New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
Title 18 - DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES
Chapter II - Regulations of the Department of Social Services
Subchapter C - Social Services
Article 2 - Family and Children's Services
Part 432 - Child Abuse And Maltreatment
Section 432.12 - Access by mandated reporters to the findings of an investigation
Universal Citation: 18 NY Comp Codes Rules and Regs § 432.12
Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 12, March 26, 2025
(a) A person or official required by section 413 of the Social Services Law to report cases of suspected child abuse or maltreatment must receive, upon request, the findings of an investigation of a report made by that person or official for any report that has been assigned to the investigative track. When the report has been assigned to the family assessment response track, the person or official making the request must be informed that the report has been assigned to a family assessment response, that there is no determination made for a report addressed with a family assessment response, and that such records are legally sealed and confidential.
(b)
(1)
When a request by such person or official is made at the time of making an oral
report of suspected child abuse or maltreatment to the State Central Register,
the State Central Register must forward the request to the appropriate child
protective service, or where the suspected child abuse or maltreatment occurred
in residential child care, to a designated person within OCFS. The request for
the findings of an investigation must be forwarded by the State Central
Register to the child protective service or OCFS when the report of suspected
child abuse or maltreatment is transmitted.
(2) When a request by such person or official
is made at any time subsequent to making the oral report of suspected child
abuse or maltreatment to the State Central Register, the request must be made
by the person or official to the appropriate child protective service or, where
the suspected child abuse or maltreatment occurred in residential child care,
to a designated person within OCFS.
(3) As used in this section,
residential child care means:
(i) foster care provided to a child whose
care and custody or custody and guardianship have been transferred to a social
services official or OCFS and such care is provided in a group home or child
care institution;
(ii) care
provided to a child in a facility or program operated or certified by OCFS
pursuant to article 19-G or 19-H of the Executive Law, excluding foster family
care;
(iii) care provided to a
child in the New York State School for the blind or the New York State School
for the deaf, pursuant to the provisions of articles 87 and 88 of the Education
Law;
(iv) care provided to a child
in a private residential school which is within the State and which has been
approved by the Commissioner of Education for special education services or
programs;
(v) care provided to a
child in an institution for the instruction of the deaf and the blind which has
a residential component and which is subject to the visitation of the
Commissioner of Education pursuant to article 85 of the Education
Law;
(vi) care provided to a child
through a residential placement with a special act school district listed in
chapter 566 of the Laws of 1967, as amended;
(vii) care provided to a child in a
residential facility licensed or operated by the Office of Mental Health or the
Office For People With Developmental Disabilities, excluding family care homes;
or
(viii) care provided by an
authorized agency in a residential facility, licensed or operated by the Office
of Mental Health or the Office For People With Developmental Disabilities,
excluding a family care home, which is located on the same campus of the
authorized agency where care enumerated in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph
is provided to a child.
(c) Upon receipt of such a request, the local child protective service, or where the suspected child abuse or maltreatment occurred in residential child care, OCFS must release the findings of the investigation, in writing, as follows:
(1)
Prior to releasing the findings, the identity of the person or official making
the request must be confirmed.
(2)
If the request is made prior to the completion of an investigation of a report
of child abuse or maltreatment, the released information must be limited to
whether the report is indicated, unfounded or under investigation. If a child
protective service has not been notified by the State Central Register to seal
or expunge a report which the child protective service has determined to be
unfounded, the child protective service must indicate that it has recommended
to the State Central Register that the report should be unfounded.
(3) If the request is made after the
completion of an investigation of a report of child abuse or maltreatment, the
released information must be limited to that the report is indicated or
unfounded.
(4) The child protective
service or OCFS must also include in the written release of the findings of the
investigation of a report of child abuse or maltreatment a statement that the
information is confidential and that redisclosure of such information is
prohibited by section
422 of the
Social Services Law.
(5) The child
protective service or, for a case of suspected child abuse or neglect which
occurred in a residential child care setting, OCFS must file in the record of
the investigation of the report a copy of the findings which were released to a
mandated reporter pursuant to the provisions of this section. The findings must
contain the date of release to a mandated reporter and the name of the mandated
reporter to whom the findings were released.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New York may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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