Bill Text: NY S02391 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes standardized practices and procedures which guarantee that allegations of child abuse by school bus employees are reported.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-06-20 - COMMITTED TO RULES [S02391 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S02391-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2391 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 13, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sen. LARKIN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the reporting of child abuse in an educational setting by employees of contractors providing transportation to the children of a school district The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivisions 3, 4 and 5 of section 1125 of the education 2 law, subdivisions 3 and 4 as added by chapter 180 of the laws of 2000 3 and subdivision 5 as amended by section 1 of part E of chapter 501 of 4 the laws of 2012, are amended to read as follows: 5 3. "Employee" shall mean any person receiving compensation from a 6 school district, or employee or former employee of any person or entity 7 which contracts with a school district to provide transportation to 8 children, or employee of a contracted service provider, or worker placed 9 within the school under a public assistance employment program, pursuant 10 to title nine-B of article five of the social services law, and consist- 11 ent with the provisions of such title for the provision of services to 12 such district, its students or employees, directly or through contract, 13 whereby such services performed by such person involve direct student 14 contact. 15 4. "Volunteer" shall mean any person, other than an employee, who 16 provides services to a school or school district, or to a person or 17 entity which contracts with a school district to provide transportation 18 to children, which involve direct student contact. 19 5. "Educational setting" shall mean the building and grounds of a 20 public school district, the vehicles provided directly or by contract by 21 the school district for the transportation of students to and from 22 school buildings, field trips, co-curricular and extra-curricular activ- 23 ities both on and off school district grounds, all co-curricular and 24 extra-curricular activity sites, and any other location where direct EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD03750-01-7S. 2391 2 1 contact between an employee or volunteer and a child has allegedly 2 occurred. Such term shall not include a special act school district as 3 defined in section four thousand one of this chapter which shall be 4 subject to article eleven of the social services law. 5 § 2. Section 1126 of the education law is amended by adding a new 6 subdivision 1-a to read as follows: 7 1-a. Any employee of a person or entity which contracts with a school 8 district to provide transportation to children shall report or cause a 9 report to be made to such person or entity when such employee knows or 10 has reason to believe that any employee, former employee or volunteer of 11 the contracting person or entity subjected a child to child abuse in an 12 educational setting. In any case where an oral or written allegation is 13 made to a person or entity which contracts with a school district to 14 provide transportation to children that a child has been subjected to 15 child abuse by an employee, former employee or volunteer in an educa- 16 tional setting, such person or entity shall upon receipt of such allega- 17 tion promptly complete a written report of such allegation including the 18 full name of the child alleged to be abused; the identity of the person 19 making the allegation and their relationship to the alleged child 20 victim; the name of the employee, former employee or volunteer against 21 whom the allegation was made; and a listing of the specific allegations 22 of child abuse in an educational setting. Such written report shall be 23 upon a form as prescribed in section eleven hundred thirty-two of this 24 article, and shall be personally delivered to the school district super- 25 intendent. 26 § 3. The opening paragraph of section 1128 of the education law, as 27 added by chapter 180 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: 28 Upon receipt of a written report described in paragraph (a) of subdi- 29 vision one or subdivision one-a of section eleven hundred twenty-six of 30 this article alleging that a child has been abused in an educational 31 setting, a school administrator or superintendent shall where there is a 32 reasonable suspicion to believe that an act of child abuse has occurred: 33 § 4. Subdivision 1 of section 1128-a of the education law, as added by 34 chapter 180 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: 35 1. Where a superintendent of schools forwards to law enforcement a 36 report as described in paragraph (a) of subdivision one or subdivision 37 one-a of section eleven hundred twenty-six of this article, he or she 38 shall refer such report to the commissioner where the employee or volun- 39 teer alleged to have committed an act of child abuse as defined in this 40 article holds a certification or license issued by the department. 41 § 5. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall 42 have become a law.
