NY Soc Serv L § 421 (2021)
2021 New York Laws SOS - Social Services Article 6 - Children Title 6 - Child Protective Services 421 - Responsibility of the Office.

§  421.  Responsibility  of  the  office.  The  office  shall:  1.  in conjunction with  local  departments,  both  jointly  and  individually, within  the  appropriation available, conduct a continuing publicity and education program for local  department  staff,  persons  and  officials required  to  report  including  district  attorneys, assistant district attorneys, police officers, peace officers,  investigators  employed  in the  office of a district attorney, and any other appropriate persons to encourage the fullest degree of reporting of suspected  child  abuse  or maltreatment.    Such  program  shall  be  developed  and implemented in coordination with those established pursuant to  section  31.06  of  the mental  hygiene  law,  section twenty-eight hundred five-n of the public health law, section thirty-two hundred  nine-a  of  the  education  law, sections two hundred fourteen-a and eight hundred forty of the executive law  and  article  eleven of this chapter. The program shall include but not be limited to responsibilities, obligations and  powers  under  this title  and  chapter  as  well  as  the  diagnosis  of  child  abuse  and maltreatment, the procedures of the child protective service, the family court and other duly authorized agencies and the  prevention,  treatment and  remediation  of  abuse  and maltreatment of children in residential care.   2.  (a)  provide  technical  assistance  to  local   social   services departments  regarding  case  planning  and  provision  of  services and performance of other  responsibilities  pursuant  to  this  title.  Such assistance  shall be provided on a regular, ongoing basis and shall also be made available as needed, upon request of any such local department.  (b) issue guidelines to assist local social  services  departments  in evaluating   and   establishing  investigative  priorities  for  reports describing situations or events which  may  pose  a  clear  and  present danger  to  the  life,  health  or  safety  of a child and which require immediate, personal contact between the local child  protective  service and  the  subject  of  the  report,  the  subject's family, or any other persons named in the report.   * (c) issue guidelines to assist local child  protective  services  in the  interpretation  and assessment of reports of abuse and maltreatment made to the statewide central register described in section four hundred twenty-two of this article. Such guidelines shall  include  information, standards  and  criteria  for  the identification of evidence of alleged abuse and maltreatment as required to determine whether a report may  be indicated pursuant to this article.   * NB Effective until April 1, 2022   * (c)  issue  guidelines  to assist local child protective services in the interpretation and assessment of reports of abuse  and  maltreatment made to the statewide central register described in section four hundred twenty-two  of  this article. Such guidelines shall include information, standards and criteria for the identification  of  evidence  of  alleged abuse  and maltreatment as required to determine whether a report may be indicated pursuant to this article.  Provided  further,  the  office  of children and family services shall update such guidelines, standards and criteria  issued  to  the  local  child  protective  services to include protocols to reduce implicit  bias  in  the  decision-making  processes, strategies  for  identifying adverse childhood experiences as defined in paragraph (c) of subdivision one of section twenty-d  of  this  chapter, and  guidelines  to assist in recognizing signs of abuse or maltreatment while interacting virtually. The office may utilize existing programs or materials established pursuant to section twenty-d of this chapter.   * NB Effective April 1, 2022   3.  promulgate  regulations  setting  forth   requirements   for   the performance  by  local  social  services  departments  of the duties and  powers imposed and conferred upon them by the provisions of  this  title and  of  article  ten  of  the  family court act. Such regulations shall establish uniform requirements for the investigation of reports of child abuse  or maltreatment under this title. The department shall also issue guidelines which shall set forth the circumstances or  conditions  under which:  (a)  personal contact shall be made with the child named in the report and any other children in the  same  household,  including  interviewing such  child  or  children  absent  the  subject  of  the report whenever possible and appropriate;  (b) photographs of visible physical injuries or trauma of children who may be the victims of abuse or maltreatment shall be taken  or  arranged for;  (c)  medical  examination  of  a child who may be a victim of abuse or maltreatment and documentation of findings of such examination, shall be required.   The department shall promulgate regulations to establish standards for intervention, criteria  for  case  closings,  criteria  for  determining whether  or  not to initiate a child protective proceeding, and criteria for the formulation of treatment plans and for  the  delivery  of  child protective  services  including  specification  of  the  services  to be classified as child protective services, which shall also apply  to  any society for the prevention of cruelty to children which has entered into a currently valid contract with a local department of social services to investigate  child  abuse  or maltreatment reports. The department shall promulgate regulations establishing minimum standards and practices  for the  delivery of child protective services in connection with monitoring and supervising respondents and their families as ordered  by  a  family court  pursuant  to  section ten hundred thirty-nine and paragraphs (i), (iii), (iv) and (v) of subdivision (a) of section ten hundred  fifty-two of the family court act. Such regulations shall also require local child protective  services  to  comply  with  notification requirements of the family court act in connection  with  such  monitoring  and  supervisory responsibilities.   4.  (a)  after  consultation with the local child protective services, promulgate   regulations   relating   to   staff   qualifications    for non-supervisory  child  protective  services  workers,  prescribing  any baccalaureate or equivalent college degree and/or relevant human service experience as requirements. Such requirements shall not apply to persons currently employed by such child  protective  services  who  were  hired before January first, nineteen hundred eighty-six.  (b)  after  consultation  with  the  local  child protective services, promulgate  regulations  relating  to  staff  qualifications  for  those assigned to be supervisors of child protective services, prescribing any baccalaureate   or  equivalent  college  degree  and/or  relevant  human services  experience  as  requirements.  Provided,  however,  that  such regulations  shall  at  a  minimum  provide  that  those  assigned to be supervisors of child protective services  have  either  a  baccalaureate degree  or  three  years of relevant work experience in a human services field. Such requirements shall not apply to persons  currently  assigned to  be  a  child  protective  services  supervisor who were hired before December first, two thousand six.   5. (a) directly  or  through  the  purchase  of  services,  implement, subject  to  the  amounts  appropriated  therefor, an ongoing, statewide training program for employees of  the  department  and  of  each  local department  of social services employed in the provision and supervision of  child  protective  services  or  in  other  activities  required  in accordance with the provisions of this title.  (b)  promulgate  regulations setting forth training requirements which shall specify, among other things, that all persons  hired  by  a  child protective  service on or after April first, nineteen hundred eighty-six shall have satisfactorily completed a course approved by the  department within  the  first  three  months  of employment, in the fundamentals of child protection. Such course shall include at least basic  training  in the principles and techniques of investigations, including relationships with  other  investigative bodies, legal issues in child protection, and methods  of  remediation,  diagnosis,  treatment  and  prevention.  Such regulations  shall  also  specify  that  all persons employed by a child protective service on or after December first, two  thousand  six  shall satisfactorily  complete  six  hours  of  annual  in  service  training, beginning in their second year of employment.  Such  annual  in  service training  shall  include, but is not limited to, review of the protocols for identification and investigation of child  abuse  and  maltreatment, any  developments  in  legal,  treatment  and prevention issues in child protection, and review  and  analysis  of  field  experiences  of  child protective services workers.  (c)  require  all  persons  assigned  to  be  a  supervisor by a child protective service on or after April first, nineteen hundred eighty-six, shall have satisfactorily completed, within the first  three  months  of employment  as a supervisor or within three months of the effective date of this  paragraph,  whichever  shall  occur  first,  a  course  in  the fundamentals of child protection developed by the office of children and family  services.  Such  training  course  shall,  among  other  things, strengthen and expand current training procedures for  child  protective service  supervisors;  provide  the  skills,  knowledge and standards to practice  effective  case  planning   and   case   management;   provide comprehensive  assessment  tools  needed  in  critical  decision making; require participation in the existing next generation training  required by  child  protective  service  caseworkers;  strengthen recognition and response to safety  and  risk  indicators;  improve  skills  to  promote consistent   implementation   of  training  and  practice;  provide  the necessary tools and assistance to build the ability to coach and monitor child protective service caseworkers and model  effective  investigation practice; increase cultural competency and sensitivity; and establish an annual  in  service  training  program  specifically  focused  on  child protective service supervisors.  (d) withhold  reimbursement,  otherwise  payable  to  social  services districts,  for  the  salaries of employees of child protective services who do not comply with the background review, educational, experience or training requirements of this title.   6. promulgate regulations which require social services  districts  to make  local  procedural  manuals  and  service  directories available to employees of a child protective service,  service  providers  and  other professionals   involved   in   the   prevention   of  child  abuse  and maltreatment.   7. take all reasonable and necessary actions to assure that the  local departments  of  social services are kept apprised on a current basis of the laws, regulations and policies of the  department  concerning  child abuse and maltreatment.   8.  monitor  and supervise the performance of the local departments of social services.