LEGAL ISSUES FOR MANDATED REPORTERS
Consequences for Failing to Report
Any person, official, or institution required to report a case of suspected child abuse or maltreatment that willfully fails to do so:
- Can be charged with a Class A misdemeanor and subject to criminal penalties
- Can be sued in a civil court for monetary damages for any harm caused by such failure to report to the SCR
Failure to report also leads to broader repercussions. CPS cannot act until child abuse is identified and reported—that is, services cannot be offered to the family nor can the child be protected from further suffering (NYS OCFS, 2021a).
Immunity from Legal Liability
To encourage prompt and complete reporting of suspected child abuse and maltreatment, Social Services Law, Section 419, affords the reporter certain legal protections from liability. Any persons, officials, or institutions that in good faith make a report, take photographs, and/or take protective custody of a child or children have immunity from any liability, civil or criminal, that might result from such actions.
All persons, officials, or institutions who are required to report suspected child abuse or maltreatment are presumed to have done so in good faith as long as they were active in the discharge of their official duties and within the scope of their employment and so long as their actions did not result from willful misconduct or gross negligence (NYS OCFS, 2021a).
Confidentiality
The Commissioner of Social Services and the local Department of Social Services are not permitted to release to the subject of a report any data that identify the person who made the report unless that person has given written permission for the SCR to do so. The person who made the report may also grant the local CPS permission to release their identity to the subject of the report. If a reporter needs reassurance, they should feel free to emphasize the need for confidentiality if the situation warrants (NYS OCFS, 2021a).
STATE CENTRAL REGISTRY REFORM
A reform bill introduced by former New York State Senator Montgomery, effective January 2022, serves to reform the State Central Registry (SCR), which maintains a list of parents accused of child maltreatment. The list has been viewed as racially and economically unjust because single mothers, low-income families, and families of color are affected disproportionately.
Before passage of this legislation, New York had one of the lowest standards of evidence to place an individual on the SCR while making it nearly impossible to be removed. Over 47,000 individuals are added to the registry every year, and over 70% of cases involve allegations not of abuse but of neglect, which are largely subjective and connected to poverty. Individuals have been added to the registry for living in shelters, school absences, marijuana use, and being victims of domestic violence. Because the standard is so low, even if the claims are unfounded or the individual wins their case in family court, they could still remain on the registry for up to 28 years.
Under the new legislation, records will automatically be sealed after eight years if the allegations are neglect only, and the records will only be available to CPS and law enforcement if there are new allegations. The reform is also intended to relieve some of the concerns that mandated reporters contemplate when deciding whether or not to make a report of suspected maltreatment (Montgomery, 2021).