(h) Commencing with the 2003-2004 school year, pupil attendance records shall be reviewed by the principal of every public school building and the administrator in charge of every nonpublic school as well as the individual designated in each school building in accordance with subdivision (i) (2) (ix) of this section for the purpose of initiating appropriate action to address unexcused pupil absence, tardiness and early departure consistent with the comprehensive attendance policy described in subdivision (i) of this section. (i) Comprehensive Attendance Policy. (1) Requirement. On or before June 30, 2002, each public school district, board of cooperative educational services (BOCES), charter school, county vocational education and extension board and nonpublic elementary, middle and secondary school shall adopt a comprehensive attendance policy that contains the elements described in paragraph (2) of this subdivision. The purpose of the policy shall be to ensure the maintenance of an adequate record verifying the attendance of all children at instruction in accordance with Education Law sections 3205 and 3210 and establish a mechanism by which the patterns of pupil absence can be examined to develop effective intervention strategies to improve school attendance. A public school district, BOCES, charter school or county vocational education and extension board shall adopt its comprehensive attendance policy only after at least one public hearing that provides for the participation of school personnel, parents, students and any other interested party. (2) Content of the policy. The board of education, board of cooperative educational services, charter school board, county vocational education and extension board, and administrator of a nonpublic school shall incorporate the following elements into the comprehensive attendance policy: (i) a statement of the overall objectives to be accomplished; (ii) a description of the specific strategies to be employed to accomplish these objectives; (iii) a determination of which pupil absences, tardiness and early departures will be excused and which will not be excused and an illustrative list of excused and unexcused pupil absences and tardiness; (iv) a description of the coding system used to identify the reason for a pupil's absence, tardiness or early departure recorded in the register of attendance; (v) a description of the school district, BOCES, charter school, county vocational education and extension board or nonpublic school policy regarding pupil attendance and a pupil's ability to receive course credit. Any board of education, board of cooperative educational services, charter school board or county vocational education and extension board that adopts a policy establishing a minimum standard of attendance in order for a pupil to be eligible for course credit shall have the authority to determine that a properly excused pupil absence, for which the pupil has performed any assigned make up work, shall not be counted as an absence for the purpose of determining the pupil's eligibility for course credit under such policy. In the event a board of education, board of cooperative educational services, charter school board or county vocational education and extension board adopts a minimum attendance standard as a component of its policy, such policy shall include a description of the notice to a pupil's parent(s) or person(s) in parental relation as well as the specific intervention strategies to be employed prior to the denial of course credit to the pupil for insufficient attendance; (vi) a description of the incentives to be employed to encourage pupil attendance and any disciplinary sanctions to be used to discourage unexcused pupil absences, tardiness and early departures; (vii) a description of the notice to be provided to the parent(s) of or person(s) in parental relation to pupils who are absent, tardy or depart early without proper excuse; (viii) a description of the process to develop specific intervention strategies to be employed by teachers and other school employees to address identified patterns of unexcused pupil absence, tardiness or early departure; (ix) identification of the person(s) designated in each school building who will be responsible for reviewing pupil attendance records and initiating appropriate action to address unexcused pupil absence, tardiness and early departure consistent with the comprehensive attendance policy.

(a) A school district required to set aside funding pursuant to section 3602(12) (f) of the Education Law for attendance improvement and dropout prevention shall file a plan with the commissioner by July 15th of the current year detailing a program pursuant to improve attendance and student retention which shall indicate how the district will use the funds required to be set aside for such purposes; provided that for the 1993-94 school year such plan shall be submitted no later than September 1, 1993. (b) Such plan shall: (1) provide for the targeting of monies to school buildings with chronic truancy rates equal to or higher than the district median; (2) detail how programs funded under this will be coordinated with the dropout prevention programs of local public and private community agencies and organizations; (3) detail procedures for reviewing the attendance and academic records of all pupils in the district during the two-year period prior to entrance into high school for the purpose of identifying pupils with a high risk of truancy and academic failure, including but not limited to victims of child abuse or neglect, or pupils who are in foster care; (4) detail how services will be provided to such students in conjunction with plans for schoolwide improvement where appropriate; (5) provide for services to pregnant pupils, and parenting pupils and for coordination of such services with those services provided to such pupils by local social services districts; (6) provide for services to pupils who are members of households receiving public assistance, and who reside in hotels, motels, shelters or other temporary living arrangements and for coordination of such services with those services provided by local social services districts; (7) provide for the coordination of services under this Subpart with those provided from the setaside for compensatory education under Subpart 149-1 of this Part and from the educationally related support services apportionment under subdivision 32 of section 3602 of the Education Law, where appropriate; (8) provide for the coordination of services under this section with those required under section 243-a of the Executive Law; (9) provide for parental involvement; and (l0) provide, to the greatest extent practicable, an expansion of services to schools which currently receive no services and contain high concentrations of limited English proficient pupils. (c) Such plan shall specify measurable performance goals and outcomes for the improvement of pupil performance, attendance and student retention and shall provide for an examination of existing district and targeted building practices to determine the effectiveness of such practices. National and state validated programs that have proven successful in increasing attendance, improving at-risk pupil performance and reducing dropout rates and recent research and evaluation studies of New York state attendance improvement dropout prevention programs shall be considered in the planning process. (d) A city school district in a city having a population of more than one million inhabitants shall file a plan pursuant to this section containing only such programs as are selected by the Chancellor with the approval of the commissioner from replicable model attendance improvement/dropout prevention programs which have demonstrated effectiveness.

Framework outlines early warning and intervention systems to address truancy and chronic absenteeism as key practices of effective school systems.

2. Powers and duties.
   • a. Arrest of truants. A supervisor of attendance, attendance teacher or attendance officer, as the case may be, may arrest without warrant any minor who is unlawfully absent from attendance upon instruction. He shall forthwith place the minor so arrested in attendance upon required instruction and shall notify the parent or guardian of the minor, and he may then begin proceedings for his commitment as a school delinquent or arraign him before a court having jurisdiction. Where a minor resides in one school district and attends school in another school district, the supervisor of attendance, attendance teacher or attendance officer of the district where the minor resides and the supervisor of attendance, attendance teacher or attendance officer of the district where said minor attends school shall have concurrent jurisdiction with reference to said minor and to the person or persons in parental relation to him.

1. School delinquent. A minor under seventeen years of age, required by any of the provisions of part one of this article to attend upon instruction, who is an habitual truant from such instruction or is irregular in such attendance or insubordinate or disorderly or disruptive or violent during such attendance, is a school delinquent.