BILL NUMBER: S4260
SPONSOR: BRISPORT
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the family court act and the social services law, in
relation to allowing unaccompanied children in federal placements to
self-petition the family court for orders of dependency
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
This bill amends the Family Court Act by adding a new article, Article
10-D. This new article allows for any child in a federal placement, or
an adult acting on the child's behalf, to initiate a proceeding to seek
a determination of dependency, and allows the Family Court to maintain
jurisdiction for the purpose of hearing a Motion for Special Findings,
and to retain jurisdiction until a petition to the U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status has been
granted.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York guarantees all children the right to education, healthcare,
shelter and essential services to support them in reaching their full
potential. Yet many of the most vulnerable children in the state - unac-
companied immigrant children who are in placements contracted by the
federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) - are unable to access the
services they need, due to a gap in the New York Family Court Act. Immi-
grant children and youth who are in the United States without a parent
or guardian to care for them may be placed in New York State foster care
placements, may reside with an adult who assumes responsibility for
them, or may remain in ORR placements. Those who are in foster care or
placed under the guardianship of another adult may qualify for Special
Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), which provides them with a pathway to
stability and access to services, support, work authorization, higher
education opportunities, protection from forcible removal from the
United States, as well as a legal pathway for citizenship. Because chil-
dren who are placed with ORR are not under the jurisdiction of the Fami-
ly Court, they are not eligible to apply for SIJS, even if they can
satisfy all of the other eligibility requirements.
This bill will extend New York Family Court jurisdiction in a narrow way
by adding new sections to New York law, to align state and federal legal
protections for unaccompanied children. This will allow for certain
unaccompanied children in federal placements to be eligible to apply for
SIJS. Passage of this bill will bring New York in step with several
states which allow unaccompanied immigrant children in ORR placements to
self-petition juvenile courts for findings of dependency, including
Arizona, California, Colorado, Texas and Virginia.
Immigrant children and youth are a vibrant and vital part of New York's
cultural fabric. The Access to Family Court Act would ensure that unac-
companied children placed in New York federal placements and shelters
without parents or legal guardians can have timely access to work
authorization, access to higher education, and a legal pathway to citi-
zenship.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amendments to
subdivision (a) of section 249 of the Family Court Act made by section
three of this act shall be subject to the expiration and reversion of
such subdivision pursuant to section 8 of chapter 29 of the laws of
2011, as amended, when upon such date the provisions of section four of
this act shall take effect.

Statutes affected:
S4260: 371 social services law, 371(7) social services law