Bill Text: NY S07155 | 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 (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-05-04 - PRINT NUMBER 7155A [S07155 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-S07155-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          7155
                    IN SENATE
                                       (Prefiled)
                                     January 3, 2018
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen.  LITTLE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed 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;
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD13691-01-7
        S. 7155                             2
     1  provider of family or group family day care; employee or volunteer in  a
     2  residential  care  facility  for children that is licensed, certified or
     3  operated by the office of children and family  services;  or  any  other
     4  child  care or foster care worker; mental health professional; substance
     5  abuse counselor; alcoholism counselor; all persons credentialed  by  the
     6  office of alcoholism and substance abuse services; peace officer; police
     7  officer;  district attorney or assistant district attorney; investigator
     8  employed in the office of a district attorney; or other law  enforcement
     9  official.
    10    (b)  Whenever  such person is required to report under this article in
    11  his or her capacity as a member of the  staff  of  a  medical  or  other
    12  public  or  private  institution,  school, facility or agency, he or she
    13  shall make the report as required by this article and immediately notify
    14  the person in charge of such institution, school, facility or agency, or
    15  his or her designated agent. Such person in charge,  or  the  designated
    16  agent  of  such person, shall be responsible for all subsequent adminis-
    17  tration necessitated by the report. Any report shall include  the  name,
    18  title  and contact information for every staff person of the institution
    19  who is believed to have direct  knowledge  of  the  allegations  in  the
    20  report.  Nothing  in this section or article is intended to require more
    21  than one report from any such institution, school or agency.
    22    (c) A medical or other public or private institution, school, facility
    23  or agency shall not take any retaliatory personnel action, as such  term
    24  is  defined in paragraph (e) of subdivision one of section seven hundred
    25  forty of the labor  law,  against  an  employee  because  such  employee
    26  believes that he or she has reasonable cause to suspect that an individ-
    27  ual is the victim of domestic violence and that employee therefore makes
    28  a  report  in  accordance with this article. No school, school official,
    29  child care provider, foster care  provider,  residential  care  facility
    30  provider, hospital, medical institution provider or mental health facil-
    31  ity  provider  shall  impose any conditions, including prior approval or
    32  prior notification, upon a member of their staff  specifically  required
    33  to report under this article.
    34    (d)  Social  services workers are required to report or cause a report
    35  to be made in accordance with this article  when  they  have  reasonable
    36  cause  to  suspect that an individual is the victim of domestic violence
    37  where a person comes before  them  in  their  professional  or  official
    38  capacity and states from personal knowledge facts, conditions or circum-
    39  stances  which,  if  correct,  would  render  the individual a victim of
    40  domestic violence.
    41    2. Any person, institution, school,  facility,  agency,  organization,
    42  partnership  or  corporation  which  employs  persons mandated to report
    43  suspected incidents of domestic violence pursuant to subdivision one  of
    44  this section shall provide all such current and new employees with writ-
    45  ten  information  explaining  the reporting requirements set out in such
    46  subdivision. The employers shall be responsible for the costs associated
    47  with printing and distributing the written information.
    48    § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
    49  have become a law.