Child protective services access to criminal history - A4425-A Mayersohn/ S2978-A Robach, Golden, Lanza
Provides child protective services units with access to criminal history reports of certain persons residing with children alleged or suspected to be abused, maltreated, or neglected.

Bills that have a companion bill in Senate and Assembly

Prohibits compelling domestic abuse victims to contact their abusers – A620A Rosenthal/ S2963-A Rath
Provides that neither the state nor any political subdivision thereof, public authority or employee thereof shall compel a victim of domestic violence to contact his or her abuser.

Amends domestic relations law, in relation to the child custody and support decision-making process – A1432B Weprin/S344B Larkin
Creates a unified procedure for custody and parenting disputes in the Supreme and Family Courts.

Requires judges to ask about firearms owned by the defendant or respondent when issuing an order of protection – A1497 O'Donnell/ S4416 Flanagan
Protects victims of domestic violence by requiring criminal or family court judges to inquire about the defendant's or respondent's possession of a firearm when orders of protection are sought.
     
Seals certain court records for non-criminal offenses – A1607B O'Donnell/ S5234A Volker
Provides for sealing court records, other than published opinions or documents on appeal, just as police and prosecution records are sealed, when a person is convicted of a non-criminal charge.

Unlisted telephone numbers without charge, for victims of domestic violence who have an order of protection – A2934 Rivera/S1518 Lavalle
Requires phone companies to provide free unlisted phone numbers upon request to domestic violence victims when they receive a permanent order of protection; lasting for the duration of the order.

Creates the parent-mediation program for child custody disputes – A3458 Robinson/S2913 Perkins
Creates a parent-mediation program for child custody disputes; requires parents, who were in a dispute over the custody of their child/ren, to participate in a court sponsored mediation program; provides that the mediator would be responsible for submitting the results of the process to the court, which in turn would enter an appropriate custody and support order.

Entitlement to unpaid leave of absence for victims of domestic violence – A5367 John/S4178 Savino
Allows victims of domestic or sexual violence to take unpaid leave of absence to address ongoing domestic or sexual violence issues, contains provision to protect the individual's job position and benefits.

Prohibits certain discriminatory practices against victims of domestic violence relating to housing – A5916A Destino/S3072A Robach
Incorporates domestic violence victim status to the list of bases that may not lawfully be relied on when denying an individual the right to purchase, rent, lease or inhabit housing accommodation.

Would allow the accrual of merit time by certain inmates – A6150 Weinstein/S3164A Volker
Allows inmates who are able to prove that they were subjected to substantial physical, sexual or psychological abuse, the abuse was inflicted by a family or household member, and that the abuse was a substantial factor in causing them to commit the crime to be eligible to earn merit time in the amount of one-third off either their minimum sentence.

Provides clarification on determining the expiration date of an order of protection issued in relation to a family offense - A6824 Paulin/S4693 Saland
Amends certain sections of the criminal procedure law with respect to the duration of orders of protection in cases where there is a felony conviction.

Domestic violence education in high schools – A7237 Paulin/S3163 Montgomery
Directs social services districts to contract with non-residential programs for victims of domestic violence to provide outreach and education in high schools: 100% of expenditures, where appropriately expressed, shall be state reimbursed.

Amends the family court act, in relation to adjournments in contemplation of dismissal and suspended judgments in child protective proceedings in the family court – A7379 O’donnell/S4540 Kruger
This measure would make clear that a child protective proceeding may be adjourned in contemplation of dismissal at any time prior to the entry of a fact-finding order.
   
Authorizes special voting ballots for victims of domestic violence – A7463 Gabryzak/S5068 Morahan
Permits victims of domestic violence who have fled the family residence because of danger to themselves or members of their families to cast their votes at the Board of Elections by paper ballot.

Confidentiality of election registration records of a victim of domestic violence – A8538 Carrozza/S842 Flanangan
Authorizes the county court, or Supreme Court in the city of New York, to issue a court order providing for the confidentiality of election registration records of a victim of domestic violence.

Amends the penal law, in relation to criminal contempt in the first degree – A10492 Lentol/S7411 Volker
Enhances the protection of all crime victims, including domestic violence victims and their children, by amending criminal contempt in the first degree to address repeated violations of orders of protection.

Relates to abandoned infants – A10528 Paulin/S7983 Saland
Better implementation of the Abandoned Infant Protection Act of 2000 by clarifying the provisions of the Act in order to protect abandoned newborn infants.

Adds certain sex offenses to the family offenses over which family courts and criminal courts have concurrent jurisdiction – A10548 Weinstein/S7432 Kruger
Sex offenses are added to family offenses over which family courts and criminal courts have concurrent jurisdiction; those sex offenses include sexual misconduct, rape in the third degree, criminal sexual act in the third degree, forcible touching, sexual abuse in the third degree and sexual abuse in the second degree.

Provides that a child shall not be taken into protective custody based on parent's Munchausen syndrome by proxy without a family court hearing – A11557 Titus/S7963 Johnson
A child shall not be taken into protective custody based on an allegation that a custodial parent or guardian suffers from Munchausen syndrome by proxy without a family court hearing on such allegations.

Bills that don’t have a companion bill in Senate and Assembly

Prohibits employers from discriminating against victims of domestic violence or stalking – A1222A Paulin
Helps to protect victims of domestic violence or stalking from discrimination with regard to hiring and employment practices.

Enacts "The Divorce Reform Act of 2007" – A3088 Weinstein
Adds irreconcilable differences as a ground for divorce. The bill also provides for a presumption of equal distribution of marital property in marriages of five years or longer; permanent maintenance if a party is unable to maintain the standard of living established during the marriage due to age, health or other related factors; and provides for attorney's fees for the non-monied spouse in divorce proceedings.

Gives family court the ability to extend an order of protection at its discretion or in special circumstances – A3088 Weinstein
Gives the family court discretion to extend an order of protection without a demonstration of special circumstances when the current order of protection has proven to be successful.

Requires training regarding sexual assault for police officers and child protective services workers – A3148A Weinstein
Requires police officers to receive training instruction for crimes involving sexual assaults; establishes a statewide telephone referral service to assist sexual offense victims and members of their families; requires internet service providers to provide information to subscribers relating to blocking or filtering devices; requires training for child protective services workers in certain instances.

Exempts social security and unemployment benefits from income execution where recipient is on public assistance or care; sets limits on support repayment liability – A3151 Weinstein
The earned income of people who live below the public assistance standard of need is exempt from income executions. However, the law does not protect people who live below the public assistance standard of need if their income is from unemployment insurance, federal disability benefits, or workers' compensation. This bill would protect these sources of income to the level of the public assistance standard of need, as earned income is now protected.

Provides for the imposition, at local option, of a probation administrative fee upon persons on probation for a crime of domestic violence – A7302 Paulin
Authorizes a county probation service or the probation services of New York city to impose a probation administrative fee upon any person convicted of a domestic violence crime and sentenced to probation to pay for the cost of such person's probation, not in excess of thirty dollars per month or actual expenses, whichever is less.

Provides for visitation rights or custody for certain individuals who can demonstrate a parent-like relationship with a child - A9422 Paulin
Allows those who have had a parent-like relationship with a child to petition the court for visitation or custody. The court shall determine whether a "parent-like" relationship exists and if continued contact through visitation or custody is in the best interest of the child.
 
Makes various provisions relating to matrimonial actions and maintenance, actions for divorce and actions for separation – A10446 Paulin
Provides predictability and consistency with regard to calculating interim maintenance and post-marital income obligations, provide the court with the ability to provide legal counsel for certain litigants in matrimonial cases, raise the cap for child support, and provide a "no fault" option for divorce and separation.

2008 Bills That Became Law - New York State

Preventing Emergency Call
The Governor signed A.614 Paulin / S.2452 Saland on 5/7/08 – Chapter 69 of the Laws of 2008. This law combats domestic violence and elder abuse by protecting the lives and safety of crime victims through the establishment of a criminal penalty for those who prevent telephone calls or electronic requests for emergency assistance.

Fair Access to Family Court
Governor signed A11707 Weinstein/S8665 Winner on 7/21/08 – Chapter 326 of the Laws of 2008. The law updates the jurisdiction provisions of the family court act and criminal procedure law to include unrelated persons who are or have been in an intimate relationship regardless of whether the relationship is sexual in nature or whether such persons have lived together.

No penalty in child custody hearings for efforts to protect a child against abuse
The Governor signed A7089A Bing/S6201A Duane on 9/4/08 – Chapter 538 of the Laws of 2008. A person shall not be penalized in child custody or visitation for making good faith allegation on a reasonable belief supported by facts that the child is the victim of abuse.

Authorizes that orders of protection in child support, paternity, persons in need of supervision, custody and matrimonial proceedings may prohibit the unjustified killing or injuring of the companion animal of the person protected by such order or of any minor child residing with such protected person.
The Governor signed A8855A Rosenthal/S4541A Kruger on 9/4/08 – Chapter 532 of the Laws of 2008. This law amends the family court act and the domestic relations law, in relation to orders of protection in juvenile delinquency, child support, paternity, persons in need of supervision, custody and matrimonial proceedings.

Safe Harbour For Sexually Exploited Children Act
The Governor signed A5258C Scarborough / S3175C Volker on 9/25/08 - Chapter 569 of the Laws of 2008. The law is consistent with the treatment of adult trafficking victims under New York’s 2007 Anti-trafficking Law. This law offers a supportive, service-based, non-criminal response to children who are “sexually exploited,” as defined by the new law.

Reimbursement for shelter stay
The Governor signed A10228 Paulin/S7185 Saland on 9/25/08 - Chapter 584 of the Laws of 2008. Permits all victims, including undocumented persons, to be eligible for emergency domestic violence residential services.

Requires a court to review orders of protection, warrants of arrest and sex offender registries prior to issuing orders of custody
The Governor signed A.11657A Weinstein / S.8569A DeFrancisco on 9/25/08 – Chapter 595 of the Laws of 2008. This law ensures that judges who are making custody or visitation decisions have before them as much relevant information as possible about the individual seeking custody or visitation before the court issues any order.