Resolution calling upon the New York State Legislature and the New York State Office of Children and Family Services to develop a parents’ bill of rights to be distributed at initial home visits in child protective investigations and made available online

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Res. No. 965 ..Title Resolution calling upon the New York State Legislature and the New York State Office of Children and Family Services to develop a parents' bill of rights to be distributed at initial home visits in child protective investigations and made available online ..Body By Council Members De La Rosa, Stevens, Restler and Cab�n Whereas, The Child Protective Services Act of 1973 (Title 6 of the Social Services Law) established a child protective service in each county of New York State, with each service required to investigate reports of suspected child abuse or maltreatment, to protect children under 18 years old from further abuse or maltreatment, and to provide rehabilitative services for children, parents and other family members involved; and Whereas, The Child Protective Services Act of 1973 also requires the New York State Office of Children and Family Services ("OCFS") to maintain a Statewide Central Register of Child Abuse and Maltreatment ("SCR") to receive telephone calls alleging child abuse or maltreatment within New York State and to relay the information to the appropriate local child protective service; and Whereas, In New York City, the Administration for Children's Services ("ACS") is the local child protective service and is required to commence an investigation within 24 hours of receiving a report of suspected child abuse or maltreatment from the SCR; and Whereas, The child protective investigation must include at least one home visit with one face-to-face contact with the parents or guardians of the child named in the SCR report; and Whereas, According to ACS, the agency's Division of Child Protection conducts more than 55,000 investigations of suspected child abuse or neglect annually; and Whereas, According to testimony to the New York City Council during a 2020 hearing, delivered by then-ACS Commissioner David A. Hansell, children who are Latinx/Hispanic or Black/African American are disproportionately involved in the child welfare system; and Whereas, Parents who are involved with the child welfare system are often initially frightened, suspicious, and intimidated because they lack information about and are unfamiliar with system rules and regulations; and Whereas, According to a 2015 report by former Public Advocate Letitia James, children in New York City spend more than twice as long on average in foster care as children in the rest of the country do, and many parents of children in foster care have reported difficulty accessing adequate and appropriate services from ACS, leading to unnecessary impediments to reunification; and Whereas, A parents' bill of rights could address these problems by setting forth the rights of parents and guardians while they are involved with the child welfare system; and Whereas, The parents' bill of rights could be distributed by child protective services caseworkers to parents or guardians at the initial home visit to ensure that parents and guardians are aware of their rights from the outset of the child protective investigation and also could be available on OCFS's website; and Whereas, The bill of rights should be accessible and written in the primary language of the parent or guardian, and, if needed, can be read aloud to the parent or guardian; and Whereas, New York State Senate bill S.5484B, sponsored by Senator Jabari Brisport, and Assembly bill A.6792A, sponsored by Assembly Member Latrice Walker, requires child protective services to orally and in writing disclose certain information to parents and caretakers who are the subject of a child protective services investigation; and Whereas, Such a law supports the notion that all parents and guardians should be informed and empowered to ensure that investigations are fair, and to ultimately best meet the needs of children and families involved in the child welfare system, who are disproportionately Black/African American and/or Hispanic/Latinx; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature and the New York State Office of Children and Family Services to develop a parents' bill of rights to be distributed at initial home visits in child protective investigations and made available online. Session 12 EB LS 8554 06.02.2022 Session 11 MHL LS #6195/Res. 1322-2016 LS #1022 2 1

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