§ 501 — General functions, powers and duties of division

§ 501. General functions, powers and duties of division. The division\nfor youth shall have the following functions, powers and duties: 1. To\ndevelop policies and plans for improving the administration of division\nfacilities and the delivery of services therein.\n 2. To establish, operate and maintain treatment programs and other\nservices for youth placed with or committed to the division and programs\nfor the care of conditionally released children.\n 3. To establish, operate and maintain division facilities and to\ncontract with authorized agencies as defined in section three hundred\nseventy-one of the social services law for the operation and maintenance\nof non-secure facilities.\n 4. To establish, operate and maintain all division facilities and\nprograms and all necessary powers to see that the purposes of each\nfacility or program are carried into effect.\n 5. To promulgate rules and regulations for the establishment,\noperation and maintenance of division facilities and programs.\n 6. To enter into contracts with any person, firm, corporation,\nnot-for-profit corporation, authorized agency as defined by section\nthree hundred seventy-one of the social services law, municipality or\ngovernmental agency.\n 7. To establish, operate and maintain programs and services\nalternative to division facilities for persons placed with the division\npursuant to section five hundred seven-a of this article. The division\nmay contract with political subdivisions of the state, agencies thereof\nor supported thereby, not-for-profit associations, institutions or\nagencies concerned with youth, for the operation and maintenance of such\nprograms and services.\n 8. (a) Subject to the amounts appropriated therefor, to establish,\noperate and maintain or to contract for the operation and maintenance of\nprograms which may include, but not be limited to work training programs\nand alternative to placement programs authorized by law, in order to\nprevent and control juvenile delinquency, and to advance the moral,\nphysical, mental and social well-being of the youth of this state;\n (b) To establish and operate or to participate with the federal\ngovernment in the establishment and operation of job corps camps\npursuant to the federal economic opportunity program and any federal\nlaws amendatory or supplemental thereto, and to accept and receive such\nyouths as may be referred by federal agencies pursuant to such law.\n 9. To cooperate with other departments, divisions and agencies of the\nstate, its political subdivisions and municipalities and cooperate with\npublic and private agencies and departments throughout the state in\norder to assist in the rehabilitation and training of youth placed with\nor committed to the division.\n 10. To encourage and foster an exchange of information and to\ncooperate with social agencies, both public and private, which may be\nadministering to the needs or assisting any members of the families of\nyouth placed with or committed to the division.\n 11. To develop a comprehensive five year plan for the provision of\nservices for youths ordered by the court into the custody of the\ndivision. Such plan shall include, but not be limited to:\n (a) a projection of the numbers of youths to be placed into or\ncommitted to the care of the division at secure, limited secure and\nnon-secure levels of care for the five years encompassed by the plan;\n (b) an analysis of current and anticipated utilization of division\nfacilities;\n (c) a plan for increasing or decreasing residential capacities at all\nlevels as indicated by paragraph (b) of this subdivision;\n (d) a comprehensive description of the types of services and programs\nto be provided to youths in the custody of the division; and\n (e) a plan for containing costs at all levels of residential care.\n 12. To promulgate regulations concerning standards for the protection\nof children in residential facilities and programs operated or certified\nby the division, from abuse and maltreatment. Such standards shall\ninclude the prevention and remediation of abuse and maltreatment of\nchildren in such residential facilities or programs, including\nprocedures for:\n (a) consistent with appropriate collective bargaining agreements and\napplicable provisions of the civil service law, the review and\nevaluation of the backgrounds of and the information supplied by any\nperson applying to be an employee, a volunteer or consultant which shall\ninclude but not be limited to the following requirements: that the\napplicant set forth his or her employment history, provide personal and\nemployment references and relevant experiential and educational\ninformation and sign a sworn statement indicating whether the applicant,\nto the best of his or her knowledge, has ever been convicted of a crime\nin this state or any other jurisdiction;\n (b) establishing for employees, relevant minimal experiential and\neducational qualifications, consistent with appropriate collective\nbargaining agreements and applicable provisions of the civil service\nlaw;\n (c) assuring adequate and appropriate supervision of employees,\nvolunteers and consultants;\n (d) demonstrating by a residential facility or program that\nappropriate action is taken to assure the safety of the child who is\nreported to the state central register as well as other children in\ncare, immediately upon notification that a report of child abuse or\nmaltreatment has been made with respect to a child in a residential\nfacility or program;\n (e) removing of a child, consistent as applicable with any court order\nplacing the child, when it is determined that there is risk to such\nchild if he or she continues to remain within a residential facility or\nprogram; and\n (f) appropriate preventive and remedial action to be taken, including\nlegal actions, consistent with appropriate collective bargaining\nagreements and applicable provisions of the civil service law.\n Such standards shall also establish as a priority that:\n (i) subject to the amounts appropriated therefor, administrators,\nemployees, volunteers and consultants receive training in at least the\nfollowing: child abuse prevention and identification, safety and\nsecurity procedures, the principles of child development, the\ncharacteristics of children in care and techniques of group and child\nmanagement including crisis intervention, the laws, regulations and\nprocedures governing the protection of children from abuse and\nmaltreatment, and other appropriate topics; provided however, that the\ndivision may exempt administrators and consultants from such\nrequirements upon demonstration of substantially equivalent knowledge or\nexperience;\n (ii) subject to the amounts appropriated therefor, children receive\ninstruction, consistent with their age, needs and circumstances as well\nas the needs and circumstances within the residential facility or\nprogram, in techniques and procedures which will enable such children to\nprotect themselves from abuse and maltreatment.\n The division shall take all reasonable and necessary actions to assure\nthat employees, volunteers and consultants in residential facilities and\nprograms are kept apprised on a current basis of all division policies\nand procedures relating to the protection of children from abuse and\nmaltreatment, and shall monitor and supervise the provision of training\nto such administrators, employees, volunteers, children and consultants.\nSuch standards shall, to the extent possible, be consistent with those\npromulgated by other state agencies for such purposes.\n 13. To cooperate with the state department of social services and\nother departments, divisions and agencies of the state when a report is\nreceived pursuant to title six of article six of the social services law\nto protect the health and safety of children in residential facilities\nor programs. Such cooperation shall include: the making of reports of\nalleged child abuse and maltreatment, providing necessary assistance to\nthe state department of social services in the department's\ninvestigation thereof and considering the recommendations of the state\ndepartment of social services for appropriate preventive and remedial\naction, including legal actions, and provide or direct the residential\nfacility to provide such written reports thereon to the department of\nsocial services as to the implementation of plans of prevention and\nremediation approved by the division pursuant to title six of article\nsix of the social services law.\n 14. To provide for the development and implementation of a plan of\nprevention and remediation with respect to an indicated report of child\nabuse or maltreatment. Such action shall include: (a) within ten days of\nreceipt of an indicated report of child abuse or maltreatment,\ndevelopment and implementation of a plan of prevention and remediation\nto be taken with respect to a custodian or the residential facility in\norder to assure the continued health and safety of children and to\nprovide for the prevention of future acts of abuse or maltreatment; and\n(b) development and implementation of a plan of prevention and\nremediation, in the event an investigation of a report of alleged child\nabuse or maltreatment determines that some credible evidence of abuse or\nmaltreatment exists and such abuse or maltreatment may be attributed in\nwhole or in part to noncompliance by the residential facility or program\nwith provisions of this chapter or regulations of the division\napplicable to the operation of such residential facility or program. Any\nplan of prevention and remediation required to be developed pursuant to\nparagraph (b) of this subdivision by a facility supervised by the\ndivision shall be submitted to and approved by the division in\naccordance with time limits established by regulations of the division.\nImplementation of the plan shall be monitored by the division. In\nreviewing the continued qualifications of a residential facility or\nprogram for an operating certificate, the division shall evaluate such\nfacility's compliance with plans of prevention and remediation developed\nand implemented pursuant to this subdivision.\n 15. In the event that the office of children and family services\ndetermines that significant service reductions, public employee staffing\nreductions and/or the transfer of operations to a private or\nnot-for-profit entity are anticipated in the office of children and\nfamily services long term planning process or for a particular facility\nin a future year, to take the following actions:\n (a) confer with the department of civil service, the governor's office\nof employee relations and any other state agency to develop strategies\nwhich attempt to minimize the impact on the state workforce by providing\nassistance in obtaining state employment in state-operated\ncommunity-based services or other employment opportunities, and to\ndevelop strategies for the development of necessary retraining and\nredeployment programs. In planning such strategies, the commissioner of\nthe office of children and family services shall provide for the\nparticipation of the representatives of the employee labor organizations\nand for the participation of managerial and confidential employees to\nensure continuity of employment;\n (b) consult with the department of economic development and any other\nappropriate state agencies to develop strategies which attempt to\nminimize the impact of such significant service reductions, public\nemployee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to a\nprivate or not-for-profit entity on the local and regional economies;\n (c) provide for a mechanism which may reasonably be expected to\nprovide notice to local governments, community organizations, employee\nlabor organizations, managerial and confidential employees, consumer and\nadvocacy groups of the potential for significant service reductions,\npublic employee staffing reductions and/or the transfer of operations to\na private or not-for-profit entity at such state-operated facilities, at\nleast twelve months prior to commencing such service reduction; and\n (d) consult with the office of general services and any other\nappropriate state agency in developing a mechanism for determining\nalternative uses for land and buildings to be vacated by the office of\nchildren and family services. Such a mechanism should include a review\nof other programs or state agencies that could feasibly expand their\noperations onto a state-operated campus and are compatible with health,\nsafety and programmatic needs of persons served in such facilities.\n 16. To perform such acts as are necessary or convenient to carry out\nthe division's functions, powers and duties in furtherance of the best\ninterests of youth, consistent with the provisions of this article.\n