Angelino, Blankenbush, DeStefano, Manktelow, Miller
Amd §413, Soc Serv L; amd §1392, Pub Health L
Relates to mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse or maltreatment at summer day camps; includes college coaches, athletic directors, professors, graduate assistants and college presidents among those required to report such suspected abuse or maltreatment.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A499
SPONSOR: Walsh (MS) TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the social services law and the public health law, in
relation to mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse or maltreatment
by certain persons
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Increases the number of professionals and individuals who are considered
by the state to be mandatory reporters of child abuse or maltreatment.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Amends section 413 of social service law to include college
coaches, athletic directors, professors, graduate assistants, college
administrators and college presidents and paid staff members of chil-
dren's camps, summer day camps and travel camps to the list of mandatory
reporters of child abuse and maltreatment.
Section 2: amends section 1392 of the public health law to include any
indoor or outdoor activities involving one or more non-passive recre-
ational activities or educational programs or activities.
JUSTIFICATION:
The reports of alleged child abuse by various college coaches and seem-
ing indifference and inaction from the school's administration are
horrifying. Given that many colleges and universities offer athletic and
academic programs to children, we need to make sure that a situation
like that cannot occur again.
The message of this bill is clear: if you're a college coach or college
professional and you see or receive a report of child abuse, it is your
responsibility and obligation to report it to law enforcement immediate-
ly. Children and parents need to know that they will be protected and
reports of abuse will be investigated and not brushed aside.
While it is unimaginable that this legislation is necessary, the actions
of those in power in college settings opens our eyes to how necessary
mandatory reporting of child abuse is, especially in immensely powerful
organizations. As of now, if you witness child abuse and do not feel
compelled to alert authorities you might fail a moral test, but State
you may not be held accountable legally. There is no doubt that we must
expand the child abuse reporting requirement as soon as possible.
Current law does not specify that faculty of colleges and universities
are mandated reporters. This bill would establish that those involved in
higher education and the possibility of coming in contact with children,
should be considered mandatory reporters and adhere to the responsibil-
ities of mandatory reporters as it is stated in law.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024: A.2211; Referred to Children & Families
2023: A.2211; Referred to Children & Families
2022: A.3338; Referred to Children & Families
2021: A.3338; Referred to Children n & Families
2020: A.923; Referred to Children & Families
2019: A.923; Referred to Children & Families
2018: A.5850a; Amended and Held for Consideration in Children & Families
2018: A.5850; Referred to Children & Families
2017: A.5850; Referred to Children & Families
2016: A.7540; Held for Consideration in Children & Families
2014: A.6330; Referred to Children & Families
2012: A.8905; Referred to Children & Families
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
On the 120th day after becoming law, with provisions.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
499
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WALSH, MORINELLO, McDONOUGH, HAWLEY, SAYEGH, RA,
PALMESANO, BRABENEC, TAGUE, SMULLEN, JENSEN, DURSO, GALLAHAN, SIMPSON
-- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. ANGELINO, BLANKENBUSH, DeSTEFANO,
MANKTELOW, MILLER -- read once and referred to the Committee on Chil-
dren and Families
AN ACT to amend the social services law and the public health law, in
relation to mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse or maltreat-
ment by certain persons
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 413 of the social
2 services law, as amended by section 7 of part C of chapter 57 of the
3 laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows:
4 (a) The following persons and officials are required to report or
5 cause a report to be made in accordance with this title when they have
6 reasonable cause to suspect that a child coming before them in their
7 professional or official capacity is an abused or maltreated child, or
8 when they have reasonable cause to suspect that a child is an abused or
9 maltreated child where the parent, guardian, custodian or other person
10 legally responsible for such child comes before them in their profes-
11 sional or official capacity and states from personal knowledge facts,
12 conditions or circumstances which, if correct, would render the child an
13 abused or maltreated child: any physician; registered physician assist-
14 ant; surgeon; medical examiner; coroner; dentist; dental hygienist;
15 osteopath; optometrist; chiropractor; podiatrist; resident; intern;
16 psychologist; registered nurse; social worker; emergency medical techni-
17 cian; licensed creative arts therapist; licensed marriage and family
18 therapist; licensed mental health counselor; licensed psychoanalyst;
19 licensed behavior analyst; certified behavior analyst assistant; hospi-
20 tal personnel engaged in the admission, examination, care or treatment
21 of persons; a Christian Science practitioner; school official, which
22 includes but is not limited to college coach, athletic director, profes-
23 sor, graduate assistant, college administrator, college president,
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01852-01-5
A. 499 2
1 school teacher, school guidance counselor, school psychologist, school
2 social worker, school nurse, school administrator or other school
3 personnel required to hold a teaching or administrative license or
4 certificate; full or part-time compensated school employee required to
5 hold a temporary coaching license or professional coaching certificate;
6 social services worker; employee of a publicly-funded emergency shelter
7 for families with children; director or any paid staff member of a chil-
8 dren's overnight camp, summer day camp or traveling summer day camp, as
9 such camps are defined in section thirteen hundred ninety-two of the
10 public health law, such paid staff members shall include, but not be
11 limited to, any individuals who may interact with children through
12 employment at such camps or employment at premises where such camps are
13 located; day care center worker; school-age child care worker; provider
14 of family or group family day care; employee or volunteer in a residen-
15 tial care facility for children that is licensed, certified or operated
16 by the office of children and family services; or any other child care
17 or foster care worker; mental health professional; substance abuse coun-
18 selor; alcoholism counselor; all persons credentialed by the office of
19 alcoholism and substance abuse services; employees, who are expected to
20 have regular and substantial contact with children, of a health home or
21 health home care management agency contracting with a health home as
22 designated by the department of health and authorized under section
23 three hundred sixty-five-l of this chapter or such employees who provide
24 home and community based services under a demonstration program pursuant
25 to section eleven hundred fifteen of the federal social security act who
26 are expected to have regular and substantial contact with children;
27 peace officer; police officer; district attorney or assistant district
28 attorney; investigator employed in the office of a district attorney; or
29 other law enforcement official.
30 § 1-a. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 413 of the social
31 services law, as amended by chapter 733 of the laws of 2023, is amended
32 to read as follows:
33 (a) The following persons and officials are required to report or
34 cause a report to be made in accordance with this title when they have
35 reasonable cause to suspect that a child coming before them in their
36 professional or official capacity is an abused or maltreated child, or
37 when they have reasonable cause to suspect that a child is an abused or
38 maltreated child where the parent, guardian, custodian or other person
39 legally responsible for such child comes before them in their profes-
40 sional or official capacity and states from personal knowledge facts,
41 conditions or circumstances which, if correct, would render the child an
42 abused or maltreated child: any physician; registered physician assist-
43 ant; surgeon; medical examiner; coroner; dentist; dental hygienist;
44 osteopath; optometrist; chiropractor; podiatrist; resident; intern;
45 athletic trainer; psychologist; registered nurse; social worker; emer-
46 gency medical technician; licensed creative arts therapist; licensed
47 marriage and family therapist; licensed mental health counselor;
48 licensed psychoanalyst; licensed behavior analyst; certified behavior
49 analyst assistant; hospital personnel engaged in the admission, examina-
50 tion, care or treatment of persons; a Christian Science practitioner;
51 school official, which includes but is not limited to, college coach,
52 athletic director, professor, graduate assistant, college administrator,
53 college president, school teacher, school guidance counselor, school
54 psychologist, school social worker, school nurse, school administrator
55 or other school personnel required to hold a teaching or administrative
56 license or certificate; full or part-time compensated school employee
A. 499 3
1 required to hold a temporary coaching license or professional coaching
2 certificate; social services worker; employee of a publicly-funded emer-
3 gency shelter for families with children; director or any paid staff
4 member of a children's overnight camp, summer day camp or traveling
5 summer day camp, as such camps are defined in section thirteen hundred
6 ninety-two of the public health law; such paid staff members shall
7 include, but not be limited to, any individuals who may interact with
8 children through employment at such camps or employment at premises
9 where such camps are located; day care center worker; school-age child
10 care worker; provider of family or group family day care; employee or
11 volunteer in a residential care facility for children that is licensed,
12 certified or operated by the office of children and family services; or
13 any other child care or foster care worker; mental health professional;
14 substance abuse counselor; alcoholism counselor; all persons creden-
15 tialed by the office of alcoholism and substance abuse services; employ-
16 ees, who are expected to have regular and substantial contact with chil-
17 dren, of a health home or health home care management agency contracting
18 with a health home as designated by the department of health and author-
19 ized under section three hundred sixty-five-l of this chapter or such
20 employees who provide home and community based services under a demon-
21 stration program pursuant to section eleven hundred fifteen of the
22 federal social security act who are expected to have regular and
23 substantial contact with children; peace officer; police officer;
24 district attorney or assistant district attorney; investigator employed
25 in the office of a district attorney; or other law enforcement official.
26 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 1392 of the public health law, as
27 amended by chapter 439 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as
28 follows:
29 2. "Summer day camp" shall mean a property consisting of a tract of
30 land and any tents, vehicles, buildings or other structures that may be
31 pertinent to its use, any part of which may be occupied on a scheduled
32 basis at any time between June first and September fifteenth in any year
33 by children under sixteen years of age under general supervision, for
34 the purpose of any indoor or outdoor organized group activities, involv-
35 ing one or more: (i) nonpassive recreational activities with significant
36 risk of injury, as such activities are defined by the department in
37 rules and regulations, or (ii) educational programs or activities, for a
38 period of less than twenty-four hours on any day the property is so
39 occupied, and on which no provisions are made for overnight occupancy by
40 such children. The commissioner shall have the power to except by rule
41 from this article and the sanitary code a place, facility or activity
42 that is not within the intent of this definition, provided that no
43 exception may be granted to a summer day camp which is dedicated to a
44 single activity if that activity meets the criteria of a nonpassive
45 recreational activity with significant risk of injury or is an educa-
46 tional program or activity.
47 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
48 it shall have become a law; provided, however, that the amendments to
49 paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 413 of the social services law
50 made by section one-a of this act shall take effect on the same date and
51 in the same manner as section 12 of chapter 733 of the laws of 2023,
52 takes effect. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
53 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
54 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
55 on or before such date.
