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Legislative History
Problems with the criminal background check system have existed for many years, and Congress has passed several laws since the early 1990s to try and improve it. MENTOR got involved in the issue several years ago, with the goal of creating accessibility to FBI checks, bringing down the high cost, and improving the turnaround time. In 2002, we made a great deal of progress on legislation (S. 1868 and H.R. 5556) to streamline the criminal background checks system; however, we came just short of securing passage. In 2003, Congress created a background check pilot program that creates temporary access to FBI checks while Congress works on a permanent solution.
The Background Legislation: Current Law
The current system of background checks for volunteer organizations has been shaped by the National Child Protection Act of 1993 (NCPA), the Violent Crime Control Act of 1994, and the Volunteers for Children Act (part of the Crime Identification Act of 1998). Prior to 1993, volunteer organizations in most states were not legally allowed to obtain national criminal background checks on their volunteers.
The 1993 NCPA encouraged states to adopt legislation that would allow volunteer organizations working with children perform criminal background checks on volunteers or employees. The Violent Crime Control Act expanded the scope of this to include organizations serving the elderly and individuals with disabilities. However, most states did not choose to enact the authorizing legislation suggested by NCPA, so again volunteer organizations in many states were left without the ability to obtain national criminal background checks.
The Volunteers for Children Act of 1998 somewhat rectified this situation. Due to the Volunteers for Children Act, volunteer organizations serving children, the elderly, and individuals with disabilities are now allowed to request background checks regardless of whether or not the state has passed authorizing legislation. However, it is left to each state's discretion to determine which types of human service organizations should be designated as "qualified entities" able to apply for national background checks through the state agencies. Again, this means that in many states across the country, various human service organizations are unable to obtain national criminal record checks.
S. 1868 and H.R. 5556
In the 107th Congress, Senator Biden introduced legislation to fix the criminal background check system as S. 1868 in December 2001. Senator Strom Thurmond of South Carolina became a co-sponsor in April 2002, thus making the bill bipartisan. On May 23, 2002, the Senate Judiciary Committee considered S. 1868, and passed an amended version unanimously.
H.R. 5556 was introduced into the House of Representatives on October 7, 2002. The co-sponsors of the legislation were Rep. Mark Foley of Florida, Nick Lampson of Texas, Ken Calvert of California, and Bud Cramer of Alabama. The co-sponsors of the House bill and the co-sponsors of the Senate bill reached agreement on some changes to the original bill. The full Senate then passed an amended bill on October 17, 2002. Unfortunately, the House adjourned for the year before passing its version of the bill.
These bills would have for the first time ensured that every volunteer organization, no matter what state they are located in, would have access to nationwide criminal record checks. Under current law, mentoring organizations in 37 states are prevented from getting nationwide criminal record checks, leaving them the only option of conducting the less complete and less reliable state and local checks. The legislation also reduced the cost for nationwide checks (which currently ranges from $36 to $70 per check), and ensured that results would be returned in 20 business days or less (current wait times can stretch into 6 to 8 weeks or more).
Even though the House did not pass H.R. 5556 before adjourning, we feel that Congress understands how critical reliable background checks are in the employee and volunteer screening process. They are also aware that the current background screening system is not working properly.
What's Next? SafetyNET and Beyond
The work on S. 1868 and H.R. 5556 laid the groundwork for passage of the SafetyNET pilot project. Congress decided to create a pilot program to test out the best approach for volunteer organizations to access FBI checks before passing permanent legislation. Created through the PROTECT Act (S. 151) under the leadership of Sen. Biden (DE), Sen. Hatch (UT) and Rep. Sensenbrenner (WI), the pilot program was signed into law on April 30, 2003.
Through the pilot, orginally scheduled to last 18 months, affiliates of MENTOR, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, and the National Council of Youth Sports will be able to access FBI fingerprint background checks on their volunteers. Each organization is testing out a different method of submitting background checks. The PROTECT Act also includes a study that will assess the nationwide and state criminal background check system, and make recommendations on how to ensure that human service organizations can promptly and affordably conduct these important checks. Based on the initial success of the pilot, Congress extended it an additional year, until January 2006. Congress is currently considering legislation to extend SafetyNET an additional 30 months, and expand eligibility to include additional youth-serving organizations.
The SafetyNET pilot is an important step forward in our effort to establish a permanent criminal record check system that is reliable, accurate, and timely. We also believe that the data gathered during the SafetyNET pilot and study will help us work with the FBI and Congress on a permanent solution. We will work with Congress and the FBI to design a permanent system that is accessible, affordable, and timely.
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