STATE OF NEW YORK
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4203--A
Cal. No. 764
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
March 4, 2019
___________
Introduced by Sens. SAVINO, MONTGOMERY, RIVERA, SALAZAR -- read twice
and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee
on Children and Families -- reported favorably from said committee,
ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third reading,
amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of
third reading
AN ACT to amend the family court act and the social services law, in
relation to orders committing guardianship and custody of a child
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 634 of the family court act, as amended by chapter
2 666 of the laws of 1976, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 634. Commitment of guardianship and custody; further orders. The
4 court may enter an order under section six hundred thirty-one committing
5 the guardianship and custody of the child to the petitioner on such
6 conditions, if any, as it deems proper, including but not limited to, an
7 order of post-termination visitation and/or contact pursuant to section
8 three hundred eighty-four-b of the social services law.
9 § 2. Section 384-b of the social services law is amended by adding
10 three new subdivisions 14, 15 and 16 to read as follows:
11 14. Upon application by any party to a proceeding under this section,
12 the court shall conduct a post-termination visitation and/or contact
13 hearing, which may be held concurrently with a dispositional hearing.
14 (a) Parents and subject children who are parties to the termination
15 proceeding under article six of the family court act or this section, as
16 well as the subject child's foster parents, or kinship caregiver, shall
17 have notice of and standing to participate in the best interest post-
18 termination visitation and/or contact hearing.
19 (b) The applicant shall have the burden of proof that post-termination
20 visitation and/or contact is in the child's best interest.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00489-03-9
S. 4203--A 2
1 (c) The court may grant the application and include in the order
2 committing the guardianship and custody of a child pursuant to this
3 section, the granting of visitation and/or contact to the parent, custo-
4 dian, half sibling and/or sibling who is a party to the proceeding,
5 provided such visitation and/or contact with the child is found by the
6 court to be in the best interest of the child. If the application for
7 post-termination contact is denied after this dispositional hearing, the
8 applicant shall not have standing to bring the same application in any
9 other proceeding regarding the same child. However, if the court grants
10 any visitation and/or contact, an application to modify the order, upon
11 a showing of substantial change in circumstances, may still be brought.
12 (d) The court shall have discretion, depending on the best interest of
13 the child, to determine the level of supervision of any visitation
14 and/or contact.
15 (e) The court in its order shall indicate such person or persons that
16 were given notice of the proceeding and whether such person or persons
17 appeared.
18 15. All parties to a post-termination visitation and/or contact order
19 pursuant to subdivision fourteen of this section, as well as any person
20 who subsequently becomes the child's legal guardian, custodian or adop-
21 tive parent, may move the court to enforce or modify the order. Any
22 modification shall be based on a showing of a substantial change in
23 circumstances and the best interests of the child.
24 16. Nothing in subdivision fourteen or fifteen of this section shall
25 be construed to limit the rights of half siblings or siblings to seek
26 contact pursuant to subdivision nine of this section or section seven-
27 ty-one of the domestic relations law following a termination of parental
28 rights or adoption.
29 § 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
30 have become a law.
