First Substitute H.B. 215

Representative Stephen G. Handy proposes the following substitute bill:

1 PUBLIC SCHOOL EMPLOYEE BACKGROUND CHECKS
2 2014 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Chief Sponsor: Stephen G. Handy
5 Senate Sponsor: Jerry W. Stevenson
6
7 LONG TITLE
8 General Description:
9 This bill amends provisions related to public school employee background checks.
10 Highlighted Provisions:
11 This bill:
12 . requires the Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division of the
13 Department of Public Safety to provide notification to certain entities when a new
14 entry is made against an employee or volunteer whose fingerprints are held on file
15 regarding any matters involving an alleged offense against property;
16 . removes the time limit related to criminal offenses of the same type that the State
17 Board of Education may consider when making licensing decisions; and
18 . makes technical changes.
19 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
20 None
21 Other Special Clauses:
22 None
23 Utah Code Sections Affected:
24 AMENDS:
25 53A-3-410 , as last amended by Laws of Utah 2010, Chapter 362

26 53A-6-401 , as last amended by Laws of Utah 2010, Chapter 362
27
28 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
29 Section 1. Section 53A-3-410 is amended to read:
30 53A-3-410. Criminal background checks on school personnel -- Notice -- Payment
31 of costs -- Request for review.
32 (1) As used in this section:
33 (a) "Administrator" means an administrator at a school district, charter school, or
34 private school that requests the Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division of the
35 Department of Public Safety to conduct a criminal background check on an applicant or
36 employee.
37 (b) "Applicant" means a person under consideration for:
38 (i) an offer of employment at a school district, charter school, or private school; or
39 (ii) appointment as a volunteer for a school district, charter school, or private school
40 who will be given significant unsupervised access to a student in connection with the
41 volunteer's assignment.
42 (c) "Contract employee" means an employee of a staffing service who works at a
43 public or private school under a contract between the staffing service and a school district,
44 charter school, or private school.
45 (d) "Division" means the Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division of
46 the Department of Public Safety established in Section 53-10-103 .
47 (2) A school district superintendent, the superintendent's designee, or the chief
48 administrative officer of a charter school:
49 (a) shall require an applicant to submit to a criminal background check as a condition
50 for employment or appointment;
51 (b) shall require an employee to periodically submit to a criminal background check in
52 accordance with rules of the State Board of Education or policies of the local school board or
53 charter school governing board; and
54 (c) where reasonable cause exists, may require an existing employee or volunteer to
55 submit to a criminal background check.
56 (3) The chief administrative officer of a private school may require, and the chief

57 administrative officer of a private school that enrolls scholarship students under Chapter 1a,
58 Part 7, Carson Smith Scholarships for Students with Special Needs Act, shall require:
59 (a) an applicant to submit to a criminal background check as a condition for
60 employment or appointment; and
61 (b) where reasonable cause exists, an existing employee or volunteer to submit to a
62 criminal background check.
63 (4) [An] A school district, charter school, or private school shall notify an applicant,
64 volunteer, or employee [shall receive written notice], in writing, that a criminal background
65 check has been requested.
66 (5) (a) (i) Fingerprints of the applicant, volunteer, or employee shall be taken, and the
67 [Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division of the Department of Public Safety,
68 established in Section 53-10-103 ,] division shall release the applicant's, volunteer's, or
69 employee's full criminal history record to the administrator requesting the information.
70 (ii) The division shall maintain a separate file of fingerprints submitted under
71 Subsection (5)(a)(i) and notify the administrator when a new entry is made against an employee
72 or volunteer whose fingerprints are held in the file regarding:
73 (A) any matters involving an alleged sexual offense;
74 (B) any matters involving an alleged drug-related offense;
75 (C) any matters involving an alleged alcohol-related offense; [or]
76 (D) any matters involving an alleged offense against the person under Title 76, Chapter
77 5, Offenses Against the Person[.]; or
78 (E) any matters involving an alleged offense against property under Title 76, Chapter 6,
79 Offenses Against Property.
80 (iii) The [cost of maintaining the separate file shall be paid by the] school district,
81 charter school, or private school [from fees charged to those submitting fingerprints] shall pay
82 the cost of maintaining the separate file.
83 (b) Information received by the division from entities other than agencies or political
84 subdivisions of the state may not be released to a private school unless the release is
85 permissible under applicable laws or regulations of the entity providing the information.
86 (6) The superintendent, local school board, or their counterparts at a charter school or
87 private school shall consider only those convictions, pleas in abeyance, or arrests which are

88 job-related for the employee, applicant, or volunteer.
89 (7) (a) A school district, charter school, or private school may require an applicant to
90 pay the costs of a background check as a condition for consideration for employment or
91 appointment, if the applicant:
92 (i) has passed an initial review; and
93 (ii) is one of a pool of no more than five candidates for a position.
94 (b) A school district or charter school may require an employee to pay the cost of a
95 periodic criminal background check required pursuant to rules of the State Board of Education
96 or policies of the local school board or charter school governing board.
97 (8) The [Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division] division shall, upon
98 request, seek additional information from regional or national criminal data files in responding
99 to inquiries under this section.
100 (9) (a) An applicant, volunteer, or employee shall have an opportunity to respond to
101 any information received as a result of a criminal background check.
102 (b) [A public agency] The division, a school district, charter school, or private school
103 shall resolve any request for review by an applicant, volunteer, or employee through
104 administrative procedures established by the [agency] division, a school district, charter school,
105 or private school.
106 (10) (a) If [a person] an individual is denied employment or is dismissed from
107 employment because of information obtained through a criminal background check, the
108 [person] individual shall receive written notice of the reasons for denial or dismissal and have
109 an opportunity to respond to the reasons.
110 (b) A school district or charter school shall resolve any request for a review of a denial
111 of, or dismissal from, employment through administrative procedures established by the school
112 district or charter school.
113 (11) Information obtained under this part is confidential and may only be disclosed as
114 provided in this section.
115 (12) (a) A school district, charter school, or private school that enrolls scholarship
116 students under Chapter 1a, Part 7, Carson Smith Scholarships for Students with Special Needs
117 Act, may contract with a staffing service to provide a contract employee if:
118 (i) the school district, charter school, or private school requests the [Criminal

119 Investigations and Technical Services Division of the Department of Public Safety] division to
120 conduct a criminal background check on the contract employee that is placed at the school
121 district, charter school, or private school;
122 (ii) fingerprints of the contract employee are submitted to the division;
123 (iii) the division releases the contract employee's full criminal history record to the
124 school district, charter school, or private school requesting the criminal background check; and
125 (iv) the school district, charter school, or private school requesting the criminal
126 background check determines whether the contract employee is suitable for employment based
127 on the standard established in Subsection (6).
128 (b) The division shall maintain a separate file of fingerprints submitted under
129 Subsection (12)(a) and notify the administrator when a new entry is made against a contract
130 employee whose fingerprints are held in the file regarding a matter listed in Subsection
131 (5)(a)(ii).
132 (c) A school district, charter school, or private school may require a contract employee
133 to pay the costs of a criminal background check, including the costs of the division to maintain
134 the file required under Subsection (12)(b).
135 (d) (i) A contract employee who applies for a license issued by the State Board of
136 Education shall submit to a criminal background check as provided in Section 53A-6-401 .
137 (ii) A contract employee who works at a public school and does not hold a license
138 issued by the State Board of Education shall submit to a criminal background check every six
139 years, or within a shorter period, if required by rules of the State Board of Education or policies
140 of a local school board or charter school governing board.
141 Section 2. Section 53A-6-401 is amended to read:
142 53A-6-401. Background checks.
143 (1) (a) A license applicant shall submit to a background check as a condition for
144 licensing.
145 (b) As used in this section, licensing includes reinstatement of a lapsed, suspended, or
146 revoked license.
147 (2) Where reasonable cause exists, the State Board of Education may require an
148 educator to submit to a criminal background check.
149 (3) (a) The office shall establish a procedure for obtaining and evaluating relevant

150 information concerning license applicants, including fingerprinting the applicant and
151 submitting the prints to the Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division of the
152 Department of Public Safety for checking against applicable state, regional, and national
153 criminal records files.
154 (b) The Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division shall release to the
155 office all information received in response to the office's request.
156 (c) The Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division shall maintain a
157 separate file of fingerprints submitted under Subsection (3)(a) and notify the office when a new
158 entry is made against a person whose fingerprints are held in the file regarding any matters
159 involving an alleged:
160 (i) sexual offense;
161 (ii) drug-related offense;
162 (iii) alcohol-related offense; [or]
163 (iv) offense against the person under Title 76, Chapter 5, Offenses Against the
164 Person[.]; or
165 (v) offense against property under Title 76, Chapter 6, Offenses Against Property.
166 (d) The cost of maintaining the separate file shall be paid by the office from fees
167 charged to those submitting fingerprints.
168 (4) [An] A license applicant or educator shall have an opportunity to respond to any
169 information received by the office as a result of the background check.
170 (5) In preparing recommendations concerning licensing for submission to the board,
171 the office shall consider only the following matters obtained through fingerprint checks to the
172 extent that they are relevant to the license sought by the license applicant or held by the
173 educator:
174 (a) convictions, including pleas in abeyance;
175 (b) any matters involving an alleged sexual offense;
176 (c) any matters involving an alleged felony or class A misdemeanor drug offense;
177 (d) any matters involving an alleged offense against the person under Title 76, Chapter
178 5, Offenses Against the Person;
179 (e) any matters involving a felony;
180 (f) any matters involving a class A misdemeanor property offense alleged to have

181 occurred within the previous three years; and
182 (g) any matters involving any other type of criminal offense, if more than one
183 occurrence of the same type of offense is alleged to have taken place [within the previous eight
184 years].
185 (6) If a recommendation is made for denial, suspension, or revocation of licensure
186 because of information obtained through a background check, the person shall receive written
187 notice of the reasons for the recommendation and have an opportunity to respond in accordance
188 with procedures set forth under board rules.
189 (7) Information obtained under this section is confidential and may only be disclosed as
190 provided in this part.
191 (8) The license applicant shall pay the costs of conducting the background check
192 required pursuant to Subsection (1).
193 (9) This section applies to matters occurring both before and after the effective date of
194 this section.