Bill Text: NY A05495 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires mandatory reporting of certain convictions, professional misconduct and/or employment termination; defines terms; further requires all licensees to report to the education department any conviction of a crime in any jurisdiction within thirty days after the entry of a judgment of conviction; authorizes the commissioner or deputy commissioner for the professions to issue a summary suspension order under certain circumstances; authorizes the district attorney to give written notice to the department of education upon the conviction of a felony or misdemeanor of any person holding a license pursuant to title eight of the education law; makes related provisions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2022-02-08 - REFERRED TO HIGHER EDUCATION [A05495 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-A05495-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5495 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 19, 2021 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. GLICK, FAHY, STIRPE, GRIFFIN, COLTON -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to mandatory reporting of certain convictions, professional misconduct and/or employment termi- nation; and to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to notice to the education department The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 6501 of the education law, as amended by chapter 2 299 of the laws of 2016, is amended to read as follows: 3 § 6501. Admission to a profession (licensing). 1. Admission to prac- 4 tice of a profession in this state is accomplished by a license being 5 issued to a qualified applicant by the [education] department. To quali- 6 fy for a license an applicant shall meet the requirements prescribed in 7 the article for the particular profession and shall meet the require- 8 ments prescribed in section 3-503 of the general obligations law. 9 2. Mandatory reporting of convictions, professional misconduct and/or 10 employment termination. 11 a. For purposes of this subdivision: 12 (1) "Employment termination" means termination of employment and/or a 13 voluntary or involuntary resignation to avoid such termination, due to 14 professional misconduct, unprofessional conduct, incompetency undertaken 15 by or on behalf of a hospital, institution, or employer, for determined 16 or admitted misconduct directly related to the professional duties for 17 which the licensee was licensed. 18 (2) "Crime" means a misdemeanor or felony under: 19 (i) New York state law; 20 (ii) federal law; or 21 (iii) the law of another jurisdiction and which, if committed within 22 this state, would have constituted a crime under New York state law. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD07641-01-1A. 5495 2 1 (3) "Criminal history record" means a record of all convictions of 2 crimes and any pending criminal charges maintained on an individual by 3 the division of criminal justice and the federal bureau of investi- 4 gation. 5 (4) "Entry of a judgment of conviction" means the date on which 6 sentence, including but not limited to imprisonment, a term of 7 probation, or a fine, was imposed or, if no such sentence was imposed, 8 the date the judgment of conviction was entered in the court in which 9 the case was determined. 10 (5) "Licensee" shall mean a person registered, certified, or licensed 11 under this title. However, this definition shall not apply to discipli- 12 nary proceedings in relation to the profession of medicine, physician's 13 assistants, and specialist assistants, who are under the jurisdiction of 14 the office of professional medical conduct pursuant to the provisions of 15 title II-A of article two of the public health law. 16 b. (1) All licensees under this title shall be required to report to 17 the department any conviction of a crime in any jurisdiction within 18 thirty days after the entry of a judgment of conviction. 19 (2) All licensees under this title shall be required to report to the 20 department any determination of professional misconduct in any jurisdic- 21 tion within thirty days after notification of such determination of 22 professional misconduct was received by such individual. 23 (3) All licensees under this title shall be required to report to the 24 department any employment termination in any jurisdiction within thirty 25 days after notification of such termination was received by such indi- 26 vidual. 27 (4) The department shall provide licensees with notice of the report- 28 ing requirements and procedures for reporting described in this subdivi- 29 sion by prominently posting said requirements on the department's 30 website and including information regarding said requirements conspicu- 31 ously on the application for licensure form and each registration 32 renewal form. 33 (5) Willful failure of a licensee to submit a report to the department 34 within such thirty day period may be grounds for professional misconduct 35 pursuant to section sixty-five hundred of this subarticle. 36 (6) The reporting requirements of this subdivision shall only apply to 37 convictions, professional misconduct and employment terminations that 38 occur on or after the effective date of this subdivision. 39 (7) A licensee shall submit a report to the department pursuant to 40 this subdivision on a form prescribed by the commissioner. Such form 41 shall be made publicly available on the department's website. 42 c. All reports submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall be consid- 43 ered part of the investigatory file and confidential pursuant to subdi- 44 vision eight of section sixty-five hundred ten of this article. 45 d. Upon receipt of a report from a licensee that the licensee has been 46 convicted of a crime, or is the subject of a determination of profes- 47 sional misconduct or employment termination, the department may refer 48 the report to the professional conduct officer for an investigation and 49 potential disciplinary action pursuant to section sixty-five hundred ten 50 of this article. 51 e. In the event that a licensee is convicted of a crime, the district 52 attorney shall provide notice thereof to the commissioner pursuant to 53 section 440.55 of the criminal procedure law. Upon receipt of a report 54 from a district attorney that a licensee has been convicted of a crime, 55 the department may refer the report to the professional conduct officerA. 5495 3 1 for an investigation and potential disciplinary action pursuant to 2 section sixty-five hundred ten of this article. 3 f. Upon notification that a licensee has been convicted of a crime 4 under this section, the department may request a criminal history record 5 from the division of criminal justice services, and the division of 6 criminal justice services shall forward such criminal history record to 7 the department in a timely manner. The consideration of a criminal 8 history record by the department shall be in a manner consistent with 9 article twenty-three-A of the correction law. 10 3. a. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, any appli- 11 cant seeking to qualify for a license pursuant to this title who is the 12 spouse of an active duty member of the armed forces of the United 13 States, national guard or reserves as defined in 10 U.S.C. sections 1209 14 and 1211, and such spouse is transferred by the military to this state 15 shall be afforded an expedited review of his or her application for 16 licensure. Such application shall be on a form prescribed by the depart- 17 ment and shall include an attestation by the applicant of the military 18 status of his or her spouse and any other such supporting documentation 19 that the department may require. Upon review of such application, the 20 department shall issue a license to the applicant if the applicant holds 21 a license in good standing in another state and in the opinion of the 22 department, the requirements for licensure of such other state are 23 substantially equivalent to the requirements for licensure in this 24 state. 25 b. In addition to the expedited review granted in paragraph a of this 26 subdivision, an applicant who provides satisfactory documentation that 27 he or she holds a license in good standing from another state, may 28 request the issuance of a temporary practice permit, which, if granted 29 will permit the applicant to work under the supervision of a New York 30 state licensee in accordance with regulations of the commissioner. The 31 department may grant such temporary practice permit when it appears 32 based on the application and supporting documentation received that the 33 applicant will meet the requirements for licensure in this state because 34 he or she holds a license in good standing from another state with 35 significantly comparable licensure requirements to those of this state, 36 except the department has not been able to secure direct source verifi- 37 cation of the applicant's underlying credentials (e.g., receipt of 38 original transcript, experience verification). Such permit shall be 39 valid for six months or until ten days after notification that the 40 applicant does not meet the qualifications for licensure. An additional 41 six months may be granted upon a determination by the department that 42 the applicant is expected to qualify for the full license upon receipt 43 of the remaining direct source verification documents requested by the 44 department in such time period and that the delay in providing the 45 necessary documentation for full licensure was due to extenuating 46 circumstances which the military spouse could not avoid. 47 c. A temporary practice permit issued under paragraph b of this subdi- 48 vision shall be subject to the full disciplinary and regulatory authori- 49 ty of the board of regents and the department, pursuant to this title, 50 as if such authorization were a professional license issued under this 51 article. 52 d. The department shall reduce the initial licensure application fee 53 by one-half for any application submitted by a military spouse under 54 this subdivision.A. 5495 4 1 § 2. Subdivision 5 of section 8004 of the education law, as added by 2 chapter 635 of the laws of 1991, is amended and a new subdivision 6 is 3 added to read as follows: 4 5. Be at least eighteen years of age[.]; and 5 6. Be of good moral character as determined by the department. 6 § 3. Subdivisions 5 and 6 of section 8355 of the education law, as 7 added by chapter 798 of the laws of 1992, are amended to read as 8 follows: 9 5. Age: be at least twenty-one years of age; [and] 10 6. Character: be of good moral character as determined by the depart- 11 ment; and 12 7. Fees: pay a fee for an initial certificate of one hundred dollars 13 to the department; and a fee of fifty dollars for each triennial regis- 14 tration period. 15 § 4. Subdivision 6 of section 8705 of the education law is renumbered 16 subdivision 7 and a new subdivision 6 is added to read as follows: 17 6. Character: be of good moral character as determined by the depart- 18 ment; and 19 § 5. Section 6510 of the education law is amended by adding a new 20 subdivision 10 to read as follows: 21 10. Summary suspension and expedited hearing. 22 a. For the purposes of this subdivision only: 23 (1) "Date of service" means the date on which the licensee or regis- 24 tered entity receives a document from the department by registered or 25 certified mail or by personal service. 26 (2) "Department officer" shall mean an employee of the department with 27 significant programmatic, policy and supervisory responsibility, who is 28 not an attorney who presents cases on behalf of the department in 29 proceedings under this subdivision. 30 b. Notice of hearing and summary suspension order. 31 (1) Whenever the commissioner or deputy commissioner for the 32 professions determines after an investigation and a recommendation by 33 the professional conduct officer that the public health, safety or 34 welfare imperatively requires emergency action against a professional 35 license, certificate, registration, permit or other authorization of the 36 licensee or registered entity under this title, the commissioner or 37 deputy commissioner for the professions may notify such licensee or 38 registered entity that a hearing will be conducted to determine if a 39 summary suspension order shall be issued, or the commissioner or deputy 40 commissioner for the professions may issue a summary suspension order, 41 suspending such licensee or registered entity's privileges to practice 42 such profession pursuant to this title in the state of New York, imme- 43 diately or as of a specified future date. Except as provided in subpara- 44 graph two of this paragraph, such summary suspension order may remain in 45 effect until a final determination is made by the board of regents 46 pursuant to this subdivision. Notwithstanding any other provision of law 47 to the contrary, the department shall make such summary suspension order 48 available to the licensee or registered entity and shall indicate such 49 summary suspension on the department's website on the verification of 50 licenses page. 51 (2) The commissioner or deputy commissioner for the professions may at 52 any time, before a final determination is made under this subdivision, 53 vacate such summary suspension order pursuant to this subdivision if the 54 public health, safety or welfare no longer imperatively requires emer- 55 gency action against a professional license, certificate, registration,A. 5495 5 1 permit or other authorization of the licensee or registered entity to 2 practice under this title. 3 c. Order proceedings. 4 (1) Proceedings shall be commenced by service of the summary suspen- 5 sion order, if any, a statement of the charges including the facts and 6 circumstances that are alleged to justify the hearing or summary suspen- 7 sion order, and a notice of hearing, which shall be served on the licen- 8 see or registered entity pursuant to paragraph f of subdivision one of 9 this section. 10 (2) (i) The department shall schedule a hearing to commence no less 11 than ten nor more than forty-five days after the date of service of the 12 notice of hearing and summary suspension order, if any, and statement of 13 charges, unless otherwise requested or consented to by the licensee or 14 registered entity, before a public health and safety discipline review 15 committee. Such committee shall consist of at least three members, at 16 least one of whom shall be a regent, at least one of whom shall be a 17 member of the applicable state board regulating such profession, and the 18 remaining member may be either a regent or a department officer. The 19 summary suspension order, if any, statement of charges and notice of 20 hearing shall be sent to the licensee or registered entity by registered 21 or certified mail or be personally served. 22 (ii) The commissioner or deputy commissioner for the professions shall 23 designate an administrative officer, admitted to practice as an attorney 24 in the state of New York, who shall have the authority to rule on all 25 motions, procedures and other legal objections and shall draft a report 26 at the direction of such committee members, which shall be subject to 27 the approval of the members of the committee. The administrative officer 28 shall not be entitled to a vote, and such administrative officer's 29 report shall reflect the views of the committee members. 30 (3) The notice of hearing shall specify that the purpose of the hear- 31 ing is to determine whether a summary suspension order should be 32 imposed, continued, modified or discontinued until the completion of the 33 final disciplinary proceeding under subdivision three of this section or 34 whether such summary suspension order previously issued should be lifted 35 immediately. The notice of hearing shall also set forth: 36 (i) the time and place of the hearing, which, unless otherwise 37 requested or consented to by the licensee or registered entity, shall be 38 held in the regional office of the department in closest proximity to 39 the events alleged in the statement of charges provided, however, that 40 where it is not possible to conduct such hearing in such office within 41 the timeframe required by this subdivision, then: (A) such hearing may 42 be conducted in a regional office in close proximity to such events to 43 the greatest extent practicable; or (B) one or more members of the 44 public health and safety review committee panel who are unable to phys- 45 ically appear at the location in closest proximity in the timeframes 46 required may participate in such hearing via videoconference technology 47 with the consent of all parties; 48 (ii) that the licensee or registered entity may file a written 49 response to the statement of charges and accompanying evidence prior to 50 the hearing and in response to any recommendation made by the public 51 health and safety discipline review committee; 52 (iii) that the licensee or registered entity may appear personally at 53 the hearing and may be represented by counsel; 54 (iv) that the licensee or registered entity shall have the right to 55 produce witnesses and evidence on his or her behalf, to cross-examine 56 witnesses and examine evidence produced against the licensee or regis-A. 5495 6 1 tered entity, and to issue subpoenas in accordance with the provisions 2 of the civil practice law and rules; 3 (v) that a stenographic record of the hearing will be made and be made 4 promptly available to the licensee or registered entity without charge; 5 and 6 (vi) such other information as may be considered appropriate by the 7 department. 8 (4) The evidence in support of the charges shall be presented by an 9 attorney for the department. The licensee or registered entity shall 10 have the rights required to be stated in the notice of hearing. The 11 public health and safety review committee shall not be bound by the 12 rules of evidence. The hearing shall be completed within sixty days of 13 the date of service of the notice of hearing and summary suspension 14 order, if any. The committee shall establish a hearing schedule to 15 ensure that this expedited hearing is completed within the required 16 timeframes. The public health and safety committee, upon request, may 17 grant a limited and time specific adjournment to the department that 18 would extend the hearing beyond the sixty days if the committee deter- 19 mines that the delay is attributable to a circumstance or occurrence 20 substantially beyond the control of the department and an injustice 21 would result if the adjournment were not granted. The licensee or regis- 22 tered entity may request an adjournment at any time; such requests that 23 are reasonable shall be granted. A hearing which has been initiated 24 shall not be discontinued because of the death or incapacity to serve of 25 one member of the committee. The public health and safety committee 26 shall review the evidence and the hearing record and determine, whether 27 the department has shown, by a preponderance of the evidence, a summary 28 suspension order should be imposed, continued or modified because the 29 public health, safety or welfare imperatively requires emergency action 30 against the professional license, certificate, registration, permit or 31 other authorization of the licensee or registered entity to practice 32 under this title. 33 d. Results of hearing. The public health and safety committee shall 34 have fifteen days from the completion of the hearing to issue a written 35 recommendation as to whether a summary suspension order concerning such 36 licensee or registered entity shall be imposed, continued or modified 37 until completion of the final disciplinary proceeding under subdivision 38 three of this section or whether any such summary suspension order 39 previously imposed shall be lifted immediately. Such committee shall 40 promptly forward such recommendation to the board of regents. A copy of 41 such recommendation shall promptly be forwarded to the licensee or 42 registered entity, as the case may be, providing notice of the date on 43 which such recommendation will be considered by the board of regents. 44 e. At its next regularly scheduled meeting, or at a special meeting, 45 the board of regents shall consider the recommendation of the public 46 health and safety committee and the record before the public health and 47 safety discipline committee, as well as any response from the licensee 48 or registered entity, and make a final determination as to whether a 49 summary suspension order shall be imposed, continued or modified until 50 completion of a final disciplinary proceeding can be held pursuant to 51 subdivision three of this section or whether any summary suspension 52 order previously imposed shall be lifted immediately. 53 § 6. Subdivision 5 of section 6510 of the education law, as amended by 54 chapter 866 of the laws of 1980, is amended to read as follows: 55 5. Court review procedures. [The] A summary suspension order issued 56 by the commissioner or deputy commissioner for the professions pursuantA. 5495 7 1 to subdivision ten of this section and the decisions of the board of 2 regents may be reviewed pursuant to the proceedings under article seven- 3 ty-eight of the civil practice law and rules. Such proceedings shall be 4 returnable before the appellate division of the third judicial depart- 5 ment, and such decisions shall not be stayed or enjoined except upon 6 application to such appellate division after notice to the department 7 and to the attorney general and upon a showing that the petitioner has a 8 substantial likelihood of success. 9 § 7. Section 440.55 of the criminal procedure law, as added by chapter 10 134 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as follows: 11 § 440.55 Notice to education department where a licensed professional 12 has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor. 13 The district attorney shall give written notification to the depart- 14 ment of education upon the conviction of a felony or misdemeanor of any 15 person holding a license pursuant to title eight of the education law. 16 In addition, the district attorney shall give written notification to 17 the department upon the vacatur or reversal of any felony or misdemeanor 18 conviction of any such person. 19 § 8. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 20 it shall have become a law.
