S 6807: Provides for the employment of mental health professionals by school districts.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6807 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE March 24, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. JACKSON, BRISPORT, BROUK, COONEY, HARCKHAM, HOYL- MAN-SIGAL, MAY, MYRIE, PERSAUD, RAMOS, RIVERA, SALAZAR, SANDERS, SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the employment of mental health professionals by school districts The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 901 of the education law, as amended by chapter 477 2 of the laws of 2004, subdivision 1 as amended by section 57 of part A1 3 of chapter 58 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows: 4 § 901. School health and mental health services to be provided. 1. a. 5 School health services, as defined in subdivision two of this section, 6 shall be provided by each school district for all students attending the 7 public schools in this state, except in the city school district of the 8 city of New York, as provided in this article. School health services 9 shall include the services of a registered professional nurse, if one is 10 employed, and shall also include such services as may be rendered as 11 provided in this article in examining students for the existence of 12 disease or disability and in testing the eyes and ears of such students. 13 b. School mental health services, as defined in subdivision two of 14 this section, shall be provided by each school district for all students 15 attending the public schools in this state, as provided in this article. 16 School mental health services shall include the services of a school 17 psychologist and school social worker, each of which shall be employed 18 by the district. 19 2. a. School health services for the purposes of this article shall 20 mean the several procedures, including, but not limited to, medical 21 examinations, dental inspection and/or screening, scoliosis screening, 22 vision screening and audiometer tests, designed to determine the health 23 status of the child; to inform parents or other persons in parental 24 relation to the child, pupils and teachers of the individual child's 25 health condition subject to federal and state confidentiality laws; to 26 guide parents, children and teachers in procedures for preventing and EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD11261-01-5 
 S. 6807 2 1 correcting defects and diseases; to instruct the school personnel in 2 procedures to take in case of accident or illness; to survey and make 3 necessary recommendations concerning the health and safety aspects of 4 school facilities and the provision of health information. 5 b. (i) School mental health services provided by a certified school 6 psychologist for purposes of this article shall mean the several proce- 7 dures, including, but not limited to, evaluations, screenings and 8 assessments, designed to determine the mental health and well-being 9 status of the child; to inform parents or other persons in parental 10 relation to the child, pupils and teachers of the individual child's 11 mental health condition subject to federal and state confidentiality 12 laws; to address identified mental health needs of the child; to 13 instruct the school personnel in interventions, techniques, and behav- 14 ioral approaches to respond to the mental health needs of the child; to 15 provide such interventions, approaches and services as necessary to 16 address the mental health needs of the child; and to make necessary 17 recommendations concerning the mental health aspects of the school envi- 18 ronment and the provision of mental health information. 19 (ii) School mental health services provided by licensed or certified 20 school social workers for the purposes of this article shall mean the 21 several procedures and services including, but not limited to, assess- 22 ments, evaluations and psychosocial intervention plans that are designed 23 to prevent and intervene to address mental, social, emotional, behav- 24 ioral, developmental, and addictive disorders, conditions, and disabili- 25 ties of the psychosocial aspect of illness and injuries experienced by 26 the child. Services provided by a licensed clinical social worker, or 27 under supervision, in accordance with the commissioner's regulations 28 governing the practice of social work services, those services shall 29 include: diagnosis of mental, emotional, behavioral and developmental 30 disorders and disabilities, and the psychosocial aspects of illness, 31 injury, disability and impairment undertaken within a psychosocial 32 framework; administration and interpretation of tests and measures of 33 psychosocial functioning; development and implementation of appropriate 34 assessment based treatment plans; and the provision of crisis and leth- 35 ality assessments, and short term and long term psychotherapy and 36 psychotherapeutic treatment to students, families and groups, undertaken 37 for the purpose of preventing, assessing, treating, ameliorating and 38 resolving psychosocial dysfunction with the goal of maintaining and 39 enhancing the mental, emotional, behavioral, and social functioning and 40 well-being of the child in the context of the family, school, and commu- 41 nity; to work as a liaison between parent, child, school, and community 42 and function within applicable confidentiality laws; to instruct school 43 personnel regarding interventions, techniques, and behavioral 44 approaches; to respond to the mental health needs of the child; and to 45 make necessary recommendations concerning the mental health aspects of 46 the school environment and the provision of mental health information. 47 3. The mental health professionals required herein shall be in addi- 48 tion to such personnel as necessary to implement the provisions of the 49 federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as amended. 50 § 2. Section 902 of the education law, as amended by chapter 477 of 51 the laws of 2004, paragraph a of subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 376 52 of the laws of 2015, paragraph b of subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 53 501 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows: 54 § 902. Employment of health and mental health professionals. 1. a. As 55 used in this article "health professionals" means persons duly licensed 56 or otherwise authorized to practice a health profession pursuant to 
 S. 6807 3 1 applicable law, including, but not limited to, physicians, registered 2 professional nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians assistants, optome- 3 trists, dentists, dental hygienists, dietitians and nutritionists, and 4 audiologists. 5 b. As used in this article, "mental health professionals" shall mean 6 certified school psychologists and certified or licensed school social 7 workers duly authorized to provide mental health services pursuant to 8 applicable law. 9 2. a. The board of education, and the trustee or board of trustees of 10 each school district, shall employ, at a compensation to be agreed upon 11 by the parties, a qualified physician, or a nurse practitioner to the 12 extent authorized by the nurse practice act and consistent with subdivi- 13 sion three of section six thousand nine hundred two of this chapter, to 14 perform the duties of the director of school health services, including 15 any duties conferred on the school physician or school medical inspector 16 under any provision of law, to perform and coordinate the provision of 17 health services in the public schools and to provide health appraisals 18 of students attending the public schools in the city or district. The 19 physicians or nurse practitioners so employed shall be duly licensed 20 pursuant to applicable law. 21 b. Any such board or trustees may employ one or more school nurses, 22 who shall be registered professional nurses, as well as other health 23 professionals, as may be required. Such registered professional nurses 24 and other health professionals shall aid the director of school health 25 services of the district and shall perform such duties, including health 26 instruction for the benefit of the public schools as may be prescribed 27 by such board or trustees, in compliance with each such health profes- 28 sional's practice act. 29 c. Any such board or trustees shall employ one or more school psychol- 30 ogist and school social worker, as may be required. Such professional 31 shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by such board or trus- 32 tees, in compliance with such professional's authorization. 33 3. Health and mental health professionals may be employed by the trus- 34 tees or boards of education of two or more school districts, and the 35 compensation of such health and mental health professionals, and the 36 expenses incurred in providing school health and mental health services 37 for students as provided in this article, shall be borne jointly by such 38 districts, and be apportioned among them in any manner agreed to by such 39 districts in a sharing agreement entered pursuant to section one hundred 40 nineteen-o of the general municipal law. The trustees or boards of 41 education of two or more school districts in a supervisory district may 42 enter into an agreement, or agreements as may be required, with a board 43 of cooperative educational services for the provision of the services of 44 one or more mental health professional or registered professional nurs- 45 es, and other health professionals to perform health and mental health 46 services, including health and mental health instruction in such 47 districts. 48 4. The mental health professionals required herein shall be in addi- 49 tion to such personnel as necessary to implement the provisions of the 50 federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as amended. 51 § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of September next 52 succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law. Effective imme- 53 diately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation 54 necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date is 55 authorized to be made and completed on or before such effective date.