Bill > A07170

This bill provides protections for parents and guardians against educational neglect claims during the COVID-19 pandemic state of emergency. Specifically, the bill prevents schools or districts from finding educational neglect solely based on a child's excessive school absences if those absences occurred during the pandemic and were caused by specific circumstances. These circumstances include lack of access to remote learning resources (such as computers or internet connectivity), or situations where the parent or guardian is an essential worker, caring for someone with COVID-19, personally sick with COVID-19, or in mandatory isolation or quarantine. The bill requires that any investigations into educational neglect under these circumstances be closed, unless the school can definitively prove that the child had full opportunity and resources for remote learning but still did not participate. The provisions apply retroactively to all educational neglect investigations initiated since the declaration of the state disaster emergency in 2020, offering protection to parents and guardians who faced challenges during the pandemic's remote learning period. The bill aims to provide fairness and understanding for families who struggled with educational participation during an unprecedented global health crisis.

Education

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/A7170