(1) Contractor means any person who is employed by an individual, corporation, partnership or association which provides goods or services to the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children, and who has the potential for regular and substantial contact with the children who are served by the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children.

(2) Facility, as set forth in paragraph (8) of this subdivision, provides shelter to families with children receiving temporary housing assistance and receiving services from the operator or provider, or a social services district in instances where the social services district directly operates the facility, or a contractor on behalf of the operator or provider or such social services district, which provides any of the following: meals, supervision, assessment services, permanent housing preparation services, recreational services, information and referral services, health services, or child-care services.

(3) Justice Center means the Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs.

(4) Office means the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance.

(5) Prospective consultant means any person who has applied to be a consultant for the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children, including but not limited to in the capacity of providing consultation and/or advice, who will have the potential for regular and substantial contact with children who are served by the publicly-funded emergency shelters for families with children.

(6) Prospective employee means any person who has applied to be employed by the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children who will have the potential for regular and substantial contact with children who are served by the publicly-funded emergency shelters for families with children.

(7) Prospective volunteer means a person who has applied to participate in activities with or for the benefit of persons receiving services from a publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children, under the supervision of staff or management of such provider, for which he or she receives no salary or remuneration, who will have the potential for regular and substantial contact with children who are served by the publicly-funded emergency shelters for families with children.

(8) Publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children means any facility, as defined in this Subpart, with overnight sleeping accommodations and that is used to house recipients of temporary housing assistance and which houses or may house children and families with children, except residential programs for victims of domestic violence licensed by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services.

(1) All references to regular and substantial contact with a service recipient for purposes of applying section 495 of the Social Services Law to publicly-funded emergency shelters for families with children shall mean the “potential for regular and substantial contact with children who are served by a publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children.”

(2) Prior to making any inquiries pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subdivision, the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children must notify, using a prescribed form, the person who will be the subject of the inquiries, that:

(3) Temporary approval pending SCR determination.

(4) If an applicant, staff person or other person about whom the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children has made an inquiry, pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subdivision, is found to be the subject of an indicated report of child abuse or maltreatment or a substantiated report of abuse or neglect, such publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children must determine, on the basis of information it has available and in accordance with guidelines referenced in Social Services Law 424-a and those developed and disseminated by the office, whether to hire or retain the person as an employee, volunteer or consultant or to permit the person providing goods or services, to have access to children being served by the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children.

(5) Whenever such person is hired, retained, used or given access to children, such publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children must maintain a written record, as part of the application file or employment or other personnel record of such person, of the specific reason(s) why such person was determined to be appropriate and acceptable as an employee, volunteer, consultant or provider of goods or services with access to children being served by the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children.

(1) In accordance with the provisions of sections 413 and 415 of the Social Services Law, employees of publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children must report or cause a report to be made whenever they have a reasonable cause to suspect a child being served by the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children is being abused or maltreated by a parent or other person legally responsible for the child. The report must be made immediately to the SCR. The mandated reporting responsibility applies whenever such employees have reasonable cause to suspect that a child coming before them in their professional or official capacity is an abused or maltreated child, or when they have reasonable cause to suspect that a child is an abused or maltreated child where the parent, guardian, custodian or other person legally responsible for such child comes before them in their professional or official capacity and states from personal knowledge facts, conditions or circumstances which, if correct, would render the child an abused or maltreated child. The provider, director, other person in charge, or a designated agent of the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children shall provide all current and new employees with information on how to recognize the signs of child abuse and maltreatment.

(2) A report regarding any suspected incidents of child abuse or maltreatment concerning a child being served by the publicly-funded emergency shelter for families with children must be done in the following manner: