or 55 renewal of the license.A. 2298 4 1 (ii) (A) Initial registrations shall be valid for a period of up to 2 two years, subsequent registrations shall be valid for a period of up to 3 four years so long as the provider remains substantially in compliance 4 with applicable law and regulations during such period. 5 (B) After initial registration by the child day care provider, the 6 office [of children and family services] shall not accept any subsequent 7 registration by such provider, unless: 8 (1) such provider has met the training requirements set forth in 9 section three hundred ninety-a of this title; 10 (2) such provider has met the requirements of section three hundred 11 ninety-b of this title relating to criminal history screening; 12 (3) such provider has complied with the requirements of section four 13 hundred twenty-four-a of this article; and 14 (4) the office [of children and family services] has received no 15 complaints about the home, center, or program alleging statutory or 16 regulatory violations, or, having received such complaints, the office 17 [of children and family services] has determined, after inspection 18 pursuant to paragraph (a) of subdivision three of this section, that the 19 home, center, or program is operated in compliance with applicable stat- 20 utory and regulatory requirements. 21 (C) Where the office [of children and family services] has determined 22 that a registration should not be continued because the requirements of 23 clause (B) of this subparagraph have not been satisfied, the office [of24children and family services] may terminate the registration. If the 25 office [of children and family services] does not terminate the regis- 26 tration, the office [of children and family services] shall inspect the 27 home or program before acknowledging any subsequent registration. Where 28 the home or program has failed to meet the requirements of this section, 29 the office [of children and family services] may reject any subsequent 30 registration of a provider. Nothing herein shall prohibit the office [of31children and family services] from terminating or suspending registra- 32 tion pursuant to subdivision ten of this section where the office [of33children and family services] determines that termination or suspension 34 is necessary. 35 (iv) Child day care providers who have been issued a license or nurs- 36 ery school operators who have filed with the office shall openly display 37 such license or office verification of the filing in the facility or 38 home for which the license or filing is issued. Child day care providers 39 who have registered or filed with the [department] office shall provide 40 proof of registration or filing upon request. 41 (e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, where a child 42 is cared for by a parent, guardian or relative within the third degree 43 of consanguinity of the parent of such child and such person simultane- 44 ously provides child day care for other children, only the other chil- 45 dren shall be considered in determining whether such person must be 46 registered, filed or licensed, provided that such person is not caring, 47 in total, for more than eight children. 48 2-a. (a) The office [of children and family services] shall promulgate 49 regulations which establish minimum quality program requirements for 50 licensed and registered child day care homes, programs and facilities. 51 Such requirements shall include but not be limited to (i) the need for 52 age appropriate activities, materials and equipment to promote cogni- 53 tive, educational, social, cultural, physical, emotional, language and 54 recreational development of children in care in a safe, healthy and 55 caring environment (ii) principles of childhood development (iii) appro- 56 priate staff/child ratios for family day care homes, group family dayA. 2298 5 1 care homes, school age day care programs and day care centers, provided 2 however that such staff/child ratios shall not be less stringent than 3 applicable staff/child ratios as set forth in part four hundred four- 4 teen, four hundred sixteen, four hundred seventeen or four hundred eigh- 5 teen of title eighteen of the New York code of rules and regulations as 6 of January first, two thousand (iv) appropriate levels of supervision of 7 children in care (v) minimum standards for sanitation, health, infection 8 control, nutrition, buildings and equipment, safety, security proce- 9 dures, first aid, fire prevention, fire safety, evacuation plans and 10 drills, prevention of child abuse and maltreatment, staff qualifications 11 and training, record keeping, and child behavior management. 12 (b) The use of electronic monitors as a sole means of supervision of 13 children in day care shall be prohibited, except that electronic moni- 14 tors may be used in family day care homes and group family day care 15 homes as an indirect means of supervision where the parents of any child 16 to be supervised have agreed in advance to the use of such monitors as 17 an indirect means of supervision and the use of such monitors is 18 restricted to situations where the children so supervised are sleeping. 19 (c) No child less than six weeks of age may be cared for by a licensed 20 or registered day care provider, except in extenuating circumstances 21 where prior approval for care of such children has been given by the 22 office [of children and family services]. Extenuating circumstances for 23 the purposes of this section shall include but not be limited to the 24 medical or health needs of the parent or child, or the economic hardship 25 of the parent. 26 3. (a) The office [of children and family services] may make announced 27 or unannounced inspections of the records and premises of any child day 28 care provider, whether or not such provider has a license from, or is 29 registered with, the office [of children and family services]. The 30 office [of children and family services] shall make unannounced 31 inspections of the records and premises of any child day care provider 32 or nursery school operator within fifteen days after the office [of33children and family services] receives a complaint that, if true, would 34 indicate such provider or operator does not comply with the regulations 35 of the office [of children and family services] or with statutory 36 requirements. If the complaint indicates that there may be imminent 37 danger to the children, the office [of children and family services] 38 shall investigate the complaint no later than the next day of operation 39 of the provider or operator. The office [of children and family40services] may provide for inspections through the purchase of services. 41 (b) Where inspections have been made and violations of applicable 42 statutes or regulations have been found, the office [of children and43family services] shall within ten days advise the child day care provid- 44 er or operator in writing of the violations and require the provider to 45 correct such violations. The office [of children and family services] 46 may also act pursuant to subdivisions ten and eleven of this section. 47 (c) (i) The office [of children and family services] shall establish a 48 toll-free statewide telephone number to receive inquiries about child 49 day care homes, programs and facilities and complaints of violations of 50 the requirements of this section or regulations promulgated under this 51 section. The office [of children and family services] shall develop a 52 system for investigation, which shall include inspection, of such 53 complaints. The office [of children and family services] may provide for 54 such investigations through purchase of services. The office [of chil-55dren and family services] shall develop a process for publicizing suchA. 2298 6 1 toll-free telephone number to the public for making inquiries or 2 complaints about child day care homes, programs or facilities. 3 (ii) Information to be maintained and available to the public through 4 such toll-free telephone number shall include, but not be limited to: 5 (A) current license and registration status of child day care homes, 6 programs and facilities including whether a license or registration is 7 in effect or has been revoked or suspended; and 8 (B) child care resource and referral programs providing services 9 pursuant to title five-B of this article and other resources known to 10 the office [of children and family services] which relate to child day 11 care homes, programs and facilities in the state. 12 (iii) Upon written request identifying a particular child day care 13 home, program or facility, the office [of children and family services] 14 shall provide the information set forth below. The office [of children15and family services] may charge reasonable fees for copies of documents 16 provided, consistent with the provisions of article six of the public 17 officers law. The information available pursuant to this clause shall 18 be: 19 (A) the results of the most recent inspection for licensure or regis- 20 tration and any subsequent inspections by the office [of children and21family services]; 22 (B) complaints filed against child day care homes, programs or facili- 23 ties which describes the nature of the complaint and states how the 24 complaint was resolved, including the status of the office [of children25and family services] investigation, the steps taken to rectify the 26 complaint, and the penalty, if any, imposed; and 27 (C) child day care homes, programs or facilities which have requested 28 or received a waiver from any applicable rule or regulation, and the 29 regulatory requirement which was waived. 30 (iv) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to require or permit 31 the disclosure either orally or in writing of any information that is 32 confidential pursuant to law. 33 (d) Where investigation or inspection reveals that a child day care 34 provider which must be licensed or registered is not, the office [of35children and family services] shall advise the child day care provider 36 in writing that the provider is in violation of the licensing or regis- 37 tration requirements and shall take such further action as is necessary 38 to cause the provider to comply with the law, including directing an 39 unlicensed or unregistered provider to cease operation. In addition, the 40 office [of children and family services] shall require the provider to 41 notify the parents or guardians of children receiving care from the 42 provider that the provider is in violation of the licensing or registra- 43 tion requirements and shall require the provider to notify the office 44 [of children and family services] that the provider has done so. Any 45 provider who is directed to cease operations pursuant to this paragraph 46 shall be entitled to a hearing before the office [of children and family47services]. If the provider requests a hearing to contest the directive 48 to cease operations, such hearing must be scheduled to commence as soon 49 as possible but in no event later than thirty days after the receipt of 50 the request by the office [of children and family services]. The provid- 51 er may not operate the center, home or program after being directed to 52 cease operations, regardless of whether a hearing is requested. If the 53 provider does not cease operations, the office [of children and family54services] may impose a civil penalty pursuant to subdivision eleven of 55 this section, seek an injunction pursuant to section three hundred nine- 56 ty-one of this title, or both.A. 2298 7 1 (e) (i) Where an authorized agency is subsidizing child day care 2 pursuant to any provision of this chapter, the authorized agency may 3 submit to the [department] office justification for a need to impose 4 additional requirements upon child day care providers and a plan to 5 monitor compliance with such additional requirements. No such additional 6 requirements or monitoring may be imposed without the written approval 7 of the [department] office. 8 (ii) An authorized agency may refuse to allow a child day care provid- 9 er who is not in compliance with this section and regulations issued 10 hereunder or any approved additional requirements of the authorized 11 agency to provide child day care to the child. In accordance with the 12 plan approved by the [department] office, an authorized agency shall 13 have the right to make announced or unannounced inspections of the 14 records and premises of any provider who provides care for such chil- 15 dren, including the right to make inspections prior to subsidized chil- 16 dren receiving care in a home where the inspection is for the purpose of 17 determining whether the child day care provider is in compliance with 18 applicable law and regulations and any additional requirements imposed 19 upon such provider by the authorized agency. Where an authorized agency 20 makes such inspections, the authorized agency shall notify the [depart-21ment] office immediately of any violations of this section or regu- 22 lations promulgated hereunder, and shall provide the [department] office 23 with an inspection report whether or not violations were found, docu- 24 menting the results of such inspection. 25 (iii) Nothing contained in this paragraph shall diminish the authority 26 of the department to conduct inspections or provide for inspections 27 through purchase of services as otherwise provided for in this section. 28 Nothing contained in this paragraph shall obligate the [department] 29 office to take any action to enforce any additional requirements imposed 30 on child day care providers by an authorized agency. 31 (e-1) (i) Where a complaint is received alleging that a nursery school 32 operator who is required to file has not done so, the office, within ten 33 days of receipt of the complaint, shall advise, in writing, the nursery 34 school operator subject to such complaint, of the filing standards and 35 requirements, and of the operator's obligation to file if such person is 36 subject to filing. The office shall further direct the alleged nursery 37 school operator to respond within thirty days of receipt of the office's 38 letter. Unless such nursery school operator files, such response shall 39 state why the alleged operator is not subject to the filing requirements 40 of this section. 41 (ii) Should a nursery school operator fail to file or submit the 42 response required by subparagraph (i) of this paragraph within the time 43 limit therein specified, the office shall take such further action as is 44 necessary to cause the operator to comply with the law. 45 (f) Individual local social services districts may alter their partic- 46 ipation in activities related to arranging for, subsidizing, delivering 47 and monitoring the provision of subsidized child day care provided, 48 however, that the total participation of an individual district in all 49 activities related to the provision of subsidized child day care shall 50 be no less than the participation level engaged in by such individual 51 district on the effective date of this section. 52 4. (a) The office [of children and family services] on an annual basis 53 shall inspect at least twenty percent of all registered family day care 54 homes, registered child day care centers, nursery schools filed with the 55 office and registered school age child care programs to determine wheth- 56 er such homes, centers and programs are operating in compliance withA. 2298 8 1 applicable statutes and regulations. The office [of children and family2services] shall increase the percentage of family day care homes, child 3 day care centers and school age child care programs which are inspected 4 pursuant to this subdivision as follows: to at least thirty percent by 5 the thirty-first of December two thousand; and to at least fifty percent 6 by the thirty-first of December two thousand one. The office [of chil-7dren and family services] may provide for such inspections through 8 purchase of services. Priority shall be given to family day care homes 9 which have never been licensed or certified prior to initial registra- 10 tion. 11 (b) Any family day care home or school-age child care program 12 licensed, registered, or certified by the [department] office or by any 13 authorized agency on the effective date of this section shall be deemed 14 registered until the expiration of its then-current license or certif- 15 icate unless such license or certificate is suspended or revoked pursu- 16 ant to subdivision ten of this section. Family day care homes and 17 school-age child care programs not licensed, registered, or certified on 18 the effective date of this section shall register pursuant to subdivi- 19 sion two of this section. 20 5. Child day care providers required to have a license from the 21 [department] office or to be registered with the [department] office 22 pursuant to this section shall not be exempt from such requirement 23 through registration with another state agency, or certification, regis- 24 tration, or licensure by any local governmental agency or any authorized 25 agency. 26 6. Unless otherwise limited by law, a parent with legal custody or a 27 legal guardian of any child in a child day care program or nursery 28 school shall have unlimited and on demand access to such child or ward. 29 Such parent or guardian unless otherwise limited by law, also shall have 30 the right to inspect on demand during its hours of operation any area of 31 a child day care center, group family day care home, school-age child 32 care program, or family day care home to which the child or ward of such 33 parent or guardian has access or which could present a hazard to the 34 health and safety of the child or ward. 35 7. (a) The [department] office shall implement on a statewide basis 36 programs to educate parents and other potential consumers of child day 37 care programs and nursery schools about their selection and use. The 38 [department] office may provide for such implementation through the 39 purchase of services. Such education shall include, but not be limited 40 to, the following topics: 41 (i) types of child day care programs; 42 (ii) factors to be considered in selecting and evaluating child day 43 care programs; 44 (iii) regulations of the [department] office governing the operation 45 of different types of programs; 46 (iv) rights of parents or guardians in relation to access to children 47 and inspection of child day care programs; 48 (v) information concerning the availability of child day care subsi- 49 dies; 50 (vi) information about licensing [and], registration and filing 51 requirements; 52 (vii) prevention of child abuse and maltreatment in child day care 53 programs, including screening of child day care providers and employees; 54 (viii) tax information; andA. 2298 9 1 (ix) factors to be considered in selecting and evaluating child day 2 care programs when a child needs administration of medications during 3 the time enrolled. 4 (b) The [department] office shall implement a statewide campaign to 5 educate the public as to the legal requirements for registration of 6 family day care and school-age child care, the filing of nursery 7 schools, and the benefits of such [registration] procedures. The 8 [department] office may provide for such implementation through the 9 purchase of services. The campaign shall: 10 (i) use various types of media; 11 (ii) include the development of public educational materials for fami- 12 lies, [family day care providers,] employers and community agencies; 13 (iii) explain the role and functions of child care resource and refer- 14 ral programs, as such term is used in title five-B of this article; 15 (iv) explain the role and functions of the [department] office in 16 regard to registered licensed and filed programs; and 17 (v) publicize the [department's] office's toll-free telephone number 18 for making complaints of violations of [child day care] requirements 19 related to programs which are required to be licensed [or], registered 20 or filed. 21 8. The [department] office shall establish and maintain a list of all 22 current filed, registered and licensed [child day care] programs and a 23 list of all programs whose license [or], registration or filing has been 24 revoked, rejected, terminated, or suspended. Such information shall be 25 available to the public, pursuant to procedures developed by the 26 [department] office. 27 8-a. The office [of children and family services] shall not make 28 available to the public online any group family day care home provider's 29 or family day care provider's home street address or map showing the 30 location of such provider's home where such provider has requested to 31 opt out of the online availability of this information. The office shall 32 provide a written form informing a provider of their right to opt out of 33 providing information online, and shall also permit a provider to 34 request to opt out through the office's website. 35 9. The [department] office shall make available, directly or through 36 purchase of services, to registered [child day care] providers informa- 37 tion concerning: 38 (a) liability insurance; 39 (b) start-up grants; 40 (c) United States department of agriculture food programs; 41 (d) subsidies available for child day care; 42 (e) tax information; and 43 (f) support services required to be provided by child care resource 44 and referral programs as set forth in subdivision three of section four 45 hundred ten-r of this article. 46 10. Any home or facility providing child day care shall be operated in 47 accordance with applicable statutes and regulations. Any violation of 48 applicable statutes or regulations shall be a basis to deny, limit, 49 suspend, revoke, or terminate a license or registration. Consistent with 50 articles twenty-three and twenty-three-A of the correction law, and 51 guidelines referenced in subdivision two of section four hundred twen- 52 ty-five of this article, if the office [of children and family services] 53 is made aware of the existence of a criminal conviction or pending crim- 54 inal charge concerning an operator of a family day care home, group 55 family day care home, school-age child care program, or child day care 56 center or concerning any assistant, employee or volunteer in such homes,A. 2298 10 1 programs or centers, or any persons age eighteen or over who reside in 2 such homes, such conviction or charge may be a basis to deny, limit, 3 suspend, revoke, reject, or terminate a license or registration. Before 4 any license issued pursuant to the provisions of this section is 5 suspended or revoked, before registration pursuant to this section is 6 suspended or terminated, or when an application for such license is 7 denied or registration rejected, the applicant for or holder of such 8 registration or license is entitled, pursuant to section twenty-two of 9 this chapter and the regulations of the office [of children and family10services], to a hearing before the office [of children and family11services]. However, a license or registration shall be temporarily 12 suspended or limited without a hearing upon written notice to the opera- 13 tor of the facility following a finding that the public health, or an 14 individual's safety or welfare, [are] is in imminent danger. The holder 15 of a license or registrant is entitled to a hearing before the office 16 [of children and family services] to contest the temporary suspension or 17 limitation. If the holder of a license or registrant requests a hearing 18 to contest the temporary suspension or limitation, such hearing must be 19 scheduled to commence as soon as possible but in no event later than 20 thirty days after the receipt of the request by the office [of children21and family services]. Suspension shall continue until the condition 22 requiring suspension or limitation is corrected or until a hearing deci- 23 sion has been issued. If the office [of children and family services] 24 determines after a hearing that the temporary suspension or limitation 25 was proper, such suspension or limitation shall be extended until the 26 condition requiring suspension or limitation has been corrected or until 27 the license or registration has been revoked. 28 11. (a) (i) (A) The office [of children and family services] shall 29 adopt regulations establishing civil penalties of no more than five 30 hundred dollars per day to be assessed against child day care centers, 31 school age child care programs, group family day care homes or family 32 day care homes for violations of this section, sections three hundred 33 ninety-a and three hundred ninety-b of this title and any regulations 34 promulgated thereunder. The regulations establishing civil penalties 35 shall specify the violations subject to penalty. 36 (B) The office shall also adopt regulations establishing civil penal- 37 ties of no more than two hundred fifty dollars per day to be assessed 38 against nursery school operators who operate nursery schools without 39 having made the filing required by this section. 40 (ii) The office [of children and family services] shall adopt regu- 41 lations establishing civil penalties of no more than five hundred 42 dollars per day to be assessed against child day care providers who 43 operate child day care centers or group family day care homes without a 44 license or who operate family day care homes, school-age child care 45 programs, or child day care centers required to be registered without 46 obtaining such registration. 47 (iii) In addition to any other civil or criminal penalty provided by 48 law, the office [of children and family services] shall have the power 49 to assess civil penalties in accordance with its regulations adopted 50 pursuant to this subdivision after a hearing conducted in accordance 51 with procedures established by regulations of the office of children and 52 family services. Such procedures shall require that notice of the time 53 and place of the hearing, together with a statement of charges of 54 violations, shall be served in person or by certified mail addressed to 55 the school age child care program, group family day care home, family 56 day care home, nursery school operator or child day care center at leastA. 2298 11 1 thirty days prior to the date of the hearing. The statement of charges 2 shall set forth the existence of the violation or violations, the amount 3 of penalty for which the program may become liable, the steps which must 4 be taken to rectify the violation, and where applicable, a statement 5 that a penalty may be imposed regardless of rectification. A written 6 answer to the charges of violations shall be filed with the office [of7children and family services] not less than ten days prior to the date 8 of hearing with respect to each of the charges and shall include all 9 material and relevant matters which, if not disclosed in the answer, 10 would not likely be known to the office [of children and family11services]. 12 (iv) The hearing shall be held by the commissioner of the office [of13children and family services] or the commissioner's designee. The burden 14 of proof at such hearing shall be on the office [of children and family15services] to show that the charges are supported by a preponderance of 16 the evidence. The commissioner of the office [of children and family17services] or the commissioner's designee, in his or her discretion, may 18 allow the child day care center operator or provider to attempt to prove 19 by a preponderance of the evidence any matter not included in the 20 answer. Where the child day care provider satisfactorily demonstrates 21 that it has rectified the violations in accordance with the requirements 22 of paragraph (c) of this subdivision, no penalty shall be imposed except 23 as provided in paragraph (c) of this subdivision. 24 (b)(i) In assessing penalties pursuant to this subdivision, the office 25 [of children and family services] may consider the completeness of any 26 rectification made and the specific circumstances of such violations as 27 mitigating factors. 28 (ii) Upon the request of the office [of children and family services], 29 the attorney general shall commence an action in any court of competent 30 jurisdiction against any child day care program subject to the 31 provisions of this subdivision and against any person, entity or corpo- 32 ration operating such center or school age child care program, group 33 family day care home or family day care home for the recovery of any 34 penalty assessed by the office [of children and family services] in 35 accordance with the provisions of this subdivision. 36 (iii) Any such penalty assessed by the office [of children and family37services] may be released or compromised by the office [of children and38family services] before the matter has been referred to the attorney 39 general; when such matter has been referred to the attorney general, 40 such penalty may be released or compromised and any action commenced to 41 recover the same may be settled and discontinued by the attorney general 42 with the consent of the office [of children and family services]. 43 (c)(i) Except as provided for in this paragraph, a child day care 44 provider shall avoid payment of a penalty imposed pursuant to this 45 subdivision where the provider has rectified the condition which 46 resulted in the imposition of the penalty within thirty days of notifi- 47 cation of the existence of the violation of statute or regulation. 48 (ii) [Clause] Subparagraph (i) of this paragraph notwithstanding, 49 rectification shall not preclude the imposition of a penalty pursuant to 50 this subdivision where: 51 (A) the child day care provider has operated a child day care center 52 or group family day care home without a license, has refused to seek a 53 license for the operation of such a center or home, or has continued to 54 operate such a center or home after denial of a license application, 55 revocation of an existing license or suspension of an existing license;A. 2298 12 1 (B) the child day care provider has operated a family day care home, 2 school-age child care program or child day care center required to be 3 registered without being registered, has refused to seek registration 4 for the operation of such home, program or center or has continued to 5 operate such a home, program or center after denial of a registration 6 application, revocation of an existing registration or suspension of an 7 existing registration; 8 (C) there has been a total or substantial failure of the facility's 9 fire detection or prevention systems or emergency evacuation procedures; 10 (D) the child day care provider or an assistant, employee or volunteer 11 or nursery school has failed to provide adequate and competent super- 12 vision; 13 (E) the child day care provider or an assistant, employee or volunteer 14 or nursery school has failed to provide adequate sanitation; 15 (F) the child day care provider or an assistant, employee, volunteer, 16 nursery school or, for a family day care home or group family day care 17 home, a member of the provider's household, has injured a child in care, 18 unreasonably failed to obtain medical attention for a child in care 19 requiring such attention, used corporal punishment against a child in 20 care or abused or maltreated a child in care; 21 (G) the child day care provider or nursery school has violated the 22 same statutory or regulatory standard more than once within a six month 23 period; 24 (H) the child day care provider or an assistant, employee or volunteer 25 or nursery school has failed to make a report of suspected child abuse 26 or maltreatment when required to do so pursuant to section four hundred 27 thirteen of this article; or 28 (I) the child day care provider or an assistant, employee or volunteer 29 or nursery school has submitted to the office of children and family 30 services a forged document as defined in section 170.00 of the penal 31 law. 32 (d) Any civil penalty received by the office of children and family 33 services pursuant to this subdivision shall be deposited to the credit 34 of the "quality child care and protection fund" established pursuant to 35 section ninety-seven-www of the state finance law, as added by chapter 36 four hundred sixteen of the laws of two thousand. 37 (e)(i) The office [of children and family services] shall deny a new 38 application for licensure or registration made by a day care provider 39 whose license or registration was previously revoked or terminated based 40 on a violation of statute or regulation for a period of two years from 41 the date that the revocation or termination of the license or registra- 42 tion became finally effective, unless such office determines, in its 43 discretion, that approval of the application will not in any way jeop- 44 ardize the health, safety or welfare of children in the center, program 45 or home. For the purposes of this paragraph, the date that the revoca- 46 tion or termination became finally effective shall be, as applicable: 47 (A) the date that the revocation or termination became effective based 48 on the notice of revocation or termination; 49 (B) the date that the hearing decision was issued upholding the revo- 50 cation or termination; 51 (C) the date of issuance of a final court order affirming the revoca- 52 tion or termination or affirming a hearing decision that upheld the 53 revocation or termination; or 54 (D) another date mutually agreed upon by the office of children and 55 family services and the provider.A. 2298 13 1 (ii)(A) Such office shall deny a new application for licensure [or], 2 registration or filing made by a day care provider or nursery school 3 operator who is enjoined or otherwise prohibited by a court order from 4 operation of a day care center, nursery school, group family day care 5 home, family day care home or school-age child care program without a 6 license or registration for a period of two years from the date of the 7 court order unless the court order specifically enjoins the provider 8 from providing day care for a period longer than two years, in which 9 case the office shall deny any new application made by the provider 10 while the provider is so enjoined. 11 (B) Such office shall deny a new application for licensure [or], 12 registration or filing made by a day care provider or nursery school 13 operator who is assessed a second civil penalty by such office for 14 having operated a day care center, nursery school, group family day care 15 home, family day care home or school-age child care program without a 16 license or registration for a period of two years from the date of the 17 second fine. For the purposes of this paragraph, the date of the second 18 fine shall be either the date upon which the day care provider signs a 19 stipulation agreement to pay the second fine or the date upon which a 20 hearing decision is issued affirming the determination of such office to 21 impose the second fine, as applicable. 22 (iii) A day care provider or nursery school operator who surrenders 23 the provider's license [or], registration or filing while such office is 24 engaged in enforcement seeking suspension, revocation or termination of 25 such provider's license [or], registration or filing pursuant to the 26 regulations of such office, shall be deemed to have had their license 27 [or], registration or filing revoked or terminated and shall be subject 28 to the prohibitions against licensing [or], registration or filing 29 pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph for a period of two years 30 from the date of surrender of the license or registration. 31 12. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, except as may be 32 required as a condition of licensure [or], registration or filing by 33 regulations promulgated pursuant to this section, no village, town 34 (outside the area of any incorporated village), city or county shall 35 adopt or enact any law, ordinance, rule or regulation which would 36 impose, mandate or otherwise enforce standards for sanitation, health, 37 fire safety or building construction on a one or two family dwelling or 38 multiple dwelling used to provide group family day care or family day 39 care than would be applicable were such child day care not provided on 40 the premises. No village, town (outside the area of any incorporated 41 village), city or county shall prohibit or restrict use of a one or two 42 family dwelling, or multiple dwelling for family or group family day 43 care where a license or registration for such use has been issued in 44 accordance with regulations issued pursuant to this section. Nothing in 45 this paragraph shall preclude local authorities with enforcement juris- 46 diction of the applicable sanitation, health, fire safety or building 47 construction code from making appropriate inspections to assure compli- 48 ance with such standards. 49 (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, but pursuant to 50 section five hundred eighty-one-b of the real property tax law, no 51 assessing unit, as defined in subdivision one of section one hundred two 52 of the real property tax law, in the assessment of the value of any 53 parcel used for residential purposes and registered as a family day care 54 home pursuant to this section, shall consider the use or registration of 55 such parcel as a family day care home.A. 2298 14 1 13. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, this section[, except2for paragraph (a-1) of subdivision two-a of this section,] shall not 3 apply to child day care centers in the city of New York, or any nursery 4 school which is associated with a school district, that already imple- 5 ments a fingerprinting process. 6 § 2. The section heading and subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 390-a of 7 the social services law, the section heading as amended by chapter 750 8 of the laws of 1990, subdivisions 1 and 2 as amended by chapter 416 of 9 the laws of 2000 and paragraph (e) of subdivision 2 as added by chapter 10 230 of the laws of 2001, are amended to read as follows: 11 Standards and training for child day care and nursery schools. 1. All 12 office of children and family services and municipal staff employed to 13 accept registrations and filings, issue licenses or conduct inspections 14 of child day care homes, programs or facilities, subject to the amounts 15 appropriated therefor, shall receive training in at least the following: 16 regulations promulgated by the office of children and family services 17 pursuant to section three hundred ninety of this title; child abuse 18 prevention and identification; safety and security procedures in child 19 day care settings; the principles of childhood development, and the 20 laws, regulations and procedures governing the protection of children 21 from abuse or maltreatment. 22 2. No license or registration shall be issued to, or filing accepted 23 from a family day care home, group family day care home, school age 24 child care program [or], child day care center or nursery school opera- 25 tor and no such registration, filing or license shall be renewed until 26 it can be demonstrated by the employer or licensing agency that there is 27 a procedure developed and implemented, in accordance with section three 28 hundred ninety-b of this title and pursuant to regulations of the office 29 of children and family services, to: 30 (a) review and evaluate the backgrounds of and information supplied by 31 any person applying to be a child day care center or school-age child 32 care program employee or volunteer or group family day care assistant, a 33 provider of family day care or group family day care, or a director of a 34 child day care center, head start day care center, nursery school or 35 school-age child care program. Such procedures shall include but not be 36 limited to the following requirements: that the applicant set forth his 37 or her employment history, provide personal and employment references; 38 submit such information as is required for screening with the statewide 39 central register of child abuse and maltreatment in accordance with the 40 provisions of section four hundred twenty-four-a of this article; sign a 41 sworn statement indicating whether, to the best of his or her knowledge, 42 he or she has ever been convicted of a crime in this state or any other 43 jurisdiction; and provide his or her fingerprints for submission to the 44 division of criminal justice services in accordance with the provisions 45 of section three hundred ninety-b of this title; 46 (b) establish relevant minimal experiential and educational qualifica- 47 tions for employees and directors of child day care centers or head 48 start day care center programs; 49 (c) assure adequate and appropriate supervision of employees and 50 volunteers of group family day care homes, family day care homes, child 51 day care centers, nursery schools and school-age child care programs; 52 [and] 53 (d) demonstrate, in the case of child day care centers, group family 54 day care homes, family day care homes, nursery schools and school-age 55 child care programs the existence of specific procedures which will 56 assure the safety of a child who is reported to the state central regis-A. 2298 15 1 ter of child abuse and maltreatment as well as other children provided 2 care by such homes, centers or programs, immediately upon notification 3 that a report has been made with respect to a child named in such report 4 while the child was in attendance at such homes, centers or programs[.]; 5 and 6 (e) establish necessary rules to provide for uniform visitor control 7 procedures, including visitor identification. 8 § 3. Section 390-b of the social services law, as added by chapter 9 416 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: 10 § 390-b. Criminal history review of child care providers, generally. 11 1. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, and 12 subject to rules and regulations of the division of criminal justice 13 services, the office of children and family services shall perform a 14 criminal history record check with the division of criminal justice 15 services regarding any operator, employee or volunteer of a child day 16 care center or school age child care provider, as defined in paragraphs 17 (c) and (f) of subdivision one of section three hundred ninety of this 18 title. Child day care center operators, school age child care operators 19 and any employees or volunteers, who previously did not have a criminal 20 history record check performed in accordance with this subdivision shall 21 have such a criminal history record check performed when the child day 22 care center or school age child care provider applies for license or 23 registration renewal. Child day care centers which are not subject to 24 the provisions of section three hundred ninety of this title, shall not 25 be subject to the provisions of this section. The provisions of this 26 section shall apply to a volunteer only where the volunteer has the 27 potential for regular and substantial contact with children enrolled in 28 the program. 29 (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, and 30 subject to rules and regulations of the division of criminal justice 31 services, the office of children and family services shall perform a 32 criminal history record check with the division of criminal justice 33 services regarding the operator, any assistants, employees or volunteers 34 of a group family day care home [or], family day care home or nursery 35 school, as defined in paragraphs (d) [and], (e) and (g) of subdivision 36 one of section three hundred ninety of this title, and any person age 37 eighteen or over residing on the premises of the group family day care 38 home [or], family day care home or nursery school which is to be 39 licensed [or], registered or for which a filing must be made in accord- 40 ance with section three hundred ninety of this title. Group family day 41 care home operators, family day care home operators, nursery school 42 operators, any assistants, employees or volunteers, and persons who are 43 age eighteen or over residing on the premises of a licensed group family 44 day care home [or], registered family day care home or nursery school 45 who previously did not have a criminal history record check performed in 46 accordance with this subdivision shall have such a criminal history 47 record check performed when the group family day care home [or], family 48 day care home or nursery school applies for renewal of the home's 49 license [or], registration or filing. The provisions of this section 50 shall apply to a volunteer only where the volunteer has the potential 51 for regular and substantial contact with children enrolled in the 52 program. 53 2. (a) As part of the provider's application for, or renewal of, a 54 child day care center or school age child care license or registration, 55 the provider shall furnish the office of children and family services 56 with fingerprint cards of any operator of a child day care center orA. 2298 16 1 school age child care program, and any employee or volunteer, who previ- 2 ously did not have a criminal history record check performed in accord- 3 ance with this section, together with such other information as is 4 required by the office of children and family services and the division 5 of criminal justice services. 6 (b) Every child day care center or school age child care provider 7 shall obtain a set of fingerprints for each prospective employee or 8 volunteer and such other information as is required by the office of 9 children and family services and the division of criminal justice 10 services. The child day care center or school age child care program 11 shall furnish to the applicant blank fingerprint cards and a description 12 of how the completed fingerprint cards will be used. The child day care 13 center or school age child care program shall promptly transmit such 14 fingerprint cards to the office of children and family services. 15 (c) As part of the provider's application for, or renewal of, a group 16 family day care home license or family day care home registration, the 17 provider shall furnish the office of children and family services with 18 fingerprint cards of any operator of a group family day care home or 19 family day care home, and any assistant, employee or volunteer, and any 20 person age eighteen or over residing on the premises of the group family 21 day care home or family day care home, who previously did not have a 22 criminal history record check performed in accordance with this section, 23 together with such other information as is required by the office of 24 children and family services and the division of criminal justice 25 services. 26 (d) Every group family day care home or family day care home provider 27 shall obtain a set of fingerprints for each prospective assistant, 28 employee, volunteer and any person age eighteen or over who will be 29 residing on the premises of the group family day care home or family day 30 care home, and such other information as is required by the office of 31 children and family services and the division of criminal justice 32 services. The group family day care home or family day care home provid- 33 er shall furnish to the applicant blank fingerprint cards and a 34 description of how the completed fingerprint cards will be used. The 35 group family day care home or family day care home provider shall 36 promptly transmit such fingerprint cards to the office of children and 37 family services. 38 (e) As part of the provider's application for, or renewal of, a nurs- 39 ery school filing, the provider shall furnish the office of children and 40 family services with fingerprint cards of any operator of a nursery 41 school, and any employee or volunteer, who previously did not have a 42 criminal history record check performed in accordance with this section, 43 together with such other information as is required by the office of 44 children and family services and the division of criminal justice 45 services. 46 (f) Every nursery school provider shall obtain a set of fingerprints 47 for each prospective employee or volunteer and such other information as 48 is required by the office of children and family services and the divi- 49 sion of criminal justice services. The nursery school program shall 50 furnish to the applicant blank fingerprint cards and a description of 51 how the completed fingerprint cards will be used. The nursery school 52 program shall promptly transmit such fingerprint cards to the office of 53 children and family services. 54 (g) The office of children and family services shall pay the process- 55 ing fee imposed pursuant to subdivision eight-a of section eight hundred 56 thirty-seven of the executive law. The office of children and familyA. 2298 17 1 services shall promptly submit the fingerprint cards and the processing 2 fee to the division of criminal justice services for its full search and 3 retain processing. 4 [(f)] (h) A licensed or registered child day care center, school-age 5 child care program, group family day care home or family day care home 6 may temporarily approve an applicant to be an employee, assistant or 7 volunteer for such provider while the results of the criminal history 8 record check are pending, but shall not allow such person to have unsu- 9 pervised contact with children during such time. 10 3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, after 11 reviewing any criminal history record information provided by the divi- 12 sion of criminal justice services, of an individual who is subject to a 13 criminal history record check pursuant to this section, the office of 14 children and family services and the provider shall take the following 15 actions: 16 (a) (i) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an 17 operator of a child day care center, school age child care program, 18 group family day care home, family day care home, nursery school, or any 19 person over the age of eighteen residing in such a home or school, 20 reveals a felony conviction at any time for a sex offense, crime against 21 a child, or a crime involving violence, or a felony conviction within 22 the past five years for a drug-related offense, the office of children 23 and family services shall deny the application or filing unless the 24 office determines, in its discretion, that approval of the application 25 or filing will not in any way jeopardize the health, safety or welfare 26 of the children in the center, program or home; or 27 (ii) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an opera- 28 tor of a child day care center, school age child care program, group 29 family day care home, family day care home, nursery school, or any 30 person over the age of eighteen residing in such a home or school, 31 reveals a conviction for a crime other than one set forth in subpara- 32 graph (i) of this paragraph, the office of children and family services 33 may deny the application or filing, consistent with article 34 twenty-three-A of the correction law; or 35 (iii) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an oper- 36 ator of a child day care center, school age child care program, group 37 family day care home, family day care home, nursery school, or any other 38 person over the age of eighteen residing in such a home, reveals a 39 charge for any crime, the office of children and family services shall 40 hold the application or filing in abeyance until the charge is finally 41 resolved. 42 (b) (i) Where the criminal history record of a current operator of a 43 child day care center, school age child care program, group family day 44 care home, family day care home, nursery school, or any other person 45 over the age of eighteen residing in such a home or school, reveals a 46 conviction for a crime set forth in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of 47 this subdivision, the office of children and family services shall 48 conduct a safety assessment of the program and take all appropriate 49 steps to protect the health and safety of the children in the program. 50 The office of children and family services shall deny, limit, suspend, 51 revoke, reject or terminate a license [or], registration or filing based 52 on such a conviction, unless the office determines, in its discretion, 53 that continued operation of the center, program [or], home or school 54 will not in any way jeopardize the health, safety or welfare of the 55 children in the center, program [or], home or school;A. 2298 18 1 (ii) Where the criminal history record of a current operator of a 2 child day care center, school age child care program, group family day 3 care home, family day care home, nursery school, or any other person 4 over the age of eighteen residing in such a home or school, reveals a 5 conviction for a crime other than one set forth in subparagraph (i) of 6 paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the office of children and family 7 services shall conduct a safety assessment of the program and take all 8 appropriate steps to protect the health and safety of the children in 9 the program. The office may deny, limit, suspend, revoke, reject or 10 terminate a license [or], registration or filing based on such a 11 conviction, consistent with article twenty-three-A of the correction 12 law; 13 (iii) Where the criminal history record of a current operator of a 14 child day care center, school age child care program, group family day 15 care home, family day care home, nursery school, or any other person 16 over the age of eighteen residing in such a home or school, reveals a 17 charge for any crime, the office of children and family services shall 18 conduct a safety assessment of the program and take all appropriate 19 steps to protect the health and safety of the children in the program. 20 The office may suspend a license [or], registration or filing based on 21 such a charge where necessary to protect the health and safety of the 22 children in the program. 23 (c) (i) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an 24 employee or volunteer at a child day care center [or], school age child 25 care program or nursery school reveals a conviction for a crime set 26 forth in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the 27 office of children and family services shall direct the provider to deny 28 the application unless the office determines, in its discretion, that 29 approval of the application will not in any way jeopardize the health, 30 safety or welfare of the children in the center or program; 31 (ii) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an 32 employee or volunteer at a child day care center [or], school age child 33 care program or nursery school reveals a conviction for a crime other 34 than one set forth in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subdivi- 35 sion, the office of children and family services may, consistent with 36 article twenty-three-A of the correction law, direct the provider to 37 deny the application; 38 (iii) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an 39 employee or volunteer at a child day care center [or], school age child 40 care program or nursery school reveals a charge for any crime, the 41 office of children and family services shall hold the application in 42 abeyance until the charge is finally resolved. 43 (d) (i) Where the criminal history record of a current employee or 44 volunteer at a child day care center [or], school age child care program 45 or nursery school reveals a conviction for a crime set forth in subpara- 46 graph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the office of children 47 and family services shall conduct a safety assessment of the program and 48 take all appropriate steps to protect the health and safety of the chil- 49 dren in the program. The office shall direct the provider to terminate 50 the employee or volunteer based on such a conviction, unless the office 51 determines, in its discretion, that the continued presence of the 52 employee or volunteer in the center or program will not in any way jeop- 53 ardize the health, safety or welfare of the children in the center or 54 program; 55 (ii) Where the criminal history record of a current employee or volun- 56 teer at a child day care center [or], school age child care program orA. 2298 19 1 nursery school reveals a conviction for a crime other than one set forth 2 in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the office of 3 children and family services shall conduct a safety assessment of the 4 program and take all appropriate steps to protect the health and safety 5 of the children in the program. The office may direct the provider to 6 terminate the employee or volunteer based on such a conviction, consist- 7 ent with article twenty-three-A of the correction law; 8 (iii) Where the criminal history record of a current employee or 9 volunteer at a child day care center [or], school age child care program 10 or nursery school reveals a charge for any crime, the office of children 11 and family services shall conduct a safety assessment of the program and 12 take all appropriate steps to protect the health and safety of the chil- 13 dren in the program. 14 (e) (i) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an 15 employee, assistant or volunteer at a group family day care home or 16 family day care home reveals a conviction for a crime set forth in 17 subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the office of 18 children and family services shall direct the provider to deny the 19 application unless the office determines, in its discretion, that 20 approval of the application will not in any way jeopardize the health, 21 safety or welfare of the children in the home; 22 (ii) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an 23 employee, assistant or volunteer at a group family day care home or 24 family day care home reveals a conviction for a crime other than one set 25 forth in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the 26 office of children and family services may, consistent with article 27 twenty-three-A of the correction law, direct the provider to deny the 28 application; 29 (iii) Where the criminal history record of an applicant to be an 30 employee, assistant or volunteer at a group family day care home or 31 family day care home reveals a charge for any crime, the office of chil- 32 dren and family services shall hold the application in abeyance until 33 the charge is finally resolved. 34 (f) (i) Where the criminal history record of a current employee, 35 assistant or volunteer at a group family day care home or family day 36 care home reveals a conviction for a crime set forth in subparagraph (i) 37 of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the office of children and family 38 services shall conduct a safety assessment of the program and take all 39 appropriate steps to protect the health and safety of the children in 40 the home. The office of children and family services shall direct the 41 provider to terminate the employee, assistant or volunteer based on such 42 a conviction, unless the office determines, in its discretion, that the 43 continued presence of the employee, assistant or volunteer in the home 44 will not in any way jeopardize the health, safety or welfare of the 45 children in the home; 46 (ii) Where the criminal history record of a current employee, assist- 47 ant or volunteer at a group family day care home or family day care home 48 reveals a conviction for a crime other than one set forth in subpara- 49 graph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the office of children 50 and family services shall conduct a safety assessment of the home and 51 take all appropriate steps to protect the health and safety of the chil- 52 dren in the home. The office may direct the provider to terminate the 53 employee, assistant or volunteer based on such a conviction, consistent 54 with article twenty-three-A of the correction law; 55 (iii) Where the criminal history record of a current employee, assist- 56 ant or volunteer at a group family day care home or family day care homeA. 2298 20 1 reveals a charge for any crime, the office of children and family 2 services shall conduct a safety assessment of the home and take all 3 appropriate steps to protect the health and safety of the children in 4 the home. 5 (g) Advise the provider that the individual has no criminal history 6 record. 7 4. Prior to making a determination to deny an application pursuant to 8 subdivision three of this section, the office of children and family 9 services shall afford the applicant an opportunity to explain, in writ- 10 ing, why the application should not be denied. 11 5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the 12 office of children and family services, upon receipt of a criminal 13 history record from the division of criminal justice services, may 14 request, and is entitled to receive, information pertaining to any crime 15 contained in such criminal history record from any state or local law 16 enforcement agency, district attorney, parole officer, probation officer 17 or court for the purposes of determining whether any ground relating to 18 such criminal conviction or pending criminal charge exists for denying a 19 license, registration, filing, application or employment. 20 6. The notification by the office of children and family services to 21 the child day care provider pursuant to this section shall include a 22 summary of the criminal history record, if any, provided by the division 23 of criminal justice services. 24 7. Where the office of children and family services directs a child 25 day care provider to deny an application based on the criminal history 26 record, the provider must notify the applicant that such record is the 27 basis of the denial. 28 8. Any safety assessment required pursuant to this section shall 29 include a review of the duties of the individual, the extent to which 30 such individual may have contact with children in the program or house- 31 hold and the status and nature of the criminal charge or conviction. 32 Where the office of children and family services performs the safety 33 assessment, it shall thereafter take all appropriate steps to protect 34 the health and safety of children receiving care in the child day care 35 center, school age child care program, family day care home [or], group 36 family day care home or nursery school. 37 9. Any criminal history record provided by the division of criminal 38 justice services, and any summary of the criminal history record 39 provided by the office of children and family services to a child day 40 care provider pursuant to this section, is confidential and shall not be 41 available for public inspection; provided, however, nothing herein shall 42 prevent a child day care provider or the office of children and family 43 services from disclosing criminal history information at any administra- 44 tive or judicial proceeding relating to the denial or revocation of an 45 application, employment, license [or], registration or filing. The 46 subject of a criminal history review conducted pursuant to this section 47 shall be entitled to receive, upon written request, a copy of the summa- 48 ry of the criminal history record provided by the office of children and 49 family services to the child day care provider. Unauthorized disclosure 50 of such records or reports shall subject the provider to civil penalties 51 in accordance with the provisions of subdivision eleven of section three 52 hundred ninety of this title. 53 10. A child day care provider shall advise the office of children and 54 family services when an individual who is subject to criminal history 55 record review in accordance with subdivision one or two of this section 56 is no longer subject to such review. The office of children and familyA. 2298 21 1 services shall inform the division of criminal justice services when an 2 individual who is subject to criminal history review is no longer 3 subject to such review so that the division of criminal justice services 4 may terminate its retain processing with regard to such person. At least 5 once a year, the office of children and family services will be required 6 to conduct a validation of the records maintained by the division of 7 criminal justice services. 8 § 4. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 424-a of the social 9 services law, as amended by section 12 of part L of chapter 56 of the 10 laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows: 11 (a) A licensing agency shall inquire of the [department] office of 12 children and family services and [the department shall] such office, 13 subject to the provisions of paragraph (e) of this subdivision, inform 14 such agency and the subject of the inquiry whether an applicant for a 15 certificate, license or permit, assistants to group family day care 16 providers, the director of a camp subject to the provisions of article 17 thirteen-B of the public health law, a prospective successor guardian 18 when a clearance is conducted pursuant to paragraph (d) of subdivision 19 two of section four hundred fifty-eight-b of this article, and any 20 person over the age of eighteen who resides in the home of a person who 21 has applied to become an adoptive parent or a foster parent or to oper- 22 ate a family day care home, nursery school, or group family day care 23 home or any person over the age of eighteen residing in the home of a 24 prospective successor guardian when a clearance is conducted of a 25 prospective successor guardian pursuant to this paragraph, has been or 26 is currently the subject of an indicated child abuse and maltreatment 27 report on file with the statewide central register of child abuse and 28 maltreatment. 29 § 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 30 it shall have become a law, provided, however, that any rules or regu- 31 lations necessary to implement the provisions of this act on its effec- 32 tive date shall be promulgated on or before such date.