Bill Text: NY A07581 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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

---

Bill Title: Establishes standards for caseloads for child protective services workers; requires the state to pay for one hundred percent of the costs associated with compliance of such caseload standard; makes related provisions.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 41-11)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-02-26 - reported referred to ways and means [A07581 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A07581-Introduced.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          7581

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                       May 9, 2019
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. JAFFEE -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Children and Families

        AN  ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to caseload stand-
          ards for child protective services workers

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1. Section 20-a of the social services law, as added by chap-
     2  ter 107 of the laws of 1971, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 20-a.  Local personnel; limitations on department's power.  Notwith-
     4  standing any inconsistent provision of  this  chapter,  the  board,  the
     5  commissioner  or  the  department, acting singly or in unison, shall not
     6  have the power, directly  or  indirectly  to  prescribe  the  number  of
     7  persons  to  be  employed  in any social services district providing the
     8  district complies with the minimum federal standards  relating  thereto;
     9  provided,  however,  that the provisions of this section shall not apply
    10  to the regulations of the office of children and family services  estab-
    11  lishing caseload standards for child protective services workers promul-
    12  gated  pursuant  to  paragraph  (a)  of subdivision nine of section four
    13  hundred twenty-one of this chapter.
    14    § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section  153-k  of  the  social
    15  services law, as added by section 15 of part C of chapter 83 of the laws
    16  of 2002, is amended to read as follows:
    17    (a)  Expenditures  made by social services districts for child protec-
    18  tive services, preventive services provided, as applicable, to  eligible
    19  children  and  families  of  children  who are in and out of foster care
    20  placement, independent living services, aftercare services, and adoption
    21  administration and  services  other  than  adoption  subsidies  provided
    22  pursuant  to  article  six  of  this  chapter and the regulations of the
    23  department of family assistance shall, if  approved  by  the  office  of
    24  children  and  family  services,  be subject to sixty-five percent state
    25  reimbursement exclusive of any federal funds  made  available  for  such

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11190-01-9
        A. 7581                             2

     1  purposes,  in accordance with the directives of the department of family
     2  assistance and subject to the approval of the director  of  the  budget.
     3  Provided  however,  for  requirements  prescribed in subdivision nine of
     4  section four hundred twenty-one of this chapter, such expenditures shall
     5  be  subject  to  one  hundred percent state reimbursement, provided that
     6  local social services districts continue to  maintain  current  expendi-
     7  tures related to child protective services at a level equal to or great-
     8  er than expenditures for such activities during the fiscal year prior to
     9  a  chapter of the laws of two thousand nineteen which amended this para-
    10  graph.
    11    § 3. Section 421 of the social services law is amended by adding a new
    12  subdivision 9 to read as follows:
    13    9. promulgate regulations in consultation with local  social  services
    14  districts,  relating to caseload standards for child protective services
    15  workers. Such standards shall include, but not be limited to:  (a) limi-
    16  tations on the number of investigations which can be assigned  to  child
    17  protective  services  workers,  provided however, to the extent possible
    18  and within amounts appropriated therefore,  no  more  than  two  initial
    19  investigations  per  week may be assigned per full time equivalent child
    20  protective services worker; and (b) guidance as it relates to  how  such
    21  investigations are assigned, taking into consideration the child protec-
    22  tive  services worker current caseload, as well as the complexity of the
    23  particular investigation, if known. Nothing in this subdivision shall be
    24  construed to prohibit the office from prescribing local social  services
    25  districts  from  establishing caseload standards that are less than what
    26  is required in this subdivision.
    27    § 4. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 1  of  section  423  of  the  social
    28  services  law,  as amended by chapter 83 of the laws of 1995, is amended
    29  to read as follows:
    30    (c) The child protective service shall have  a  sufficient  staff,  in
    31  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  subdivision  nine of section four
    32  hundred twenty-one  of  this  title,  of  sufficient  qualifications  to
    33  fulfill  the purposes of this title and be organized in such a way as to
    34  maximize the continuity of responsibility, care and service of  individ-
    35  ual  workers  toward individual children and families. A social services
    36  district shall have flexibility in assigning staff to the child  protec-
    37  tive  service  provided that each staff assigned to such service has the
    38  staff qualifications and has  received  the  training  required  by  the
    39  department  regulations  promulgated  pursuant  to subdivisions four and
    40  five of section four hundred twenty-one of this title.
    41    § 5. Section 426 of the social services law,  as  amended  by  section
    42  11-a of part D of chapter 501 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as
    43  follows:
    44    § 426. Annual reports. The commissioner shall prepare for inclusion in
    45  the  annual  report  required by subdivision (d) of section seventeen of
    46  this chapter to be filed with the governor and the legislature prior  to
    47  December fifteenth of each year, a report on the operations of the state
    48  central  register  of child abuse and maltreatment and the various local
    49  child protective services. The report shall include a  full  statistical
    50  analysis  of  the  reports  made to the central register together with a
    51  report on the implementation of this title, his  or  her  evaluation  of
    52  services  offered  under this chapter and his or her recommendations for
    53  additional legislation to fulfill  the  purposes  of  this  title.  Such
    54  report shall indicate the number of child abuse and maltreatment reports
    55  and  cases received by the statewide central register of child abuse and
    56  maltreatment by each district in the preceding year, the number of  such
        A. 7581                             3

     1  cases  determined  to  have  been indicated and the number of such cases
     2  determined to be unfounded by each district in the preceding  year,  the
     3  number  of  such cases which have not been indicated or unfounded within
     4  the  time  period  required by subdivision seven of section four hundred
     5  twenty-four of this [article] title by each district  in  the  preceding
     6  year [and]. Such report shall also include a monthly accounting by local
     7  social  services  districts,  of  the  total  number of child protective
     8  services workers [assigned to  the  child  protective  service  in  each
     9  district in] with an indication of how many hold a supervisory position,
    10  as  well  as  the  average  number  of active cases per child protective
    11  services worker, with an indication of how  many  were  in  the  initial
    12  investigation  stage  at  the time the information was collected for the
    13  preceding year. Such report  shall  include,  among  other  information,
    14  available  demographic  information and available information concerning
    15  the racial and ethnic characteristics of the family members and  persons
    16  served  by  the  differential  response program pursuant to section four
    17  hundred twenty-seven-a of [the social services law] this title, as  well
    18  as  available  information  concerning  the racial and ethnic character-
    19  istics of the family members and persons serviced under the  traditional
    20  child  protective  services  program,  in  each  local  social  services
    21  district in the state.
    22    § 6. This act shall take effect immediately; provided however sections
    23  one, two, three and four of this act shall  take  effect  on  the  seven
    24  hundred  thirtieth  day  after  it  shall  have  become a law; provided,
    25  further, however that the amendments to  section  153-k  of  the  social
    26  services law made by section two of this act shall not affect the repeal
    27  of such section and shall be deemed repealed therewith.