ACS would have to finally cough up critical records for state probers under newly passed bill

The city’s embattled child-welfare agency would have to cough up critical records to state probers so they could finally properly probe tragic cases involving kids, according to a newly passed Albany bill.The tentative legislation, which Gov.Kathy Hochul has until the end of the year to approve or veto, would clear “significant” roadblocks to justice by allowing the state Department of Investigation access to previously withheld records from the Administration from Children’s Services.“The state law has really prevented us from fully being able to provide the oversight that DOI provides to every other city agency,” DOI Commissioner Nadia Shihata told The Post in an interviewThe watchdog department said state laws, as well as “burdensome” delays from the state own Office of Children’s and Family Services, prevented it from conducting investigations into 17 of 18 child fatalities last year in which there was previous ACS involvement, according to a blistering report published last month.ACS records are allowed to be withheld from investigators if they resulted in what the agency deemed “unfounded” at the time, a situation that the bill would change.If DOI also wants to investigate potential sexual misconduct cases involving ACS caseworkers, it currently needs permission from OCFS to access those records.“As of now, we often don’t get that information,” Shihata said.Under the law, DOI would retain the same investigatory powers it has over other city agencies similar to that of district attorney offices.One of the bill’s sponsors, state Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi (D-Queens), said he hasn’t heard anyone make a case as to why DOI should be prevented from reviewing how ACS workers handle a case or potential case, especially involving heartbreaking tragedies such as the death of a child.“It’s actively preventing safety measures from being actively implemented,” Hevesi said of the current law.

“I don’t think anybody can really argue ...