HB 250 – AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE
24Mar2009… 0799h
2009 SESSION
05/01
HOUSE BILL 250
AN ACT relative to access to information in the abuse and neglect of adults registry and relative to persons providing child care or child placing services who are charged with a crime.
SPONSORS: Rep. Schulze, Hills 26; Rep. French, Merr 5; Rep. Skinder, Sull 1; Rep. Emerson, Ches 7
COMMITTEE: Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs
This bill:
I. Expands the background check requirements for certain child care providers to include a search of both the child abuse and neglect registry under RSA 169-C:35 and state adult abuse, neglect, and exploitation registry under RSA 161-F:49.
II. Permits the probate court to order a check of both registries prior to appointing a guardian for an incapacitated adult.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
24Mar2009… 0799h
09-0355
05/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Nine
AN ACT relative to access to information in the abuse and neglect of adults registry and relative to persons providing child care or child placing services who are charged with a crime.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Child Protection Act; Central Registry. Amend RSA 169-C:35, I and II to read as follows:
I. There shall be established a state child abuse and neglect registry for the purpose of maintaining a record of founded reports of abuse and neglect under this chapter. The registry shall be confidential and subject to rules on access established by the commissioner of the department under RSA 541-A.
II. Upon receipt by the department of a written request and verified proof of identity, an individual shall be informed by the department whether that individual’s name is listed in the founded reports maintained in the central registry. It shall be unlawful for any employer other than those specified in RSA 161-F:49, VII, RSA 170-E, and RSA 170-G:8-c to require as a condition of employment that the employee submit his or her name for review against the central registry of founded reports of abuse and neglect. Any violation of this provision shall be punishable as a violation.
2 Child Day Care Licensing; State Registry and Criminal Records Check. Amend RSA 170-E:7, II(a) to read as follows:
(a) The department shall, for every name submitted on an application, in the registration process, and for each individual for whom information is required to be submitted pursuant to paragraph I, review the names, birth names, birth dates, and current and previous addresses of such persons against the state child abuse and neglect registry [of founded abuse and neglect reports] under RSA 169-C:35 and the state adult abuse, neglect, and exploitation registry under RSA 161-F:49.
3 Child Day Care Licensing; State Registry and Criminal Records Check. Amend RSA 170-E:7, IV to read as follows:
IV. If any individual whose name has been submitted for this check has been convicted of a felony offense deemed directly or indirectly harmful to children in child day care, crimes against minors or adults, except crimes as provided in paragraph III, or is the subject of a founded complaint of child abuse or neglect or a founded report of incapacitated adult abuse, neglect, or exploitation under RSA 161-F:49, the department may deny, revoke, or suspend a license, permit, or registration pending the development and implementation of a corrective action plan approved by the department. In addition, the department may, upon a finding of criminal activity or a founded complaint of child abuse or neglect or incapacitated adult abuse, neglect, or exploitation as described in this paragraph, withhold state funding to registered child day care providers that are exempt from the licensing requirements of RSA 170-E:4 pending the development and implementation of a corrective action plan approved by the department. The department shall conduct an investigation in accordance with rules adopted under this subdivision to determine whether the individual poses a present threat to the safety of children. The investigation shall include an opportunity for the individual to present evidence on his behalf to show that the individual does not pose a threat to the safety of children.
4 Foster Parent Licensing; State Registry and Criminal Records Check. Amend RSA 170-E:29, II-a(b) to read as follows:
(b) The central registry check shall include a check of the [department’s central registry of founded reports of] child abuse and neglect registry under RSA 169-C:35, the adult abuse, neglect, and exploitation registry under RSA 161-F:49, and [shall include a check of] the child abuse and neglect registries in any other state in which the prospective foster parents or other adult living in the home has resided in the preceding 5 years. Information obtained from another state pursuant to this subparagraph shall be used only for the purposes of conducting the background checks.
5 Foster Parent Licensing; State Registry and Criminal Records Check. Amend RSA 170-E:29, IV to read as follows:
IV. If any individual whose name has been submitted for this check has been convicted of crimes against minors or adults, except crimes as provided in paragraph III, or is the subject of a founded complaint of child abuse or neglect or a founded report of incapacitated adult abuse, neglect, or exploitation under RSA 161-F:49, the department may deny the license or permit, revoke a license, or suspend a license pending the development and implementation of a corrective action plan approved by the department. The department shall conduct an investigation in accordance with rules adopted under this subdivision to determine whether the individual poses a present threat to the safety of children. The investigation shall include an opportunity for the individual to present evidence on his behalf to show that he does not pose a threat to the safety of children.
6 Services for Children, Youth and Families; State Registry and Criminal Records Check. Amend RSA 170-G:8-c to read as follows:
170-G:8-c State Registry and Criminal Records Check.
I. The department shall, prior to adding new or transferred staff members whose job descriptions would cause them to come into direct contact with children, submit the names, birth names, birth dates, and addresses of such individuals for review against the state child abuse and neglect registry [of founded abuse and neglect reports] under RSA 169-C:35 and the state adult abuse, neglect, and exploitation registry under RSA 161-F:49 and the division of state police for information about criminal convictions.
II. Prior to the renewal of any current employment contract of existing employees whose job description would cause them to come into direct contact with children, the department shall submit the names, birth names, birth dates, and addresses of such individuals for review against the state child abuse and neglect registry [of founded abuse and neglect reports] under RSA 169-C:35 and the state adult abuse, neglect, and exploitation registry under RSA 161-F:49, and for review by the division of state police for information about criminal convictions.
III. The department shall, for every name submitted on the application and for each new or transferred staff member, or for existing staff members in accordance with paragraph II of this section, review the names, birth names, birth dates, and current and previous addresses of such persons against the state registry of founded abuse and neglect reports. The department shall submit the names, birth names, birth dates, and addresses to the division of state police to obtain information about criminal convictions.
IV. If any individual whose name has been submitted for a check under this section has been convicted of crimes against minors or adults, or is the subject of a founded report of child abuse or neglect, or a founded report of incapacitated adult abuse, neglect, or exploitation, the department may deny employment to such person pending the development and implementation of a corrective action plan approved by the department. The department shall conduct an investigation in accordance with rules adopted under this chapter to determine whether the individual poses a present threat to the safety of children. The investigation shall include an opportunity for the individual to present evidence and to show that the individual does not pose a threat to the safety of children.
V. For any current employee convicted of a crime against a minor or adult, or who is or becomes the subject of a founded report of child abuse or neglect, or a founded report of incapacitated adult abuse, neglect, or exploitation, the department may terminate, suspend, demote, or transfer that employee, and may require the development and implementation of a corrective action plan approved by the department. The department shall conduct an investigation in accordance with the rules adopted under this chapter to determine whether the individual poses a present threat to the safety of children. The investigation shall include an opportunity for the individual to present evidence and to show that the individual does not pose a threat to the safety of children.
VI. Any employee transferred to the department from another state department or agency, whose job description within the department of health and human services would cause such employee to come into direct contact with children, shall be subject to provisions of this section.
VII. The commissioner shall adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, relative to the confidentiality of information collected under this section and to the release, if any, of such information.
7 Incapacitated Adult Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation Registry. Amend RSA 161-F:49, III to read as follows:
III. Except as provided in paragraph IV, for a founded report, the commissioner, or designee, shall notify the employer:
(a) Relative to a prospective employee who is not on the adult registry under this section or the child abuse and neglect registry under RSA 169-C:35, of that fact within 5 days of receipt of a request from the employer.
(b) Relative to a prospective employee who is on the adult registry under this section or the child abuse and neglect registry under RSA 169-C:35, of that fact within 5 business days of receipt of the request from the employer, and the employer shall include in the notice the date the person was placed on the registry.
8 Incapacitated Adult Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation Registry. Amend RSA 161-F:49, VII to read as follows:
VII. All employers of programs which are licensed, certified, or funded by the department to provide services to individuals as defined in RSA 161-F:49, I(a) against the child abuse and neglect registry established under RSA 169-C:35 shall be required before hiring a prospective employee who may have client contact to submit his or her name, for review against the adult registry [of founded reports of abuse, neglect, and exploitation] under this section or the child abuse and neglect registry under RSA 169-C:35 to determine whether the person is on [the] either registry, provided that in the case of employers of programs which are licensed, certified, or funded by the department to provide services to individuals as defined in RSA 161-F:49, I(a), such employers shall not have access to the identity or any information concerning a perpetrator who is on the child abuse and neglect registry for a founded report of abuse and neglect against his or her own biological, adoptive, or stepchild unless the perpetrator consents to such access. The employer shall not hire the prospective employee if the person is listed on [the] either registry with a founded case of abuse, neglect, or exploitation, unless the employer requests and obtains a waiver from the department to hire such person. The employer, upon receiving of notice that a prospective employee is on [the] either registry and in order to determine whether he or she should request a waiver from the department, may request permission from the prospective employee for the authority to obtain further information about a founded case of abuse, neglect, or exploitation. Any individual hiring a caregiver directly, or through an authorized representative or fiscal intermediary, to provide personal care services, as defined in RSA 161-E or RSA 161-I, may, with the consent of the prospective employee, submit the prospective employee’s name for review against the adult registry under this section or the child abuse and neglect registry under RSA 169-C:35 and, if the prospective employee is on the registry, and with the further permission of the prospective employee, obtain information about any founded case. The individual shall not be required in such situations to obtain a waiver prior to hiring a person on the registry. It shall be unlawful for any employer other than those specified under this paragraph to require as a condition of employment that the employee submit his or her name for review against the registry of founded reports of abuse, neglect, department’s case records as the department deems necessary for the requesting state to be able to evaluate the results.
XIII. Any state, county, or local government operated, licensed, or funded agency, board, commission, or other entity that is authorized or required to check any person against the child abuse and neglect registry established under RSA 169-C:35 shall also check the person against the registry established under this section.
9 Procedure for Court Appointment of a Guardian of an Incapacitated Person. Amend RSA 464-A:4, V(c) to read as follows:
(c) The court may, in its discretion, request a search of the child abuse and neglect registry under RSA 169-C:35 and the adult abuse, neglect, and exploitation registry under RSA 161-F:49 maintained by the department of health and human services.
10 Effective Date. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.
LBAO
09-0355
Amended 04/15/09
HB 250 FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to access to information in the abuse and neglect of adults registry and relative to persons providing child care or child placing services who are charged with a crime.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Department of Health and Human Services states this bill, as amended by the House (Amendment #2009-0799h), increases state expenditures by $105,700 in FY 2010, $111,115 in FY 2011, $117,037 in FY 2012, and $123,133 in FY 2013. This bill has no fiscal impact on state, county, and local revenue or county and local expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Department of Health and Human Services states this bill will require cross checks of the Bureau of Elderly and Adult Services (BEAS) adult abuse and neglect registry and the Division of Child, Youth, and Family Services (DCYF) child abuse and neglect registry for reports of abuse and neglect.
BEAS estimates it conducts 20,000 registry checks on an annual basis. The Bureau assumes this bill will increase the number of annual checks of the adult abuse and neglect registry by 35% up to 27,000 checks annually. The Bureau estimates this increase will require an additional 19.69 hours per week or .52 FTE to process the required registry checks. Total salary and benefits costs for a labor grade 21 with annual step increases at a .52 FTE are $30,542 in FY 2010, $32,150 in FY 2011, $33,911 in FY 2012, and $35,715 in FY 2013. The Bureau estimates $2,000 of equipment and current expense costs annually for this position. The position will be funded 37.65% state general funds and 62.35% federal funds. This position will increase state general fund expenditures by $12,252 in FY 2010, $12,857 in FY 2011, $13,521 in FY 2012, and $14,200 in FY 2013 and increase federal expenditures by $20,290 in FY 2010, $21,292 in FY 2011, $22,391 in FY 2012, and $23,515 in FY 2013.
DCYF estimates it conducts 7,000 registry checks on an annual basis. The Division assumes this bill will increase the number of annual checks of its child abuse and neglect registry by approximately 20,000, for a total of 27,000 registry checks annually. The Division estimates this increase will require an additional 48.21 hours per week or 1.29 FTE to process the required registry checks. Total salary and benefits costs for a labor grade 19 with annual step increases at a 1.29 FTE are $71,158 in FY 2010, $74,966 in FY 2011, $79,125 in FY 2012, and $83,418 in FY 2013. The Division estimates $2,000 of equipment and current expense costs annually for this position and this position is 100% generally funded. This position will increase state general fund expenditures by $73,158 in FY 2010, $76,966 in FY 2011, $81,125 in FY 2012, and $85,418 in FY 2013.
This bill does not establish positions or appropriate funds.