2019 New York Laws
EXC - Executive
Article 12-A - Probation Officers and Related Matters
256 - Local Probation Departments.

§ 256. Local  probation  departments. 1. Each county shall maintain or
provide for a probation agency or agencies to perform probation services
therein,  including   intake,   investigation,   pre-sentence   reports,
supervision,  conciliation, social treatment and such other functions as
are assigned to probation agencies pursuant to law.
  2. The board of supervisors or county legislatures  of  a  county  may
establish a county probation department in which there may be merged and
consolidated  the responsibility for carrying out the probation work for
all matters under the jurisdiction of the  family  court,  the  superior
courts  and  the  local  criminal  courts  in and for the county. In any
county where the board of supervisors or county  legislatures  does  not
establish  a  probation  department to perform all probation work in the
county, as hereinabove provided, separate probation departments to carry
out the probation work for matters under the jurisdiction of  particular
courts  may  be  established  and  there  may be merged and consolidated
therein the probation work for matters under the jurisdiction of two  or
more  courts.  Any  probation  department  that  does  not  perform  all
probation work in the county shall be known as the probation  department
for the court or courts it is to serve.
  3.  Two  or more counties may by agreement between the local governing
bodies thereof provide for the establishment, operation and  maintenance
of  a  joint  county  probation  department. Any probation department so
established shall have charge of all probation work in and for  all  the
courts in said counties. If any such county or court therein included in
the  agreement  shall  already  have a probation service, such agreement
shall provide that all officers and  employees  in  such  service  shall
retain their civil service status and be transferred to the joint county
probation service without further examination or qualification, provided
however  that,  subject  to  the  civil  service law, such agreement may
provide for the abolition of existing unnecessary offices  or  positions
and  the transfer of officers and employees to comparable positions. Any
such agreement shall provide for the proportionate cost,  including  but
not limited to salaries and employer's retirement contributions, of such
joint  county  probation  service  to  be  borne  by each county and may
provide that the treasurer of one county participating in such agreement
shall be the custodian of the moneys made available for expenditure  for
the  purposes  of  such  joint  county  probation  service and that such
treasurer may make payments from such  moneys  for  such  purposes  upon
audit  of  the appropriate auditing officer or body of such county. Such
agreement may provide for such other matters as are necessary and proper
to effectuate the purposes of this subdivision.
  4. A probation department established pursuant to this  section  shall
consist  of  a  director  of  probation  and such deputies, supervisors,
probation officers and other employees as may be appointed  pursuant  to
the provisions of this section and the provisions of section two hundred
fifty-seven of this chapter.
  5.  The  director  of  each  probation  department, other than a joint
county department, shall be appointed by the chief executive officer  of
the county. The director of a joint county probation department shall be
appointed  by  agreement  between  the  chief  executive officers of the
counties participating in such agreement or a majority of  them  and  in
the  event  of  a  deadlock  the director of the office of probation and
correctional  alternatives  shall  participate  in  the  making  of  the
decision. Where a county has no chief executive officer, the appointment
of,  or agreement to appoint, the director shall be made by the chairman
of the board of supervisors or county legislatures. The  director  of  a
probation  department  shall  have  the  power  to appoint all deputies,
supervisors, probation officers and other employees in  such  department

within   appropriations   made   available  therefor  by  the  board  of
supervisors or county legislatures. The board of supervisors  or  county
legislatures  shall  fix the salaries of all personnel in the department
and  make  the  necessary  appropriations  therefor  as  well as for the
expenses  actually  and  necessarily  incurred  by  such  officers   and
employees  in  the  performance  of their duties. In the case of a joint
county department the salaries of personnel and  the  amounts  of  other
expenditures  to be made available for operation of the department shall
be set forth in the agreement between the counties, and  the  boards  of
supervisors   or  county  legislatures  shall  make  the  appropriations
required for the respective proportionate costs thereof.
  6.  (a)  Each  probation  agency  or  department  and  state  operated
probation  services shall provide for intake, investigation, supervision
and conciliation services relating to custody, visitation and  paternity
proceedings  and  may  provide  for such services in support proceedings
under the provisions of articles four,  five,  five-A  and  six  of  the
family court act. For purposes of this subdivision, intake services: (i)
relating  to  support  proceedings  under  article  four and relating to
paternity proceedings under articles five and five-A of the family court
act, shall include referral to the office of  temporary  and  disability
assistance's  child  support enforcement unit in cases where a person is
applying for or receiving public assistance or where a person chooses to
utilize the services of such unit; (ii) relating to support  proceedings
under  article  four  of  the  family  court act, shall include services
rendered to the payors of support orders seeking to modify such orders.
  (b) Each probation agency or department is authorized to enter into  a
contract  with  the  appropriate  local social services district for the
performance  of  the  functions  of  the  support  collection  unit,  in
accordance  with  the  provisions of section one hundred eleven-h of the
social services law.
  7. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any  county  that
is  located wholly within a city; provided, however, that the provisions
of subdivision six of this section shall apply in  like  manner  to  any
county that is located wholly within a city.