Let Parents Name Caregivers

Summary of provisions

Section 1 of this bill would amend the current GOL § 5-1551 to permit a parent or guardian of a minor or incapacitated person to designate a caregiver as a person in parental relation to the minor or incapacitated person, with limited authority under the education law and public health law, for a period not exceeding twelve months provided the designation is in the form prescribed under GOL § 5-1552.

Section 2 of this bill would amend the current GOL § 5-1552(1) to permit that the designation may specify a period of time less than twelve months for which such designation shall be valid, unless earlier revoked.

Section 3 of this bill would amend the current GOL § 5-1552(3) to permit that the designation may specify a period of time less than twelve months for which such designation shall be valid, unless earlier revoked.

Section 4 of the bill sets an immediate effective date.

Existing law

Sections 5-1551 - 5-1555 of the General Obligations Law currently permit a parent or guardian to name a caregiver as a person in parental relation, who has limited authority under the education law and public health law, for up to six months if the form is notarized and up to thirty days if the form is not notarized.

Justification

GOL 5-1551 - 5-1555 must be amended to extend the time periods in which a parent or guardian may designate a caregiver as a person in parental relation, to better reflect the realities of kinship caregiving and also provide another tool for undocumented parents and guardians who may not be able to easily renew designations while detained or outside the United States.

According to the U. S. Census American Community Survey data, in New York State, there are more than 130,000 grandparent "kinship" families. Together with aunts, uncles and other family members, estimates are as many as 200,000 kinship families are raising 300,000 children in New York State. Kinship caregivers are defined as non-parents, including grandparents, blood relatives, and close family friends who provide fulltime care and control of children in their household. Studies show that children placed in care with relatives fare much better emotionally and intellectually than children who go into foster care with strangers (Marc Winokur, Amy Holtan, and Deborah Valentine, "Kinship Care for the Safety, Permanency, and Well-Being of Children Removed From the Home for Maltreatment," Campbell Systematic Reviews 1 (2009), doi:10.4073/ csr.2009.1; Rubin, D., Springer, S. H., Zlotnik, S., & Kang-Yi, C. D. (2017). Needs of Kinship Care Families and Pediatric Practice. Pediatrics, 139(4), e20170099. doi:10.1542/peds.2017-0099; National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW), CPS Sample Component Wave 1 Data Analysis Report, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, April 2005.)

As a result of federal policies, parents subject to detention or removal whose children reside in New York State need preparedness options to plan for the emergency care and control of their children in the event of sudden detention or deportation. Parental designation forms, as authorized under the General Obligations Law, provide a mechanism by which parents can make arrangements in advance for a caregiver to be designated without going to court. The designated caregiver has authority pursuant to sections twenty-one hundred sixty-four and twenty-five hundred four of the public health law and sections two and thirty-two hundred twelve of the education law to make decisions for the minor or incapacitated person.

Under the proposed amendment, the time period of the designation form will be extended from six months to twelve months for designation forms that are notarized.

In recent months legal service providers across New York State as well as the New York State Bar Association have provided trainings for attorneys to assist with emergency preparedness for families affected by new federal policies. These trainings all cited the parental designation form authorized under General Obligations Law 5-1551 5-1555 as an important tool parents or guardians can use to prepare in advance if they have reason to believe they may be subject to deportation or detention.

By extending the time period of the designation form, a caregiver is provided with more time to provide care for the child, and to seek judicial assistance if required. Because emergency preparedness, including executing the parental designation form, is done in advance of potential removal, a parent could execute the form immediately, but may not need the form until months later when facing sudden detention or deportation. As such, the form may expire shortly after a caregiver assumes care and control.

This proposed language will make the designation of a caregiver valid for a longer period of time. This reflects the reality that the need for advance planning for a parent subject to removal based on immigration status is necessary, but the timing of the removal - and subsequent need for the parental designation - may be uncertain. This bill will provide a degree of legal certainty for parents regarding the future care of their children.

Also, by extending the time period of the parental designation form, local social service districts will not have to unnecessarily investigate the circumstances of the children and/or provide them with foster care unless it is warranted for the reasons related to abuse, neglect or abandonment pursuant to applicable law.

Prior legislative history

This is new bill.

Fiscal impact

No anticipated budget implications.

Effective date

The bill would be effective immediately.