S 4679: Relates to unsealing unfounded child abuse and maltreatment reports upon a court order finding that justice requires the information in such reports is necessary for the determination of charges being investigated by a grand jury or for the purposes of prosecuting a violation of the penal law.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4679 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE February 11, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MURRAY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to the unsealing of unfounded child abuse and maltreatment reports in certain circum- stances The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subparagraphs (iv) and (v) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 5 of section 422 of the social services law, subparagraph (iv) as 3 amended by chapter 555 of the laws of 2000 and subparagraph (v) as 4 amended by chapter 256 of the laws of 2014, are amended and a new 5 subparagraph (vi) is added to read as follows: 6 (iv) to the subject of the report; [and] 7 (v) to a district attorney, an assistant district attorney, an inves- 8 tigator employed in the office of a district attorney, or to a sworn 9 officer of the division of state police, of a city, county, town or 10 village police department or of a county sheriff's office (A) when such 11 official verifies that the report is necessary to conduct an active 12 investigation or prosecution of a violation of subdivision four of 13 section 240.50 of the penal law[.] or (B) upon a court order finding 14 that justice requires the information in such reports is necessary for 15 the purpose of prosecuting a violation of the penal law; and 16 (vi) to a grand jury, upon a court order finding that justice requires 17 the information in such reports is necessary for the determination of 18 charges being investigated by such grand jury. 19 § 2. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 5 of section 422 of the social 20 services law, as amended by section 7 of part D of chapter 501 of the 21 laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows: 22 (b) Persons given access to unfounded reports pursuant to subparagraph 23 (v) of paragraph (a) of this subdivision shall not redisclose such 24 reports except as necessary to conduct such appropriate investigation or EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD09064-01-5 
 S. 4679 2 1 prosecution and shall request of the court that any copies of such 2 reports produced in any court proceeding be redacted to remove the names 3 of the subjects and other persons named in the reports or that the court 4 issue an order protecting the names of the subjects and other persons 5 named in the reports from public disclosure. The local child protective 6 service or state agency shall not indicate the subsequent report solely 7 based upon the existence of the prior unfounded report or reports. 8 Notwithstanding section four hundred fifteen of this title, section one 9 thousand forty-six of the family court act, or, except as set forth 10 herein, any other provision of law to the contrary, an unfounded report 11 shall not be admissible in any judicial or administrative proceeding or 12 action; provided, however, an unfounded report may be introduced into 13 evidence: (i) by the subject of the report where such subject is a 14 respondent in a proceeding under article ten of the family court act or 15 is a plaintiff or petitioner in a civil action or proceeding alleging 16 the false reporting of child abuse or maltreatment; [or] (ii) in a crim- 17 inal court for the purpose of prosecuting a violation of [subdivision 18 four of section 240.50 of] the penal law; or (iii) in a grand jury or 19 other judicial proceeding for the purpose of determining charges being 20 investigated by such grand jury. Legally sealed unfounded reports shall 21 be expunged ten years after the receipt of the report. 22 § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 23 have become a law.