428.10 General social services district requirements.
(a) Records and reports.
(1) All social services districts must submit
to OCFS the records required in this Part in the form, manner and at such times as
required by OCFS.
(2) All records must be maintained in a manner
consistent with the confidential nature of such records in accordance with sections 136,
372(4) and 422(4) of the Social Services Law and Part 357 and section 423.7 of this Title.
(3) Records, whether maintained by a district
or provider agency pursuant to a purchase of service agreement, must be available at all
reasonable times for inspection by representatives of OCFS, and photostatic copies of such
records must be forwarded to OCFS upon request.
(4) Uniform case records maintained in the
CONNECTIONS system are available to OCFS and may be accessed by authorized OCFS personnel
without prior notice to the district or provider agency.
(5) Such records, whether maintained by a
social services district or provider agency must be retained in accordance with the
following standards:
(i) records of a foster
child must be retained for 30 years following the discharge of the child from foster care;
(ii) records of a child
and family receiving preventive services must be retained for six years after the 18th
birthday of the youngest child in the family. Such records must be expunged six years
after the 18th birthday of such child. The provisions of this subparagraph apply where the
sole service provided is preventive services. Where preventive services is provided in
conjunction with or in addition to foster care, adoption or child protective services, the
applicable standards for record retention in relation to foster care, adoption or child
protective services as set forth in this section apply;
(iii) records of a
child and family receiving child protective services must be maintained in accordance with
the standards set forth in sections 422(5) and 422(8) of the Social Services Law and
section 432.9(f)of this Title; and
(iv) records of an
adopted child must be permanently retained.
(b) Purchase of service agreements.
(1) Local social services districts may require
agencies with whom they have entered into a purchase of service agreement for family and
children's services, to maintain all or a portion of the forms required to be maintained
in accordance with this Part. Nothing contained in a purchase of service agreement limits
the right of the local social services district and OCFS to receive copies of all
information and records required to be kept pursuant to this Part and the local social
services district's responsibility to monitor the recordkeeping of the purchase of service
agency.
(2) A purchase of service agreement that
requires an agency to maintain all or part of the uniform case record must set forth the
respective responsibilities of the district and agency to maintain such uniform case
record, including the forms and additional information and/or documents identified in
paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 428.3(b) of this Part. Where the purchase of service
agreement has delegated case planning responsibility to the purchase of service agency,
the agency must comply with the provisions of this Part to the same extent as a local
social services district, except as set may be forth in the purchase of service agreement.
(3) Nothing contained in a purchase of service
agreement entered into pursuant to this subdivision relieves the local social services
district of its responsibilities under this Part to provide a uniform case record for all
children as is required by this Part.
(4) Purchase of service agreements between
local social services districts and public agencies to provide preventive services in
non-foster care and non-child protective services cases may allow a waiver of the use of
the uniform case recording forms, so long as the substitution is agreed by the contracting
parties and the substitution is approved by an authorized representative of OCFS, in
writing, prior to its use. Purchase of service agreements between local social services
districts and private voluntary agencies to provide preventive services in non-foster care
and non-child protective services cases may allow a waiver of the use of the uniform case
recording forms so long as the agency uses a model program with prescribed case recording
requirements and the substitution is agreed by the contracting parties and is approved by
an authorized representative of OCFS, in writing, prior to its use.
(i) Substituted forms
must contain but not be limited to essential data related to family history and
identification of the child(ren) and family members; an assessment of child and family
circumstances and functioning; a family service plan; descriptions of care, maintenance,
or services provided to the child(ren) and family and the dates of service provision; and
any court related activity.
(ii) Family assessments
and service plans must occur at 30 days, 90 days and six months from the case initiation
date, and every six months thereafter.
(5) Directly provided or purchased community
optional preventive services, as defined in subdivision (k) of section 428.2 of this Part,
may be exempt from the uniform case record requirements if a waiver is requested by the
local social services district and approved, in writing, by an authorized representative
of OCFS.