§ 756-A — Extension of placement

§ 756-a. Extension of placement. (a) In any case in which the child\nhas been placed pursuant to paragraph (iii) of paragraph (a) of section\nseven hundred fifty-six of this part, the child, the person with whom\nthe child has been placed or the commissioner of social services may\npetition the court to extend such placement, as provided for in this\nsection. Such petition shall be filed at least fifteen days prior to the\nexpiration of the initial placement and at least thirty days prior to\nthe expiration of the period of any additional placement authorized\npursuant to this section, except for good cause shown, but in no event\nshall such petition be filed after the original expiration date.\n (b) The court shall conduct a permanency hearing concerning the need\nfor continuing the placement. The child, the person with whom the child\nhas been placed and the commissioner of social services shall be\nnotified of such hearing and shall have the right to be heard thereat.\n (c) The provisions of section seven hundred forty-five shall apply at\nsuch permanency hearing. If the petition is filed within thirty days\nprior to the expiration of the period of placement, the court shall\nfirst determine at such permanency hearing whether good cause has been\nshown. If good cause is not shown, the court shall dismiss the petition.\n (d) (i) At the conclusion of the first permanency hearing the court\nmay, in its discretion, order one extension of the placement for not\nmore than six months;\n (ii) At the conclusion of the second permanency hearing, the court\nmay, in its discretion, order one extension of placement for not more\nthan four months unless:\n (A) The attorney for the child, at the request of the child, seeks an\nadditional length of stay for the child in such program. If a request is\nmade pursuant to this subparagraph, the court shall determine whether to\ngrant such request based on the best interest of the child; or\n (B) The court finds that extenuating circumstances exists that\nnecessitate the child be placed out of the home.\n (d-1) If the court orders an extension of placement pursuant to\nparagraph (d) of this section, the court must consider and determine in\nits order:\n (i) where appropriate, that reasonable efforts were made to make it\npossible for the child to safely return to his or her home, or if the\npermanency plan for the child is adoption, guardianship or some other\npermanent living arrangement other than reunification with the parent or\nparents of the child, reasonable efforts are being made to make and\nfinalize such alternate permanent placement including consideration of\nappropriate in-state and out-of-state placements;\n (ii) in the case of a child who has attained the age of fourteen, (A)\nthe services needed, if any, to assist the child to make the transition\nfrom foster care to successful adulthood; and (B)(1) that the permanency\nplan developed for the child, and any revision or addition to the plan\nshall be developed in consultation with the child and, at the option of\nthe child, with up to two additional members of the child's permanency\nplanning team who are selected by the child and who are not a foster\nparent of, or case worker, case planner or case manager for, the child,\nexcept that the local commissioner of social services with custody of\nthe child may reject an individual so selected by the child if such\ncommissioner has good cause to believe that the individual would not act\nin the best interests of the child, and (2) that one individual so\nselected by the child may be designated to be the child's advisor and,\nas necessary, advocate with respect to the application of the reasonable\nand prudent parent standard;\n (iii) in the case of a child placed outside New York state, whether\nthe out-of-state placement continues to be appropriate and in the best\ninterests of the child;\n (iv) whether and when the child: (A) will be returned to the parent;\n(B) should be placed for adoption with the social services official\nfiling a petition for termination of parental rights; (C) should be\nreferred for legal guardianship; (D) should be placed permanently with a\nfit and willing relative; or (E) should be placed in another planned\npermanent living arrangement with a significant connection to an adult\nwilling to be a permanency resource for the child if the child is age\nsixteen or older and (1) the social services official has documented to\nthe court: (I) intensive, ongoing, and, as of the date of the hearing,\nunsuccessful efforts made by the social services district to return the\nchild home or secure a placement for the child with a fit and willing\nrelative including adult siblings, a legal guardian, or an adoptive\nparent, including through efforts that utilize search technology\nincluding social media to find biological family members for children,\n(II) the steps the social services district is taking to ensure that (A)\nthe child's foster family home or child care facility is following the\nreasonable and prudent parent standard in accordance with guidance\nprovided by the United States department of health and human services,\nand (B) the child has regular, ongoing opportunities to engage in age or\ndevelopmentally appropriate activities including by consulting with the\nchild in an age-appropriate manner about the opportunities of the child\nto participate in activities; and (2) the social services district has\ndocumented to the court and the court has determined that there are\ncompelling reasons for determining that it continues to not be in the\nbest interest of the child to return home, be referred for termination\nof parental rights and placed for adoption, placed with a fit and\nwilling relative, or placed with a legal guardian; and (3) the court has\nmade a determination explaining why, as of the date of the hearing,\nanother planned living arrangement with a significant connection to an\nadult willing to be a permanency resource for the child is the best\npermanency plan for the child; and\n (v) where the child will not be returned home, consideration of\nappropriate in-state and out-of-state placements.\n (e) At the permanency hearing, the court shall consult with the\nrespondent in an age-appropriate manner regarding the permanency plan;\nprovided, however, that if the respondent is age sixteen or older and\nthe requested permanency plan for the respondent is placement in another\nplanned permanent living arrangement with a significant connection to an\nadult willing to be a permanency resource for the respondent, the court\nmust ask the respondent about the desired permanency outcome for the\nrespondent.\n (f) Pending final determination of a petition to extend such placement\nfiled in accordance with the provisions of this section, the court may,\non its own motion or at the request of the petitioner or respondent,\nenter one or more temporary orders extending a period of placement. The\ncourt may order additional temporary extensions only as authorized in\nthis section.\n (g) Successive extensions of placement under this section may be\ngranted, only as authorized in this section, provided, however no\nplacement may be made or continued beyond the child's eighteenth\nbirthday without his or her consent and in no event past his or her\ntwenty-first birthday.\n (h) Where the respondent remains placed in a qualified residential\ntreatment program, as defined in section four hundred nine-h of the\nsocial services law, the commissioner of the local social services\ndistrict with legal custody of the respondent shall submit evidence at\nthe permanency hearing with respect to the respondent:\n (i) demonstrating that ongoing assessment of the strengths and needs\nof the respondent continues to support the determination that the needs\nof the respondent cannot be met through placement in a foster family\nhome, that the placement in a qualified residential treatment program\nprovides the most effective and appropriate level of care for the\nrespondent in the least restrictive environment, and that the placement\nis consistent with the short-term and long-term goals of the respondent,\nas specified in the respondent's permanency plan;\n (ii) documenting the specific treatment or service needs that will be\nmet for the respondent in the placement and the length of time the\nrespondent is expected to need the treatment or services; and\n (iii) documenting the efforts made by the local social services\ndistrict with legal custody of the respondent to prepare the respondent\nto return home, or to be placed with a fit and willing relative, legal\nguardian or adoptive parent, or in a foster family home.\n (i) A youth who was formerly a respondent pursuant to this article\nshall be eligible to file a motion pursuant to article ten-B of this act\nand may be subsequently placed into foster care, in a supervised setting\nas defined in subdivision twenty-two of section three hundred\nseventy-one of the social services law or placement in a foster family\nhome, which shall include a kinship placement or a placement with\nfictive kin.\n (j) Where placement will end prior to a subsequent permanency hearing\ndue to the respondent's age and/or failure to consent to continuation of\nplacement, court orders made pursuant to this section shall be\nenforceable against the social services district and/or social services\nofficial, as defined in section two of the social services law, with\nwhom such respondent was placed after such respondent was discharged\nfrom care.\n (i) The court shall maintain jurisdiction over a case for purposes of\nhearing a motion for contempt against the agency with whom the\nrespondent was placed pursuant to section seven hundred fifty-three of\nthe judiciary law. Such a motion may be brought by such respondent who\nwas formerly placed pursuant to section seven hundred fifty-six of this\npart or this section. In addition to any other defense, it shall be an\naffirmative defense to a motion filed in accordance with this paragraph\nthat compliance with the court order was not possible due solely to the\nyouth's refusal to consent to continuation of foster care placement\nwhere such refusal is documented in a signed, notarized letter executed\nby the youth after consultation with their attorney for the child.\n (ii) The court shall maintain jurisdiction over a motion described in\nparagraph (i) of this subdivision if such motion is filed before the\nrespondent attains the age of twenty-three. The court's jurisdiction\nover any such motion shall continue until such motion and any related\nappeals are finally resolved.\n (iii) If the respondent is eligible to return to foster care pursuant\nto the provisions of article ten-B of this act, upon the consent of the\nrespondent, the court may convert a motion brought under this\nsubdivision to a motion to return the respondent to foster care.\n