STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          4763
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                    February 27, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced by Sen. AVELLA -- (at request of the Office of Court Adminis-
          tration)  --  read  twice  and ordered printed, and when printed to be
          committed to the Committee on Children and Families
        AN ACT to amend the family court act and the  social  services  law,  in
          relation  to  notice  of  indicated  reports of child maltreatment and
          changes of placement in child protective  and  voluntary  foster  care
          placement  and review proceedings; and to repeal certain provisions of
          the family court act, in relation to technical changes thereto
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 1017 of the family court act is amended by adding a
     2  new subdivision 5 to read as follows:
     3    5.  In  any  case  in  which an order has been issued pursuant to this
     4  article remanding or placing a child in the custody of the local  social
     5  services  district,  the  social  services official or authorized agency
     6  charged with custody or care of the child shall report  any  anticipated
     7  change  in  placement  to the attorneys for the parties and the attorney
     8  for the child not later than ten days prior to such change in  any  case
     9  in  which  the child is moved from the foster home or program into which
    10  he or she has been placed or in which the foster  parents  move  out  of
    11  state  with the child; provided, however, that where an immediate change
    12  of placement on an emergency basis is  required,  the  report  shall  be
    13  transmitted  no  later  than  the next business day after such change in
    14  placement has been made. The  social  services  official  or  authorized
    15  agency  shall  also submit a report to the attorneys for the parties and
    16  the attorney for the child or include in the placement change report any
    17  indicated report of child abuse or maltreatment or concerning the  child
    18  or (if a person or persons caring for the child is or are the subject of
    19  the report) another child in the same home within five days of the indi-
    20  cation  of  the report. The official or agency may protect the confiden-
    21  tiality of identifying or address information regarding  the  foster  or
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06794-01-7

        S. 4763                             2
     1  prospective  adoptive  parents.   Reports regarding indicated reports of
     2  child abuse or maltreatment provided pursuant to this subdivision  shall
     3  include  a  statement  advising  recipients that the information in such
     4  report  of child abuse or maltreatment shall be kept confidential, shall
     5  be used only in connection with  a  proceeding  under  this  article  or
     6  related  proceedings under this act and may not be redisclosed except as
     7  necessary for such proceeding or proceedings and as authorized  by  law.
     8  Reports  under  this  paragraph  may  be  transmitted by any appropriate
     9  means, including, but not limited to, by electronic means  or  placement
    10  on the record during proceedings in family court.
    11    §  2.  Subparagraph (E) of paragraph (i) of subdivision (b) of section
    12  1055 of the family court act, as amended by chapter 41 of  the  laws  of
    13  2010, is REPEALED.
    14    §  3.  Section 1055 of the family court act is amended by adding a new
    15  subdivision (j) to read as follows:
    16    (j) In any case in which an order has been  issued  pursuant  to  this
    17  section  placing  a  child in the custody or care of the commissioner of
    18  social services, the  social  services  official  or  authorized  agency
    19  charged with custody of the child shall report any anticipated change in
    20  placement  to  the  attorneys  for  the parties and the attorney for the
    21  child not later than ten days prior to such change in any case in  which
    22  the  child is moved from the foster home or program into which he or she
    23  has been placed or in which the foster parents move out  of  state  with
    24  the  child;  provided, however, that where an immediate change of place-
    25  ment on an emergency basis is required, the report shall be  transmitted
    26  no  later  than the next business day after such change in placement has
    27  been made. The social services official or authorized agency shall  also
    28  submit  a  report  to the attorneys for the parties and the attorney for
    29  the child or include in the placement change report any indicated report
    30  of child abuse or maltreatment concerning the child or (if a  person  or
    31  persons caring for the child is or are the subject of the report) anoth-
    32  er  child  in  the  same  home within five days of the indication of the
    33  report. The official or agency may protect the confidentiality of  iden-
    34  tifying or address information regarding the foster or prospective adop-
    35  tive  parents.  Reports  regarding  indicated  reports of child abuse or
    36  maltreatment provided pursuant  to  this  subdivision  shall  include  a
    37  statement  advising  recipients  that  the information in such report of
    38  child abuse or maltreatment shall be kept confidential,  shall  be  used
    39  only  in  connection  with  a  proceeding  under this article or related
    40  proceedings under this act and may not be redisclosed except  as  neces-
    41  sary  for  such  proceeding  or  proceedings  and  as authorized by law.
    42  Reports under this paragraph  may  be  transmitted  by  any  appropriate
    43  means,  including,  but not limited to, by electronic means or placement
    44  on the record during proceedings in family court.
    45    § 4. Subparagraph (vii) of paragraph 2 of subdivision (d)  of  section
    46  1089  of  the  family court act is amended by adding a new clause (H) to
    47  read as follows:
    48    (H) a direction that the social services official or authorized agency
    49  charged with care and custody or guardianship and custody of the  child,
    50  as  applicable, report any anticipated change in placement to the attor-
    51  neys for the parties and the attorney for the child not later  than  ten
    52  days  prior  to such change in any case in which the child is moved from
    53  the foster home or program into which he or she has been  placed  or  in
    54  which  the  foster  parents  move out of state with the child; provided,
    55  however, that where an immediate change of  placement  on  an  emergency
    56  basis  is  required,  the  report shall be transmitted no later than the

        S. 4763                             3
     1  next business day after such change in  placement  has  been  made.  The
     2  social services official or authorized agency shall also submit a report
     3  to  the  attorneys  for  the  parties  and the attorney for the child or
     4  include  in  the  placement  change report any indicated report of child
     5  abuse or maltreatment concerning the child or (if a  person  or  persons
     6  caring  for the child is or are the subject of the report) another child
     7  in the same home within five days of the indication of the  report.  The
     8  official  or  agency  may  protect the confidentiality of identifying or
     9  address  information  regarding  the  foster  or  prospective   adoptive
    10  parents. Reports under this paragraph shall not be sent to attorneys for
    11  birth  parents  whose  parental  rights have been terminated or who have
    12  surrendered their child or children. Reports regarding indicated reports
    13  of child abuse or maltreatment provided  pursuant  to  this  subdivision
    14  shall  include  a  statement advising recipients that the information in
    15  such report of child abuse or maltreatment shall be  kept  confidential,
    16  shall be used only in connection with a proceeding under this article or
    17  related  proceedings under this act and may not be redisclosed except as
    18  necessary for such proceeding or proceedings and as authorized  by  law.
    19  Reports  under  this  paragraph  may  be  transmitted by any appropriate
    20  means, including, but not limited to, by electronic means  or  placement
    21  on the record during proceedings in family court; and
    22    §  5.  Subdivision  3  of  section 358-a of the social services law is
    23  amended by adding a new paragraph (g) to read as follows:
    24    (g) In any case in which an order has been  issued  pursuant  to  this
    25  section  approving  a  foster  care  placement  instrument,  the  social
    26  services official or authorized agency charged with custody or  care  of
    27  the child shall report any anticipated change in placement to the attor-
    28  neys  for  the parties and the attorney for the child not later than ten
    29  days prior to such change in any case in which the child is  moved  from
    30  the  foster  home  or program into which he or she has been placed or in
    31  which the foster parents move out of state  with  the  child;  provided,
    32  however,  that  where  an  immediate change of placement on an emergency
    33  basis is required, the report shall be transmitted  no  later  than  the
    34  next  business  day  after  such change in placement has been made.  The
    35  social services official or authorized agency shall also submit a report
    36  to the attorneys for the parties and  the  attorney  for  the  child  or
    37  include  in  the  placement  change report any indicated report of child
    38  abuse or maltreatment concerning the child or (if a  person  or  persons
    39  caring  for  the  child  is or are the subject of the report) concerning
    40  another child in the same home within five days of the indication of the
    41  report. The official or agency may protect the confidentiality of  iden-
    42  tifying or address information regarding the foster or prospective adop-
    43  tive  parents.    Reports  regarding indicated reports of child abuse or
    44  maltreatment provided pursuant  to  this  subdivision  shall  include  a
    45  statement  advising  recipients  that  the information in such report of
    46  child abuse or maltreatment shall be kept confidential,  shall  be  used
    47  only  in  connection  with  a  proceeding  under this section or related
    48  proceedings under the family court act and may not be redisclosed except
    49  as necessary for such proceeding or proceedings  and  as  authorized  by
    50  law.  Reports under this paragraph may be transmitted by any appropriate
    51  means,  including,  but not limited to, by electronic means or placement
    52  on the record during proceedings in family court.
    53    § 6. This act shall take effect immediately,  provided  that  sections
    54  one,  three,  four  and  five  of  this act shall take effect on the one
    55  hundred twentieth day after it shall have become a law; provided, howev-
    56  er, that section two of this act shall be deemed to have taken effect on

        S. 4763                             4
     1  the same date as section 1 of chapter 342 of  the  laws  of  2010,  took
     2  effect;  and,  provided  further,  effective  immediately, the addition,
     3  amendment and/or repeal of any rule  or  regulation  necessary  for  the
     4  implementation  of  this  act  on  its  effective date is authorized and
     5  directed to be completed on or before such effective date.
          REPEAL NOTE: Subparagraph (E) of paragraph (i) of subdivision  (b)  of
        section  1055 of the family court act, as amended by section 67 of chap-
        ter 41 of the laws of 2010 contains language inconsistent with  language
        in chapter 342 of the laws of 2010.