2012 New York Consolidated Laws
SOS - Social Services
Article 6 - CHILDREN
Title 1 - (371 - 392) CARE AND PROTECTION OF CHILDREN
374-A - Interstate compact on the placement of children.

 
    §  374-a.  Interstate  compact  on  the  placement of children. 1. The
  interstate compact on the placement of children is hereby  enacted  into
  law  and  entered  into  with  all  other  jurisdictions legally joining
  therein in form substantially as follows:
                INTERSTATE COMPACT ON THE PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN
                        ARTICLE I. PURPOSE AND POLICY
    It is the purpose and policy of the party  states  to  cooperate  with
  each other in the interstate placement of children to the end that:
    (a)   Each   child  requiring  placement  shall  receive  the  maximum
  opportunity to be placed in a suitable environment and with  persons  or
  institutions having appropriate qualifications and facilities to provide
  a necessary and desirable degree and type of care.
    (b)  The  appropriate  authorities  in  a state where a child is to be
  placed may have full opportunity to ascertain the circumstances  of  the
  proposed  placement,  thereby  promoting full compliance with applicable
  requirements for the protection of the child.
    (c) The proper authorities of the state from which  the  placement  is
  made  may  obtain the most complete information on the basis of which to
  evaluate a projected placement before it is made.
    (d) Appropriate jurisdictional arrangements for the care  of  children
  will be promoted.
                            ARTICLE II. DEFINITIONS
    As used in this compact:
    (a)  "Child"  means  a  person  who, by reason of minority, is legally
  subject to parental, guardianship or similar control.
    (b) "Sending agency" means a party state, officer or employee thereof;
  a subdivision of a party state, or officer or employee thereof; a  court
  of  a party state; a person, corporation, association, charitable agency
  or other entity which sends, brings, or causes to be sent or brought any
  child to another party state.
    (c) "Receiving state" means the  state  to  which  a  child  is  sent,
  brought,  or caused to be sent or brought, whether by public authorities
  or private persons or agencies, and whether for placement with state  or
  local  public  authorities  or  for  placement  with private agencies or
  persons.
    (d) "Placement" means the arrangement for the care of  a  child  in  a
  family  free or boarding home or in a child-caring agency or institution
  but does not include  any  institution  caring  for  the  mentally  ill,
  mentally defective or epileptic or any institution primarily educational
  in character, and any hospital or other medical facility.
                     ARTICLE III. CONDITIONS FOR PLACEMENT
    (a)  No  sending  agency  shall  send,  bring,  or cause to be sent or
  brought into any other party state any child  for  placement  in  foster
  care  or  as  a  preliminary  to  a possible adoption unless the sending
  agency shall comply with each and every requirement set  forth  in  this
  article  and  with  the applicable laws of the receiving state governing
  the placement of children therein.
    (b) Prior to sending, bringing or causing any  child  to  be  sent  or
  brought  into  a  receiving  state  for placement in foster care or as a
  preliminary to a possible adoption, the sending agency shall furnish the
  appropriate public authorities in the receiving state written notice  of
  the intention to send, bring, or place the child in the receiving state.
  The notice shall contain:
    (1) The name, date and place of birth of the child.
    (2)  The  identity  and  address  or addresses of the parents or legal
  guardian.

    (3) The name and address of the person, agency or  institution  to  or
  with  which  the  sending  agency  proposes to send, bring, or place the
  child.
    (4)  A  full  statement  of  the  reasons for such proposed action and
  evidence of the authority pursuant to which the placement is proposed to
  be made.
    (c) Any public officer or agency in a  receiving  state  which  is  in
  receipt  of  a  notice  pursuant  to  paragraph  (b) of this article may
  request of the sending agency,  or  any  other  appropriate  officer  or
  agency  of  or  in  the sending agency's state, and shall be entitled to
  receive therefrom, such supporting or additional information as  it  may
  deem  necessary  under  the  circumstances  to carry out the purpose and
  policy of this compact.
    (d) The child shall not be sent, brought, or  caused  to  be  sent  or
  brought   into   the   receiving  state  until  the  appropriate  public
  authorities in the receiving state shall notify the sending  agency,  in
  writing, to the effect that the proposed placement does not appear to be
  contrary to the interests of the child.
                   ARTICLE IV. PENALTY FOR ILLEGAL PLACEMENT
    The  sending,  bringing,  or  causing  to  be sent or brought into any
  receiving state of a child in violation of the  terms  of  this  compact
  shall  constitute  a  violation  of the laws respecting the placement of
  children of both the state in which the sending  agency  is  located  or
  from  which  it  sends  or  brings the child and of the receiving state.
  Such violation may  be  punished  or  subjected  to  penalty  in  either
  jurisdiction  in  accordance with its laws. In addition to liability for
  any such punishment or penalty, any such violation shall constitute full
  and sufficient grounds for the suspension or revocation of any  license,
  permit,  or  other  legal authorization held by the sending agency which
  empowers or allows it to place, or care for children.
                     ARTICLE V. RETENTION OF JURISDICTION
    (a) The sending  agency  shall  retain  jurisdiction  over  the  child
  sufficient  to  determine  all  matters  in  relation  to  the  custody,
  supervision, care, treatment and disposition of the child which it would
  have had if the child had remained in the sending agency's state,  until
  the  child  is  adopted, reaches majority, becomes self-supporting or is
  discharged with the concurrence of  the  appropriate  authority  in  the
  receiving  state.  Such  jurisdiction  shall  also  include the power to
  effect or cause the return of the  child  or  its  transfer  to  another
  location  and custody pursuant to law. The sending agency shall continue
  to have financial responsibility for  support  and  maintenance  of  the
  child during the period of the placement. Nothing contained herein shall
  defeat  a  claim of jurisdiction by a receiving state sufficient to deal
  with an act of delinquency or crime committed therein.
    (b) When the sending agency is a public agency, it may enter  into  an
  agreement  with  an authorized public or private agency in the receiving
  state providing for the performance of one or more services  in  respect
  of such case by the latter as agent for the sending agency.
    (c)  Nothing  in  this compact shall be construed to prevent a private
  charitable agency authorized to place children in  the  receiving  state
  from  performing services or acting as agent in that state for a private
  charitable agency of the sending state; nor to prevent the agency in the
  receiving  state  from  discharging  financial  responsibility  for  the
  support  and maintenance of a child who has been placed on behalf of the
  sending  agency  without  relieving  the  responsibility  set  forth  in
  paragraph (a) hereof.
             ARTICLE VI. INSTITUTIONAL CARE OF DELINQUENT CHILDREN

    A  child  adjudicated  delinquent  may  be placed in an institution in
  another party  jurisdiction  pursuant  to  this  compact,  but  no  such
  placement  shall  be  made  unless the child is given a court hearing on
  notice to the parent or guardian with opportunity to be heard, prior  to
  his  being  sent to such other party jurisdiction for institutional care
  and the court finds that:
    1. Equivalent facilities for  the  child  are  not  available  in  the
  sending agency's jurisdiction; and
    2.  Institutional  care  in  the  other  jurisdiction  is  in the best
  interest of the child and will not produce undue hardship.
                      ARTICLE VII. COMPACT ADMINISTRATOR
    The executive head of each jurisdiction party to  this  compact  shall
  designate  an  officer  who  shall  be general coordinator of activities
  under this compact in his jurisdiction and who, acting jointly with like
  officers of other party jurisdictions, shall have  power  to  promulgate
  rules  and  regulations  to  carry  out  more  effectively the terms and
  provisions of this compact.
                           ARTICLE VIII. LIMITATIONS
    This compact shall not apply to:
    (a) The sending or bringing of a child into a receiving state  by  his
  parent,  step-parent,  grandparent, adult brother or sister, adult uncle
  or aunt, or his guardian and leaving the child with any such relative or
  non-agency guardian in the receiving state.
    (b) Any placement, sending or bringing of a  child  into  a  receiving
  state  pursuant  to any other interstate compact to which both the state
  from which the child is sent or brought  and  the  receiving  state  are
  party, or to any other agreement between said states which has the force
  of law.
                     ARTICLE IX. ENACTMENT AND WITHDRAWAL
    This  compact  shall  be  open  to  joinder by any state, territory or
  possession  of  the  United  States,  the  district  of  Columbia,   the
  commonwealth  of  Puerto  Rico,  and,  with the consent of congress, the
  government of Canada or any province thereof. It shall become  effective
  with respect to any such jurisdiction when such jurisdiction has enacted
  the  same  into  law.  Withdrawal  from  this  compact  shall  be by the
  enactment of a statute repealing the same, but  shall  not  take  effect
  until  two  years  after  the  effective  date of such statute and until
  written notice of the withdrawal has been given by the withdrawing state
  to the governor of each other party jurisdiction. Withdrawal of a  party
  state  shall  not  affect  the rights, duties and obligations under this
  compact of any sending agency therein with respect to a  placement  made
  prior to the effective date of withdrawal.
                   ARTICLE X. CONSTRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY
    The  provisions  of  this  compact  shall  be  liberally  construed to
  effectuate the purposes thereof. The provisions of this compact shall be
  severable and if any phrase,  clause,  sentence  or  provision  of  this
  compact  is  declared  to  be  contrary to the constitution of any party
  state or of the United  States  or  the  applicability  thereof  to  any
  government, agency, person or circumstance is held invalid, the validity
  of  the  remainder  of this compact and the applicability thereof to any
  other government, agency, person or circumstance shall not  be  affected
  thereby.   If this compact shall be held contrary to the constitution of
  any state party thereto, the compact shall  remain  in  full  force  and
  effect as to the remaining states and in full force and effect as to the
  state affected as to all severable matters.
    2. Any requirement of this state for a license, permit, or the posting
  of  a  bond  to entitle an agency to place children shall not apply to a

  public sending agency (within the meaning of the interstate  compact  on
  the placement of children) of or in another state party to said compact.
    3.  Financial  responsibility  for  any  child  placed pursuant to the
  provisions of the interstate compact for the placement of children shall
  be determined in accordance with the provisions of article five  thereof
  in  the  first  instance.  However,  in the event of partial or complete
  default of performance  thereunder,  the  provisions  of  section  three
  hundred  eighty-two  of this chapter with respect to such responsibility
  also may be invoked.
    4. The "appropriate public authorities" as used in  article  three  of
  the  interstate  compact  on  the  placement  of  children  shall,  with
  reference to New York, mean the department of  social  services,  except
  that,   with   respect   to   the  placement  of  children  "adjudicated
  delinquent", as that phrase is used in article six thereof, who  are  to
  be  placed  in  a  facility  operated  or supervised by the division for
  youth, shall mean the  division  for  youth,  and  said  department  and
  division  shall  receive  and  act with reference to notices required by
  said article three.
    5. As used in paragraph (a) of article five of the interstate  compact
  on  the  placement  of children the phrase "appropriate authority in the
  receiving state" with  reference  to  New  York  state  shall  mean  the
  commissioner of social services of the social services district in which
  the child may be at the time of discharge, and, with respect to children
  "adjudicated delinquent", as that phrase is used in article six thereof,
  who  are  to be discharged from a facility operated or supervised by the
  division for youth, shall mean the division for youth.
    6. The officers and agencies of this state and its subdivisions having
  authority  to  place  children  are  hereby  empowered  to  enter   into
  agreements  with  appropriate  officers or agencies of or in other party
  states pursuant to paragraph (b)  of  article  five  of  the  interstate
  compact  on the placement of children. Any such agreement which contains
  a financial commitment or imposes a financial obligation on  this  state
  or  subdivision or agency thereof shall not be binding unless it has the
  approval in writing of the comptroller in the case of the state  and  of
  the  chief  local  fiscal  officer  in  the case of a subdivision of the
  state.
    7. Any requirements  for  visitation,  inspection  or  supervision  of
  children,  homes,  institutions or other agencies in another party state
  which may apply under sections three hundred eighty-two,  three  hundred
  eighty-six or three hundred ninety-eight of this chapter shall be deemed
  to  be  met  if  performed  pursuant  to  an  agreement  entered into by
  appropriate officers or agencies of this state or a subdivision  thereof
  as  contemplated  by  paragraph  (b)  of  article five of the interstate
  compact on the placement of children.
    8. Neither the prohibition of, nor the limitations  on  out  of  state
  placement  of  children contained in sections three hundred seventy-four
  and three hundred ninety-eight of this chapter shall apply to placements
  made pursuant to the interstate compact on the placement of children.
    9. Any court having jurisdiction  to  place  delinquent  children  may
  place  such a child in an institution of or in another state pursuant to
  article six of the interstate compact on the placement of  children  and
  shall retain jurisdiction as provided in article five thereof.
    10.  As  used  in  article  seven  of  the  interstate  compact on the
  placement of children, the term "executive head" means the governor. The
  governor is hereby authorized to  appoint  a  compact  administrator  in
  accordance with the terms of said article seven.
    11.  (a)  In  addition  to  the  conditions for placement set forth in
  subdivision one of this section, the sending agency shall, in  the  case

  of a placement preliminary to a possible adoption, submit to the compact
  administrator  a  full  statement  setting forth all fees, including the
  categories of such fees, paid and to be paid by the adoptive  parent  to
  any agency or person in exchange for the adoptive placement.
    (b)  The  compact administrator shall not approve a proposed placement
  where such placement violates subdivision six of section  three  hundred
  seventy-four of this chapter.
    12. Placement of a child in this state in violation of subdivision one
  of  this section by an out of state sending agency shall, in addition to
  any other  remedy  or  sanction  imposed  by  law,  subject  the  agency
  violating  such  provision to a civil action for money damages including
  fees, compensation and other remuneration paid by any person on  account
  of  or  incident  to  the  placement  of  a  child  in violation of such
  provision.
    Placement of a child by an out of state sending agency in violation of
  such provision shall subject such agency to  the  exercise  of  personal
  jurisdiction over such agency by a court pursuant to subparagraph (i) of
  paragraph  three  of subdivision (a) of section three hundred two of the
  civil practice law and rules.