NY Ends Anonymous Child-Abuse Reports — A Win for Dale Margolin Cecka and Survivors’ Rights

In a landmark move reshaping child-welfare policy across the state, Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed into law the bill known as the Anti‑Harassment in Reporting Act, eliminating the longstanding practice of anonymous reports to the statewide hotline. The reform follows intensive advocacy — and academic scholarship — led by Assistant Professor of Law at Albany Law School, Dale Margolin Cecka, director of the Family Violence Litigation Clinic within Albany Law School’s Edward P. Swyer Justice Center. 

The legislation (sponsored as S.550‑A / A.66‑A) now requires anyone making a report of suspected child abuse or neglect to the Statewide Central Register of Child Abuse and Maltreatment (SCR) to provide their name and contact information. 

That information remains confidential — it won’t be publicly disclosed or given to the accused — but anonymous calls will no longer trigger investigations. The law applies to voluntary reporters; mandated reporters (e.g., teachers, doctors, social workers) already had to provide identifying information. 

“It’s really like a dream that something that you write about and spend so much time on, something like  500 footnotes and 25,000 words over the years, that are actually now a real law,” Cecka said. “And the bill is actually a very good bill. This version of the bill really got at all the concerns that may have been around about who might fall through the cracks. “

Cecka worked with the Parent Legislative Action Network (PLAN) to move the bill forward.

“The coalition that helped to pass this is so broad, parents advocates, child advocates, lawyers, a very broad coalition, which really taught me how lawmaking—how you actually have to get things done—which is through a lot of joining of forces,” she said. 

Professor Cecka has long warned of the dangers posed by allowing anonymous reporting. In a 2014 scholarly article, she argued that anonymous hotline tips too often lack accountability making it nearly impossible to prosecute false or malicious reports. The idea stemmed from seeing one of her own clients be subject to abuse by a former partner through anonymous calls to cause torment. 

While at the University of Richmond, she realized this was something to begin scholarly research on. Her research assistant began calling every hotline, documenting the experience, and conducted additional research. From there, she had enough for the law review article, which was the first of its kind.

“There had literally been nothing written about it, and I was very careful to explain that I was not proposing that confidential reporting should be eliminated and all calls have always been confidential, but that hotlines should not be allowed to just take random calls from people who do not give any identifying information because this just opens the door for misuse,” she said. 

In recent years, states like Texas and California have implemented laws that prevent anonymous reporting. Cecka has remained a steady advocate for the practice through public commentary, like a July 2025 op-ed in The Imprint, an interview with Gothamist, and the Albany Times Union. 

Cecka’s advocacy helped drive momentum for the bill. After the 2025 legislative session, she told reporters that many of the people calling the hotline anonymously often use the practice as a way to weaponize the hotline to launch baseless accusations during a bitter custody or domestic violence dispute. And every call that is made needs to be investigated, even the baseless ones, and this tactic not only causes harm, it wastes necessary resources better served for legitimate complaints. 

Cecka notes that on average, six out of 10 domestic violence survivors that are represented by an Albany Law School’s Family Violence Litigation have experienced harm by baseless claims made to the hotline. 

“It’s a 100 percent part of an abuser’s playbook to do this,” Cecka told the Times Union.  “It creates these fishing expeditions, because if you’re anonymous, you’re not giving any context. You’re just making an allegation. It’s literally the easiest thing you can do to torment somebody.”

Critics have warned that some may be less willing to report abuse if they need to identify themselves, especially those who might fear retribution or backlash like neighbors, relatives, or other voluntary reporters. 

“It [has been] just mind-boggling and maddening to see so many people subjected to these invasive home visits and wasted resources, and it's traumatic, and it doesn't really matter if you say, "Well, they don't get any case against them, so it's fine," but it creates a record. It can create problems in a custody case because these reports can be used even if they're unfounded, and it is a complete waste of time,” she said.

But Cecka and other advocates say that the identities given are fiercely protected and nearly impossible to be revealed to anyone outside of those hotline operators and welfare investigators. In the event a caller does want to remain anonymous, hotline operators must direct the call elsewhere such as 911 if there is an immediate danger or another agency. Other states with this law in place have not reported any adverse impact. 

With the law now signed, attention will turn to implementation: ensuring hotline operators explain clearly how confidentiality works, and building trust among residents that legitimate concerns will still be heard.

“This actually has been more than a decade in the making,” she said. “It is amazing and actually still quite unbelievable.”