Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi recently introduced legislation on behalf of the City of New York as part of a package of bills aimed at strengthening the Administration of Children Services’ (ACS) ability to thoroughly investigate reports of abuse and neglect and fulfill their mission to protect the City’s children. After a thorough review of the agency in January of this year, three recommendations were made for immediate action: introduce legislation to allow the agency access to active outstanding arrests as well as past convictions for any person considered a resource for a child, introduce legislation to strengthen ACS’ ability to supervise parents who are caring for a child who is under ACS supervision, and to introduce legislation requiring mandatory final hearings before a family or child graduates out of ACS’ supervision. Hevesi is carrying the proposal to expand ACS access to court databases, allowing all caseworkers, not just those assigned to an active case, the ability to see active arrest and conviction information for any person connected to a child in ACS custody. The Assemblyman is hopeful that the measure will be considered before the end of the 2014 legislative session.

As a reminder, after the recent passage of the FY 2014-2015 New York State Budget, the eligibility cap for the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE), for applicants who are 62 years and older, will be raised from $29,000 to $50,000. The Department of Finance is urging all applicants to wait until the increase has taken effect on July 1, 2014 to apply. For more information contact the Department of Finance’s Correspondence Unit at (212) 669-3155.