Relates to the preparation of educational materials relating to substance abuse among students and designating employees to provide information regarding substance abuse to students, parents and staff.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A7470
SPONSOR: Davila TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to
the preparation of educational materials relating to substance abuse
among students; and to amend the education law, in relation to the
designation of employees to provide information regarding substance
abuse to students, parents and staff
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: The purpose of the bill is to ensure
that students, parents and staff are aware of the dangers of the
substance misuse and abuse and given access to resources for treatment
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one the bill would require the Office of Alcoholism and
Substance Abuse Services (OASAS), in consultation with the State Educa-
tion Department, to develop or use existing educational materials
regarding the misuse and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, prescription medica-
tion and other drugs that are prevalent among school aged youth. The
materials would be required to be age appropriate and would include
information or resources for parents to identify the warning signs and
how to address the risks of substance abuse.Section two of the bill
would require the superintendent of each school district, in consulta-
tion with the district superintendent of a board of cooperative educa-
tional services (BOCES), to designate an employee of the district to
provide information to any student, parent, or staff regarding available
substance abuse services. The designated person would be, where possi-
ble, a school social worker, school guidance counselor, or other health
care practitioner or counselor employed by the school or otherwise
available through a BOCES program. Any information provided by a
student, parent, or staff would be confidential except where the desig-
nated person had a legal duty to report such information. The commis-
sioner of the education department, in consultation with the commission-
er of the office of alcoholism and substance abuse services would have
the power to make necessary regulations.Section three of the bill is the
effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
It is as crucial to prevent substance abuse as it is to treat it. In
2014, the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) stated in its
National Drug Control Strategy that one of the most cost effective ways
of reducing drug abuse among the nation's youth is through school-based
substance abuse prevention education. This bill would ensure that
students, their parents, and staff in schools have access to information
on the misuse and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, prescription medications
and other drugs that are prevalent among school aged youth, as well as
how parents can recognize the warning signs of misuse, and that they are
given information on how to access substance abuse services.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A-10472 of 2015-2016.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
Undetermined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7470
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 26, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. DAVILA -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse
AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to the preparation
of educational materials relating to substance abuse among students;
and to amend the education law, in relation to the designation of
employees to provide information regarding substance abuse to
students, parents and staff
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 19.07 of the mental hygiene law is amended by
2 adding a new subdivision (l) to read as follows:
3 (l) The office of alcoholism and substance abuse services, in consul-
4 tation with the state education department, shall develop or utilize
5 existing educational materials to be provided to school districts and
6 boards of cooperative educational services for use in addition to or in
7 conjunction with any drug and alcohol related curriculum regarding the
8 misuse and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, prescription medication and other
9 drugs with an increased focus on substances that are most prevalent
10 among school aged youth as such term is defined in section eight hundred
11 four of the education law. Such materials shall be age appropriate for
12 school age children, and to the extent practicable, shall include infor-
13 mation or resources for parents to identify the warning signs and
14 address the risks of substance abuse.
15 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 3038 to read
16 as follows:
17 § 3038. The superintendent of each school district, in consultation
18 with the district superintendent of a board of cooperative educational
19 services, where applicable, shall designate an employee who is a member
20 of the school district staff or an employee of the board of cooperative
21 educational services staff to provide information to any student,
22 parent, or staff regarding where and how to find available substance use
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11157-01-7
A. 7470 2
1 related services. Where possible, such designated individual shall be a
2 school social worker, school guidance counselor, or any other health
3 practitioner or counselor employed by the school. Any information
4 provided by a student, parent or teacher to such designated individual
5 shall be confidential, shall not be used in any school disciplinary
6 proceeding and shall, in addition to any other applicable privilege, be
7 considered confidential in the same manner as information provided
8 pursuant to section forty-five hundred eight of the civil practice law
9 and rules. Provided, however, that nothing in this section shall relieve
10 such designated individual of any legal duty to otherwise report such
11 information. Such designated individual or individuals shall undergo any
12 necessary training as may be required by the commissioner.
13 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
14 it shall have become law; provided, however, that effective immediately
15 the commissioner of education, in consultation with the commissioner of
16 the office of alcoholism and substance abuse services, shall be author-
17 ized to adopt regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this
18 act on or before such effective date.
