N.Y. Social Services Law § 444: Confidentiality of records; related matters

§ 444. Confidentiality of records; related matters. 1. The department

in consultation with the advisory committee shall make regulations;

(a) protecting the confidentiality of individual identifying

information submitted to or provided by the service, and preventing

access thereto, by, or the distribution thereof to, persons not

authorized by law;

(b) setting forth procedures for informing any child or his

representative of the nature of the system and its uses;

(c) allowing any child or his representative or any member of his

family, an opportunity to review any information pertaining to such

child or family and to request that any part of such information be

amended or expunged; and

(d) providing that the service shall remove from its records and

expunge the individual identifying information, excluding

non-identifying child or family data to be used for historical purposes,

concerning any child who has been discharged from care.

2. Prior to final promulgation of any regulations as described in

subdivision one of this section, the department shall, in addition to

complying with all other advance notice requirements make proposed

regulations available to all state agencies charged with the

administration or supervision of child care programs and to local

government agencies and persons that have expressed an interest in

safeguarding information maintained by the service, and shall provide

such agencies with an opportunity to comment on the proposed

regulations. In promulgating final regulations the department shall

consider any comments received.

3. Any persons wilfully violating or failing to comply with the

provisions of subdivision one of this section or wilfully violating or

failing to comply with any regulation which the department is authorized

under such subdivision to make, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

4. The regulations promulgated pursuant to subdivision one of this

section, shall provide that the information compiled and maintained by

the service pursuant to paragraph (d) of subdivision ten of section four

hundred forty-two of this title shall be subject to the confidentiality

provisions of title six of this article.