2014 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes
Title 23 - DOMESTIC RELATIONS
Chapter 63 - Child Protective Services
Section 6344.2 - Volunteers having contact with children

§ 6344.2. Volunteers having contact with children.

(a) Applicability.--This section applies to an adult applying for an unpaid position as a volunteer responsible for the welfare of a child or having direct contact with children.

(a.1) School employees.--(Deleted by amendment).

(b) Investigation.--Employers, administrators, supervisors or other persons responsible for selection of volunteers shall require an applicant to submit to all requirements set forth in section 6344(b) (relating to employees having contact with children; adoptive and foster parents) except as provided in subsection (b.1). An employer, administrator, supervisor or other person responsible for selection of volunteers regarding an applicable prospective volunteer under this section that intentionally fails to require the submissions before hiring that individual commits a misdemeanor of the third degree.

(b.1) Exception.--

(1) A person responsible for the selection of volunteers under this chapter shall require an applicable prospective volunteer prior to the commencement of service to submit only the information under section 6344(b)(1) and (2), if the following apply:

(i) The position the prospective volunteer is applying for is unpaid.

(ii) The prospective volunteer has been a resident of this Commonwealth during the entirety of the previous ten-year period.

(iii) The prospective volunteer swears or affirms in writing that the prospective volunteer is not disqualified from service pursuant to section 6344(c) or has not been convicted of an offense similar in nature to those crimes listed in section 6344(c) under the laws or former laws of the United States or one of its territories or possessions, another state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or a foreign nation, or under a former law of this Commonwealth.

(2) If the information obtained pursuant to section 6344(b) reveals that the prospective volunteer applicant is disqualified from service pursuant to section 6344(c), the applicant shall not be approved for service.

(c) Grounds for denial.--Each prospective volunteer shall be subject to the requirements of section 6344(c).

(d) Departmental treatment of information.--Information provided and compiled under this section by the department shall be confidential and shall not be subject to the act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the Right-to-Know Law. This information shall not be released except as permitted by the department through regulation. The department may charge a fee to conduct a certification as required by section 6344(b)(2) in accordance with the provisions of section 6344(h). The department shall promulgate regulations necessary to carry out this subsection.

(e) Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit an organization from requiring additional information as part of the clearance process for volunteers who are responsible for the welfare of a child or have direct contact with children.

(f) Provisional clearances for volunteers.--Employers, administrators, supervisors or other persons responsible for selection of volunteers may allow a volunteer to serve on a provisional basis for a single period not to exceed 30 days if the volunteer is in compliance with the clearance standards under the law of the jurisdiction where the volunteer is domiciled.

(Nov. 29, 2006, P.L.1581, No.179, eff. 60 days; May 14, 2014, P.L.653, No.45, eff. Dec. 31, 2014; Oct. 22, 2014, P.L.2529, No.153, eff. Dec. 31, 2014)

2014 Amendments. Act 45 amended subsec. (b) and added subsec. (a.1) and Act 153 amended the entire section.

2006 Amendment. Act 179 added section 6344.2.

Cross References. Section 6344.2 is referred to in sections 6335, 6344.3, 6344.4 of this title.