S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K ________________________________________________________________________ 216 2011-2012 Regular Sessions I N S E N A T E (PREFILED) January 5, 2011 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MAZIARZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families AN ACT to amend the executive law, the tax law and the state finance law, in relation to missing children and persons THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM- BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: 1 Section 1. Section 837-m of the executive law, as added by chapter 579 2 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows: 3 S 837-m. Reporting duties of law enforcement departments with respect 4 to missing children AND PERSONS. The chief of every police department, 5 each county sheriff and the superintendent of state police shall report, 6 at least semi-annually, to the division with respect to specified cases 7 of missing children AND PERSONS that are closed. Such reports shall be 8 in the form and manner prescribed by the division and shall contain such 9 information as the division deems necessary including, but not limited 10 to, information regarding recovered children AND PERSONS who were 11 arrested, children AND PERSONS who were the victims of criminal activity 12 or exploitation, and children AND PERSONS who were found deceased and 13 information regarding the alleged abductor or killer of such children 14 AND PERSONS. 15 S 2. Section 628 of the tax law, as added by chapter 579 of the laws 16 of 1997, is amended to read as follows: 17 S 628. Gift for missing and exploited children AND PERSONS clearing- 18 house fund. Effective for any tax year commencing on or after January 19 first, nineteen hundred ninety-seven, an individual in any taxable year 20 may elect to contribute to the missing and exploited children AND 21 PERSONS clearinghouse fund. Such contribution shall be in any whole 22 dollar amount and shall not reduce the amount of state tax owed by such 23 individual. The commissioner shall include space on the personal income 24 tax return form to enable a taxpayer to make such contribution. EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD01651-01-1 S. 216 2 1 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all revenues collected 2 pursuant to this section shall be paid to the missing and exploited 3 children AND PERSONS clearinghouse fund established pursuant to and used 4 only for those purposes enumerated in section ninety-two-w of the state 5 finance law. 6 S 3. Section 92-w of the state finance law, as added by chapter 530 of 7 the laws of 1994, subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 579 of the laws of 8 1997, is amended to read as follows: 9 S 92-w. Missing and exploited children AND PERSONS clearinghouse fund. 10 1. A special fund to be known as the "missing and exploited children AND 11 PERSONS clearinghouse fund" is hereby established in the custody of the 12 state comptroller and the commissioner of taxation and finance. 13 2. The fund shall consist of all monies transferred to such fund 14 pursuant to law, all monies required by any provision of law to be paid 15 into or credited to the fund, all moneys from gifts pursuant to section 16 six hundred twenty-eight of the tax law and any interest earnings which 17 may accrue from the investment of monies in the fund. Nothing contained 18 herein shall prevent the state from receiving grants, gifts or bequests 19 for the purposes of the fund as defined in this section and depositing 20 them into the fund according to law. 21 3. Monies of the fund, when allocated, shall be available to the divi- 22 sion of criminal justice services for the enhancement of public informa- 23 tion and prevention education efforts including production of print, 24 video and radio advertising materials, brochures, pamphlets and outdoor 25 advertising, or for any other activity or purpose that will aid in the 26 prevention of the exploitation of children AND PERSONS or in the recov- 27 ery of missing and exploited children AND PERSONS, as deemed necessary 28 by the missing and exploited children AND PERSONS clearinghouse created 29 pursuant to section eight hundred thirty-seven-f of the executive law. 30 4. Monies shall be payable from the fund on the audit and warrant of 31 the comptroller on vouchers approved and certified by the director of 32 the division of criminal justice services. 33 S 4. Section 837-f of the executive law, as added by chapter 880 of 34 the laws of 1986, subdivision 10-a as added by chapter 600 of the laws 35 of 1997, subdivision 12 as amended by chapter 579 of the laws of 1997, 36 subdivision 14 as amended by chapter 381 of the laws of 2004 and para- 37 graph (c) of subdivision 14 as amended by chapter 348 of the laws of 38 2005, is amended to read as follows: 39 S 837-f. Missing and exploited children AND PERSONS clearinghouse. 40 There is hereby established within the division a missing and exploited 41 children AND PERSONS clearinghouse to provide a comprehensive and coor- 42 dinated approach to the tragic problems of missing and exploited chil- 43 dren AND PERSONS. In addition to the activities of the statewide 44 central register for missing children AND PERSONS, the commissioner 45 shall be authorized to: 46 1. Plan and implement programs to ensure the most effective use of 47 federal, state and local resources in the investigation of missing and 48 exploited children AND PERSONS; 49 2. Exchange information and resources with other states, and within 50 New York state, concerning missing and exploited children AND PERSONS; 51 3. Establish a case data base which will include nonidentifying infor- 52 mation on reported children AND PERSONS and facts developed in the phas- 53 es of a search, and analyze such data for the purposes of: assisting law 54 enforcement in their current investigations of missing and exploited 55 children AND PERSONS, developing prevention programs and increasing 56 understanding of the nature and extent of the problem; and share the S. 216 3 1 data and analysis on a regular basis with the National Center for Miss- 2 ing and Exploited Children; 3 4. Disseminate a directory of resources to assist in the locating of 4 missing children AND PERSONS; 5 5. Cooperate with public and private schools and organizations to 6 develop education and prevention programs concerning child safety for 7 communities, parents and children; 8 6. Provide assistance in returning recovered children AND PERSONS who 9 are located out-of-state; 10 7. By January first, [nineteen hundred eighty-seven] TWO THOUSAND 11 ELEVEN arrange for the development of a curriculum for the training of 12 law enforcement personnel investigating cases involving missing and 13 exploited children AND PERSONS; 14 8. Assist federal, state and local agencies in the investigation of 15 cases involving missing and exploited children AND PERSONS; 16 9. Utilize available resources to duplicate photographs and posters of 17 children AND PERSONS reported as missing by police and with consent of 18 parents, guardians or others legally responsible, disseminate this 19 information throughout the state; 20 10. Beginning on January first, nineteen hundred eighty-seven, dissem- 21 inate, on a regular basis, a bulletin containing information on children 22 in the missing children's register to the state education department 23 which shall then forward such bulletin to every public and private 24 school where parents, guardians or others legally responsible for such 25 children have given consent; 26 10-a. (a) By November first, [nineteen hundred ninety-seven] TWO THOU- 27 SAND ELEVEN prescribe general guidelines to enable the state legislature 28 and state agencies to assist in the location and recovery of missing 29 children AND PERSONS. The guidelines shall provide information relating 30 to: 31 (i) the form and manner in which materials and information pertaining 32 to missing children AND PERSONS including but not limited to biograph- 33 ical data and pictures, sketches or other likenesses may be included in 34 stationery, newsletters and other written or electronic printings; 35 (ii) appropriate sources from which such materials and information may 36 be obtained; 37 (iii) the procedures by which such materials and information may be 38 obtained; and 39 (iv) any other matter the clearinghouse considers appropriate. 40 (b) By January first, [nineteen hundred ninety-eight] TWO THOUSAND 41 TWELVE arrange for the transmission of biographical information and 42 pictures, sketches or other likenesses of missing children AND PERSONS 43 to state agencies, departments and the legislature to use in printings. 44 11. Operate a toll-free twenty-four hour hotline for the public to use 45 to relay information concerning missing children AND PERSONS; 46 12. Submit an annual report to the governor and legislature regarding 47 the activities of the clearinghouse including statistical information 48 involving reported cases of missing children AND PERSONS pursuant to 49 section eight hundred thirty-seven-m of this article, AS ADDED BY CHAP- 50 TER FIVE HUNDRED SEVENTY-NINE OF THE LAWS OF NINETEEN HUNDRED 51 NINETY-SEVEN, and a summary of the division's efforts with respect to 52 the use of monies from the missing and exploited children AND PERSONS 53 clearinghouse fund created pursuant to section ninety-two-w of the state 54 finance law; and S. 216 4 1 13. Take such other steps as necessary to assist in education, 2 prevention, service provision and investigation of cases involving miss- 3 ing and exploited children AND PERSONS. 4 14. (a) In consultation with the division of state police and other 5 appropriate agencies, develop, and regularly update and distribute, 6 model missing child AND PERSON prompt response and notification plans, 7 which shall be available for use, in their discretion, as appropriate, 8 by local communities and law enforcement personnel. Such plans shall 9 involve a pro-active, coordinated response, planned in advance, that may 10 be promptly triggered by law enforcement personnel upon confirmation by 11 a police officer, peace officer or police agency of a report of a miss- 12 ing child, as defined in subdivision one of section eight hundred thir- 13 ty-seven-e of this article, OR PERSON. 14 (b) Such plans shall, at a minimum, provide that: 15 (i) the name of such missing child OR PERSON, a description of the 16 child OR PERSON and other pertinent information may be promptly 17 dispatched over the police communication system, pursuant to subdivision 18 three of section two hundred twenty-one of this chapter; 19 (ii) such information may be immediately provided orally, electron- 20 ically or by facsimile transmission to one or more radio stations and 21 other broadcast media outlets serving the community including, but not 22 limited to, those which have voluntarily agreed, in advance, to promptly 23 notify other such radio stations and other broadcast media outlets in 24 like manner; 25 (iii) such information may be immediately provided by electronic mail 26 message to one or more internet service providers and commercial mobile 27 service providers serving the community including, but not limited to, 28 those which have voluntarily agreed, in advance, to promptly notify 29 other such internet service providers in like manner; 30 (iv) participating radio stations and other participating broadcast 31 media outlets serving the community may voluntarily agree to promptly 32 broadcast a missing child alert providing pertinent details concerning 33 the child's disappearance, breaking into regular programming where 34 appropriate; 35 (v) participating internet service providers and commercial mobile 36 service providers serving the community may voluntarily agree to prompt- 37 ly provide by electronic mail message a missing child alert providing 38 pertinent details concerning the child's disappearance; 39 (vi) police agencies not connected with the basic police communication 40 system in use in such jurisdiction may transmit such information to the 41 nearest or most convenient electronic entry point, from which point it 42 may be promptly dispatched, in conformity with the orders, rules or 43 regulations governing the system; and 44 (vii) no dispatch or transmission of a report concerning a missing 45 child OR PERSON shall be required by such plan if the investigating 46 police department advises, in its discretion, that the release of such 47 information may jeopardize the investigation or the safety of the child 48 OR PERSON, or requests forbearance for any reason. 49 (c) The commissioner shall also designate a unit within the division 50 that shall assist law enforcement agencies and representatives of radio 51 stations, broadcast media outlets, internet service providers and 52 commercial mobile service providers in the design, implementation and 53 improvement of missing child OR PERSON prompt response and notification 54 plans. Such unit shall make ongoing outreach efforts to local govern- 55 ment entities and local law enforcement agencies to assist such entities 56 and agencies in the implementation and operation of such plans with the S. 216 5 1 goal of implementing and operating such plans in every jurisdiction in 2 New York state. 3 (d) The commissioner shall also maintain and make available to appro- 4 priate state and local law enforcement agencies up-to-date information 5 concerning technological advances that may assist in facilitating the 6 recovery of missing children AND PERSONS. Such information shall 7 include, but not be limited to, technology using computer assisted imag- 8 ing to "age enhance" photographs of missing children AND PERSONS, and 9 technology that may be used to enter such photographs and other perti- 10 nent information concerning missing children AND PERSONS into a database 11 accessible to appropriate officials and persons. 12 S 5. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed- 13 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.