2006 Code of Virginia § 63.2-1726 - Background check required; children\'s residential facilities

63.2-1726. Background check required; children's residential facilities.

A. As a condition of employment, volunteering or providing services on aregular basis, every children's residential facility that is regulated oroperated by the Departments of Social Services; Education; Military Affairs;or Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services shallrequire any individual who (i) accepts a position of employment at such afacility who was not employed by that facility prior to July 1, 1994, (ii)volunteers for such a facility on a regular basis and will be alone with ajuvenile in the performance of his duties who was not a volunteer at suchfacility prior to July 1, 1994, or (iii) provides contractual servicesdirectly to a juvenile for such facility on a regular basis and will be alonewith a juvenile in the performance of his duties who did not provide suchservices prior to July 1, 1994; to submit to fingerprinting and to providepersonal descriptive information, to be forwarded along with the applicant'sfingerprints through the Central Criminal Records Exchange to the FederalBureau of Investigation for the purpose of obtaining criminal history recordinformation regarding such applicant. The children's residential facilityshall inform the applicant that he is entitled to obtain a copy of anybackground check report and to challenge the accuracy and completeness of anysuch report and obtain a prompt resolution before a final determination ismade of the applicant's fitness to have responsibility for the safety andwell-being of children. The applicant shall provide the children'sresidential facility with a written statement or affirmation disclosingwhether he has ever been convicted of or is the subject of pending chargesfor any offense within or outside the Commonwealth. Prior to permitting anapplicant to begin his duties, the children's residential facility shallobtain the statement or affirmation from the applicant and shall submit theapplicant's fingerprints and personal descriptive information to the CentralCriminal Records Exchange.

The Central Criminal Records Exchange, upon receipt of an individual's recordor notification that no record exists, shall forward it to the state agencywhich operates or regulates the children's residential facility with whichthe applicant is affiliated. The state agency shall, upon receipt of anapplicant's record lacking disposition data, conduct research in whateverstate and local recordkeeping systems are available in order to obtaincomplete data. The state agency shall report to the children's facilitywhether the applicant meets the criteria to have responsibility for thesafety and well-being of children based on whether or not the applicant hasever been convicted of or is the subject of pending charges for the followingcrimes: murder or manslaughter as set out in Article 1 ( 18.2-30 et seq.) ofChapter 4 of Title 18.2, abduction for immoral purposes as set out in 18.2-48, assault and bodily woundings as set out in Article 4 ( 18.2-51 etseq.) of Chapter 4 of Title 18.2, robbery as set out in 18.2-58, extortionby threat as set out in 18.2-59, sexual assault as set out in Article 7 (18.2-61 et seq.) of Chapter 4 of Title 18.2, arson as set out in Article 1 (18.2-77 et seq.) of Chapter 5 of Title 18.2, burglary as set out in Article 2( 18.2-89 et seq.) of Chapter 5 of Title 18.2, possession or distribution ofdrugs as set out in Article 1 ( 18.2-247 et seq.) of Chapter 7 of Title18.2, pandering as set out in 18.2-355, crimes against nature involvingchildren as set out 18.2-361, taking indecent liberties with children asset out in 18.2-370 or 18.2-370.1, abuse and neglect of children as setout in 18.2-371.1, failure to secure medical attention for an injured childas set out in 18.2-314, obscenity offenses as set out in 18.2-374.1,abuse and neglect of incapacitated adults as set out in 18.2-369, employingor permitting a minor to assist in an act constituting an offense underArticle 5 ( 18.2-372 et seq.) of Chapter 8 of Title 18.2, as set out in 18.2-379, or an equivalent offense in another state. If the applicant isdenied employment, or the opportunity to volunteer or provide services at achildren's residential facility because of information appearing on hiscriminal history record, and the applicant disputes the information uponwhich the denial was based, upon written request of the applicant the stateagency shall furnish the applicant the procedures for obtaining his criminalhistory record from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. If the applicant hasbeen permitted to provide services pending receipt of the report, thechildren's residential facility is not precluded from suspending theapplicant from his position or denying the applicant unsupervised access toclients pending a final determination of the applicant's fitness to haveresponsibility for the safety and well-being of children. The informationprovided to the children's residential facility shall not be disseminatedexcept as provided in this section.

B. Those individuals listed in clauses (i), (ii) and (iii) of subsection Ashall also authorize the children's residential facility to obtain a copy ofinformation from the central registry maintained pursuant to 63.2-1515 onany investigation of child abuse or neglect undertaken on him. The applicantshall provide the children's residential facility with a written statement oraffirmation disclosing whether he has ever been the subject of a founded caseof child abuse or neglect within or outside the Commonwealth. The children'sresidential facility shall submit the request for information to the centralregistry prior to permitting an applicant to begin his duties. The children'sresidential facility shall obtain a copy of the information from the centralregistry within twenty-one days of the applicant beginning his duties. Theprovisions of this subsection also shall apply to every residential facilityfor juveniles which is regulated or operated by the Department of JuvenileJustice.

C. The Boards of Social Services; Education; Juvenile Justice; and MentalHealth, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services, and the Departmentof Military Affairs, may adopt regulations to comply with the provisions ofthis section. Copies of any information received by a children's residentialfacility pursuant to this section shall be available to the agency thatregulates or operates such facility but shall not be disseminated further.The cost of obtaining the criminal history record and the central registryinformation shall be borne by the employee or volunteer unless the children'sresidential facility, at its option, decides to pay the cost.

(1994, c. 704, 63.1-248.7:2; 1996, c. 747; 2001, c. 138; 2002, c. 747.)