Assemblymembers Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills), Donna Lupardo (D-Binghamton), and Crystal Peoples-Stokes (D-Erie County) are seeking answers from the New York State Office of Children & Family Services (OCFS) following a roundtable held last month.

OCFS was unable to send a representative to the October 21st discussion, which centered around efficiency and accountability in the Statewide Central Register for Child Abuse and Maltreatment (SCR). This triggered the Assemblymembers to send the letter seeking answers from acting OCFS Commissioner Shiela Poole by December 1st. A copy was also sent to incoming Commissioner Roberto Velez.

“The State Central Register is the crucial frontline component in our state’s Child Protective Services system” said Hevesi, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Oversight, Analysis & Investigation. “Therefore, we have an obligation to find out how these systems are being operated to ensure that our children’s safety is being carefully protected. I look forward to hearing from the state’s Office of Children and Family Services addressing the questions posed.”

“Ensuring the safety and welfare of the children in our state is of the utmost importance,” said Lupardo, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Children & Families. “Without the answers to these questions, we cannot appropriately examine what future steps need to be taken to improve the scope and efficiency of the system.”

Questions in the letter ranged from the number of calls that the SCR receives, to oversight of how the register is monitored and the rights of the person reporting information to the database. The letter also requests that the OCFS send a representative to this week’s roundtable between the Members and key agencies such as New York City’s Administration for Children Service’s (ACS) and the Office of Court Administration (OCA).

The dialogue at the upcoming meeting will examine the investigatory process once a report has been sent to Child Protective Services (CPS). It is highly advantageous to have key representatives from the Office of Children and Family Services who are able to shed insight on how practices of the body are employed daily.

The next roundtable will be held on Wednesday, November 19th from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM, room 104A of the Legislative Office Building in Albany.