Bill > S00789

This bill modifies provisions in the New York Family Court Act related to how child abuse and neglect findings are recorded and reported. Specifically, the bill changes how court findings are communicated to respondents and how reports of abuse or neglect are handled in the State Central Register of Child Abuse and Maltreatment. Under the new provisions, when a court makes a finding of abuse or neglect, the report will remain in the register until ten years after the youngest child's eighteenth birthday, unless vacated or dismissed. The bill also clarifies that respondents cannot amend such reports and introduces nuanced conditions about when and how these reports can be disclosed to potential employers or child care agencies. For neglect findings, the bill creates exceptions to disclosure if the report is eight or more years old or if a previous administrative proceeding determined the report was not relevant to positions involving child contact. The changes aim to balance protecting children with providing fair treatment to individuals who have been subject to child abuse or neglect proceedings.

Education

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/S789