Bill Text: NY A09542 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Requires certain persons and officials to report cases of suspected domestic violence.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-05-03 - print number 9542a [A09542 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A09542-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          9542
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 22, 2018
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. JONES -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Social Services
        AN ACT to amend the  social  services  law,  in  relation  to  requiring
          certain  persons  and  officials to report cases of suspected domestic
          violence
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1. The social services law is amended by adding a new section
     2  459-i to read as follows:
     3    § 459-i. Persons and officials required to report cases  of  suspected
     4  domestic  violence.  1.  (a)  The  following  persons  and officials are
     5  required to report or cause a report to be made in accordance with  this
     6  article  when  they  have reasonable cause to suspect that an individual
     7  coming before them in their professional or  official  capacity  is  the
     8  victim of domestic violence: any physician; registered physician assist-
     9  ant;  surgeon;  medical  examiner;  coroner;  dentist; dental hygienist;
    10  osteopath;  optometrist;  chiropractor;  podiatrist;  resident;  intern;
    11  psychologist; registered nurse; social worker; emergency medical techni-
    12  cian;  licensed  creative  arts  therapist; licensed marriage and family
    13  therapist; licensed mental  health  counselor;  licensed  psychoanalyst;
    14  licensed  behavior analyst; certified behavior analyst assistant; hospi-
    15  tal personnel engaged in the admission, examination, care  or  treatment
    16  of  persons;  a  Christian  Science practitioner; school official, which
    17  includes but is not limited to school teacher, school  guidance  counse-
    18  lor,  school  psychologist,  school  social worker, school nurse, school
    19  administrator or other school personnel required to hold a  teaching  or
    20  administrative  license  or  certificate;  full or part-time compensated
    21  school employee required to hold a temporary coaching license or profes-
    22  sional coaching certificate; social services worker; employee of a publ-
    23  icly-funded emergency shelter for families with children; director of  a
    24  children's overnight camp, summer day camp or traveling summer day camp,
    25  as  such camps are defined in section thirteen hundred ninety-two of the
    26  public health law; day care center worker; school-age child care worker;
    27  provider of family or group family day care; employee or volunteer in  a
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD13691-01-7
        A. 9542                             2
     1  residential  care  facility  for children that is licensed, certified or
     2  operated by the office of children and family  services;  or  any  other
     3  child  care or foster care worker; mental health professional; substance
     4  abuse  counselor;  alcoholism counselor; all persons credentialed by the
     5  office of alcoholism and substance abuse services; peace officer; police
     6  officer; district attorney or assistant district attorney;  investigator
     7  employed  in the office of a district attorney; or other law enforcement
     8  official.
     9    (b) Whenever such person is required to report under this  article  in
    10  his  or  her  capacity  as  a  member of the staff of a medical or other
    11  public or private institution, school, facility or  agency,  he  or  she
    12  shall make the report as required by this article and immediately notify
    13  the person in charge of such institution, school, facility or agency, or
    14  his  or  her  designated agent. Such person in charge, or the designated
    15  agent of such person, shall be responsible for all  subsequent  adminis-
    16  tration  necessitated  by the report. Any report shall include the name,
    17  title and contact information for every staff person of the  institution
    18  who  is  believed  to  have  direct  knowledge of the allegations in the
    19  report. Nothing in this section or article is intended to  require  more
    20  than one report from any such institution, school or agency.
    21    (c) A medical or other public or private institution, school, facility
    22  or  agency shall not take any retaliatory personnel action, as such term
    23  is defined in paragraph (e) of subdivision one of section seven  hundred
    24  forty  of  the  labor  law,  against  an  employee because such employee
    25  believes that he or she has reasonable cause to suspect that an individ-
    26  ual is the victim of domestic violence and that employee therefore makes
    27  a report in accordance with this article. No  school,  school  official,
    28  child  care  provider,  foster  care provider, residential care facility
    29  provider, hospital, medical institution provider or mental health facil-
    30  ity provider shall impose any conditions, including  prior  approval  or
    31  prior  notification,  upon a member of their staff specifically required
    32  to report under this article.
    33    (d) Social services workers are required to report or cause  a  report
    34  to  be  made  in  accordance with this article when they have reasonable
    35  cause to suspect that an individual is the victim of  domestic  violence
    36  where  a  person  comes  before  them  in their professional or official
    37  capacity and states from personal knowledge facts, conditions or circum-
    38  stances which, if correct, would  render  the  individual  a  victim  of
    39  domestic violence.
    40    2.  Any  person,  institution, school, facility, agency, organization,
    41  partnership or corporation which  employs  persons  mandated  to  report
    42  suspected  incidents of domestic violence pursuant to subdivision one of
    43  this section shall provide all such current and new employees with writ-
    44  ten information explaining the reporting requirements set  out  in  such
    45  subdivision. The employers shall be responsible for the costs associated
    46  with printing and distributing the written information.
    47    §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
    48  have become a law.