N.Y. MHY Law § 13.33 — New York Code / Act MHY / Title C / Article 13 / Section 13.33
Boards of visitors
Status: in_force

§ 13.33 Boards of visitors.\n  (a) Each state operations office under the jurisdiction of the\ncommissioner shall have a minimum of one board of visitors consisting of\nat least seven but not more than fourteen members. Members appointed or\nreappointed after the effective date of this chapter shall be appointed\nby the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate.\nMembers shall be appointed for four year terms to expire on the\nthirty-first day of December of the fourth year of the term of office\nprovided however, when more than three terms expire in any one year,\nmembers may be appointed for terms of fewer years as designated by the\ngovernor so that no more than three members' terms expire in any one\nyear. All terms of office shall expire on the thirty-first day of\nDecember of the designated year. A member whose term has expired shall,\nhowever, remain in office until such member's successor has been\nappointed and has taken office, or until such member shall have resigned\nor have been removed from office in the manner hereinafter provided.\nShould any member resign or be removed from office, the governor shall\npromptly submit, for senate consent, a successor candidate to fill the\nremaining term of the vacated office. A visitor may be removed by the\ngovernor for cause after notice and an opportunity for a hearing on the\ncharges. In making appointments to boards of visitors, the governor\nshall endeavor to ensure that the membership of each such board shall\nadequately reflect the composition of the community or communities\nserved by the state operations office, that the membership of each such\nboard includes at least three individuals who are parents or relatives\nof patients or of former patients and that the remainder includes only\nthose persons, including former patients, who shall have expressed an\nactive interest in, or shall have obtained professional knowledge in the\ncare of persons with developmental disabilities or in developmental\ndisability endeavors generally.\n  (b) No elected state officer or member of the legislature may serve as\na visitor.\n  (c) Each visitor shall reside, at the time of appointment or\nreappointment, in the area, as established by the regulations of the\ncommissioner, served by the state operated office that it oversees.\n  (d) Each board shall, at the first meeting of each calendar year elect\none member to serve as president of the board and one member to serve as\nsecretary; provided however, that no member may serve for more than two\nconsecutive years as president. After such election of the president and\nsecretary, each board shall inform the governor, the speaker of the\nassembly and the temporary president of the senate of such new president\nand secretary.\n  (e) Visitors shall not receive compensation but shall be reimbursed\nfor their actual expenses in connection with their service as visitors.\n  (f) (1) Each board of visitors shall hold six bi-monthly regular\nmeetings annually, but a greater number of regular meetings may be\nscheduled by the board. Each board of visitors shall establish in their\nby-laws or otherwise, in writing and at the first meeting of each\ncalendar year, whether these six meetings shall be held during months\nrepresented by odd numbers or months represented by even numbers. The\npresident of the board shall notify the executive director of the\njustice center for the protection of people with special needs and the\ncommissioner of the determination made concerning the designated months\nfor the six bi-monthly regular meetings. The dates of such meetings\nshall be posted on the office's website and shall be made available to\nthe public. The president of the board, the commissioner, or the members\nas determined by the rules of the board may call special meetings. The\nboard may request the commissioner, or such commissioner's designee, to\nsubmit a report at each meeting. Each board shall keep a record of its\nproceedings and activities. A member of a board of visitors who has\nfailed to attend three consecutive bi-monthly regular meetings shall be\nconsidered to have vacated such member's office unless otherwise ordered\nby the governor. The board shall cause notice of any of its public\nmeetings to be sent to the mental hygiene legal service located in the\nsame judicial department as the state operations office. The mental\nhygiene legal service may send a representative to any such public\nmeeting, and may request the board to review patient complaints or\ninvestigate alleged incidents of abuse or mistreatment. The board shall\nnotify the appropriate representative of the mental hygiene legal\nservice of the board's actions and findings in relation to any such\nrequest. Meeting minutes, agendas, proceedings, activities, by-laws and\nactions by each board shall be posted on the office's website and shall\nbe made available to the public.\n  (2) The president of the board of visitors shall notify a member by\ncertified or registered mail return receipt requested when such member\nof the board has failed to attend any two consecutive bi-monthly regular\nmeetings. This notice shall be sent within ten days following the second\nmeeting and shall include the dates of the two meetings which were\nmissed, the date of the next bi-monthly regular meeting, and a statement\nconcerning the consequences of failure to attend the next meeting.\n  (3) Within three days after the third consecutive absence at a\nbi-monthly regular meeting by a member, the president of the board of\nvisitors shall notify, in writing, the governor, the commissioner, the\nexecutive director of the justice center for the protection of people\nwith special needs, the temporary president of the senate and the\nspeaker of the assembly of such absences. The president of the board of\nvisitors shall send a copy of this notice by registered or certified\nmail return receipt requested to the member to whom it pertains. The\nmember may petition the governor to excuse such member's absences. If\nthe governor does not excuse the absences within forty-five days of the\ndate of the third consecutive meeting absence, the office of the member\nshall be deemed vacated.\n  (g) Upon the request of the commissioner or the director, or upon the\nboard's initiative, the board shall consult, advise, and work with the\ndirector with respect to community relations, conditions at a state\noperated facility, preliminary plans for construction and alterations,\nand programs and activities of a state operated facility.\n  (h) Each board or any member of the board may visit and inspect a\nstate operated facility that is in the catchment area of the state\noperations region in which such member or members serve at any time\nwithout prior notice and may report on conditions to the governor, to\nthe commissioner and to the chairman of the state commission on quality\nof care and advocacy for persons with disabilities and, subject to\nconfidential information being redacted to protect the confidentiality\nof individuals in such facility, to the temporary president of the\nsenate and to the speaker of the assembly. In addition, each board shall\nensure that a member or committee of members shall inspect such facility\nonce every three months without prior notice. A report on conditions may\nbe submitted to the governor, to the commissioner or to the chairman of\nthe state commission on quality of care and advocacy for persons with\ndisabilities and, subject to confidential information being redacted to\nprotect the confidentiality of individuals in such facility, to the\ntemporary president of the senate and to the speaker of the assembly.\nEach board member shall visit and inspect any such facility at least\ntwice during each calendar year. Within thirty days after the conclusion\nof each calendar year, the president of the board of visitors shall\nnotify the governor, the commissioner, the chairman of the commission on\nquality of care and advocacy for persons with disabilities, and the\nstate operations director, if any member of the board has failed to\nvisit and inspect any such facility at least twice during that year. The\npresident of the board of visitors shall send a copy of this notice by\ncertified or registered mail return receipt requested to the member to\nwhom it pertains. A member of a board of visitors who has failed to\nvisit and inspect a facility at least twice a year shall be considered\nto have vacated his or her office unless otherwise ordered by the\ngovernor within forty-five days after the end of the calendar year. The\nboard shall have the power to investigate all charges against the state\noperations director, and all cases of alleged patient abuse or\nmistreatment made against any employee, and shall have the power to\ninterview patients and employees of the facilities in pursuit of such\ninvestigations. In conducting such an investigation, the board shall\nhave the power, in accordance with the civil practice law and rules, to\nsubpoena witnesses, compel their testimony, administer oaths to\nwitnesses, examine witnesses under oath, and require the production of\nany books or papers deemed relevant to the investigation. A board or a\nmember may include in the report or separately at any time any matter\npertaining to the management and affairs of such facilities and may make\nrecommendations to the governor, to the commissioner and to the chairman\nof the state commission on quality of care and advocacy for persons with\ndisabilities. Each board member shall enter in a book, kept at each such\nfacility for that purpose, the date of each visit.\n  (i) (1) Any member or members of the board may visit and inspect a\nfamily care home that is within the catchment area of the state\noperations region in which such member or members serve. Such member or\nmembers shall be granted access to such facility and to all books,\nrecords and data pertaining to such facility deemed necessary for\ncarrying out the purposes of such visit. Information, books, records or\ndata that are confidential as provided by law shall be kept confidential\nand any limitations on the release thereof imposed by law upon the party\nfurnishing the information, books, records or data shall apply to such\nmember or members of the board. After any such visits or inspections, a\nreport containing findings and recommendations may be submitted to the\ngovernor, to the commissioner or to the state commission on quality of\ncare and advocacy for persons with disabilities and subject to\nconfidential information being redacted to protect the confidentiality\nof individuals in such facility to the temporary president of the senate\nand to the speaker of the assembly.\n  (2) Any member or members of the board may visit and inspect a\ncommunity residence operated by the office for people with developmental\ndisabilities that is within the catchment area of the state operations\nregion in which such member or members serve. Such member or members\nshall be granted access to such facility and to all books, records and\ndata pertaining to such facility deemed necessary for carrying out the\npurposes of such visit and inspection. Information, books, records or\ndata that are confidential as provided by law shall be kept confidential\nand any limitations on the release thereof imposed by law upon the party\nfurnishing the information, books, records or data shall apply to such\nmember or members of the board. After any such visits or inspection, a\nreport containing findings and recommendations shall be submitted\npromptly to the commissioner and to the chairman of the state commission\non quality of care and advocacy for persons with disabilities.\n  (j) Once each year, each board shall make an independent assessment of\nconditions at such facilities and shall submit a report on the\nassessment and recommendations to the governor, to the commissioner, to\nthe temporary president of the senate, to the speaker of the assembly\nand to the executive director of the justice center for the protection\nof people with special needs.\n  (k) The commissioner shall notify the board of visitors of a facility\nunder his or her jurisdiction of the proposed appointment of a state\noperations director or the proposed transfer of a state operations\ndirector, with a request that the board report an expression of its\nopinion of the appointment or transfer and, if it objects thereto, the\nreasons for such objection.\n  (l) The commissioner shall appoint representatives of the office to\nserve as liaison between the office and the boards of visitors. At least\nonce each year the commissioner shall meet with the boards collectively.\nThe commissioner, or his or her designee, shall meet quarterly with\nrepresentatives of boards of visitors.\n  (m) Members of the boards of visitors shall be considered officers of\nthe office for people with developmental disabilities for the purposes\nof sections seventy-three, to the extent provided therein, and\nseventy-four of the public officers law relating to business or\nprofessional activities by state officers and employees and the code of\nethics.\n  (n) Each member shall attend, within one year of the initial\nappointment or any subsequent reappointment, an orientation training\nprogram provided by the commission on quality of care and advocacy for\npersons with disabilities for members of boards of visitors. The\nchairman of the commission on quality of care and advocacy for persons\nwith disabilities shall notify the governor and the appointed member of\nany such member's failure to attend such a training program. A member\nwho has failed to attend such a training program scheduled for such\nmember shall be considered to have vacated his office unless otherwise\nordered by the governor within forty-five days after the notice.\n