Prevent Child Abuse New York's 2004 Legislative Advocacy Day

Child abuse prevention service providers, advocates, and parents from across New York State participated in Prevent Child Abuse New York's legislative advocacy day on February 10 at the Capitol in Albany. Advocates urged Assembly Members and Senators to support a series of legislative proposals that would increase New York's capacity to prevent abuse and enhance child protection. Click here to view photos from the 2004 advocacy day.

Senator Mary Lou Rath, chair of the Children and Families Committee, spoke to advocates early in the morning and congratulated Prevent Child Abuse New York for almost 25 years of helping New York's children and families. Senator Rath emphasized the importance of educating families and recognizing that violence in the home affects the entire family. She outlined several domestic violence prevention measures she has initiated as chair of the Senate Children and Families Committee. To award Senator Rath's commitment to the health and happiness of children, Ann Marie Correa, program manager from the Buffalo Home Visiting Program, presented the senator with a gift-box from her hometown which included a handmade card with a picture of a family in the program. We thank Senator Rath for kicking off our advocacy day, and we commend her continued work to protect children from maltreatment and improve the lives of families who have experienced domestic violence.

After listening to Senator Rath, advocates prepared for their meetings with legislators. In this difficult budget year, advocates asked legislators to recognize child abuse prevention as a priority that saves both lives and money. The two budgetary items on the legislative agenda include increased funding for the New York State Children and Family Trust Fund and the Healthy Families New York Home Visiting Program.

Prevent Child Abuse New York recommends $1.3 million for the NYS Children and Family Trust Fund and the establishment of a dedicated source of funding––fees collected from marriage or birth certificates for example––that would exist in addition to annual appropriations. The New York State Legislature established the Trust Fund in 1984 as a funding mechanism for programs that prevent child abuse, domestic violence, and elder abuse. Since its inception, the Trust Fund has incubated almost 200 innovative programs to prevent family violence, including parent education and support, school-based programs, community collaborations on elder abuse, family resource centers, and crisis care-respite services.

In recent years, an unfortunate record of declining support from the Legislature has weakened the Trust Fund's ability to carry out its mission. State allocation has dwindled from $4.5 million in the late 1980s to $647,000 from Assembly member items funds in 2003. We thank the Assembly for continuing to look after the Trust Fund, but we are concerned that the source of funding has been consigned to member items and is not an integral part of the budget, as it was in previous years.

An appropriation of $1.3 million is a critical step in restoring Trust Fund dollars and renewing New York's commitment to family violence prevention. In addition, a dedicated funding stream would stabilize the Trust Fund, making it less vulnerable to the fiscal pressures that result in budget cuts. Without a secure and well funded Children and Family Trust Fund, New York State will be unable to develop new programs that respond to the needs of its most vulnerable citizens.

Advocates also asked for $25 million for Healthy Families New York, a voluntary home visiting program for expectant and new parents. Twenty-eight Healthy Families sites across New York State served 5,088 families in 2003. The program prevents child abuse and neglect by helping parents learn to improve health and developmental outcomes for their children, develop positive relationships with their babies, and achieve economic self-sufficiency. For more information about Healthy Families Home Visiting, see page

Despite the well documented successes of Healthy Families, the governor's proposed budget allocates only $16 million to the program. With Healthy Families' current level of state funding at $17.6 million, a budget cut would reduce services to hundreds of children and families. $25 million would enable Healthy Families to expand services at existing sites and establish as many as ten new sites in high-need communities.

Prevent Child Abuse New York and its fellow advocates also urged the passage of legislation that would require all New York hospitals and birthing centers to ask new parents to view a video about the dangers of Shaken Baby Syndrome and to sign a form attesting that they have either watched the video or refused to watch it. We commend the Legislature's previous passage of a law that requires hospitals to provide new parents with print materials about the causes and consequences of Shaken Baby Syndrome. However, this amendment would make the law even more effective.

The Upstate New York Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention Education Program serves as a model for this recommendation and is yet another example of how preventing abuse before it occurs saves lives and money. The violent shaking of infants leads to death in almost a quarter of cases and irreparable neurological damage in over half of the survivors. The initial hospital costs for one victim of Shaken Baby Syndrome can average $30,000 to $70,000; medical costs for one case can exceed $1 million. Through parent education, the Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention Education Program has reduced incidents of shaken baby syndrome in an eight-county region of Western New York by 50 percent. A similar program operating state wide would decrease the prevalence of Shaken Baby Syndrome throughout New York, while saving millions of dollars in medical expenses.

The other non-budgetary item on the agenda called for the passage of a law that would allow at least seven local districts to pilot a "dual track" approach (also called a differential or alternative response) to reports of child abuse and neglect made to Child Protective Services (CPS). A dual track system allows CPS investigators the flexibility to respond to less serious cases of neglect with an immediate assessment of family needs and the subsequent provision of community services and support. Cases of child abuse and severe neglect would proceed along the traditional investigative track.

The current approach to CPS reports can be negative and narrowly focused on investigation, at the cost of providing needed services. Differential response to families' problems should enable them to more readily use services and improve the parenting of their children. In fact, evaluations of dual track systems in other states––about 20 states are testing or fully implementing this approach--––indicate that children are not only safer, but that they are safer sooner, and that families are more willing to seek and accept help.

Both the Senate and the Assembly passed dual track legislation last year. Governor Pataki vetoed the bill based on a number of technicalities. Discussions are now underway to resolve the problems with the legislation in an effort to get it passed this year.

Prevent Child Abuse New York offers a hearty thank you to everyone who participated in our advocacy day, and to the legislators and staff members who took the time to listen to our concerns.

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