Volunteers pay for their own background checks

The future of background checks and who pays the associated fees has been addressed in Utah with some surprising results, according to a story last week by The Salt Lake Tribune

The House Education Committee voted unanimously Tuesday in favor of a bill that would expand the criminal background checks required of school employees to include volunteers.

HB81 would require background checks for "volunteers who [are] given significant unsupervised access to a student in connection with the volunteer's assignment."

Legislators dismissed the concerns of Rob Layton, of the Utah Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, who warned that vague language in the bill would make it difficult for citizens to volunteer in schools.

"You are excluding a large range of people," he said, citing those who have been arrested, but not charged, and those who have been convicted of drug and alcohol-related misdemeanors, such as open container and marijuana possession laws. "It is just additional burdens on [volunteers]."

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Sheryl Allen, R-Bountiful, said more stringent requirements are necessary to protect children. The bill comes after public safety officials last year unearthed nearly 7,000 arrests, criminal charges or convictions. But a single employee could account for a dozen or more of those, said agency spokesman Jeff Nigbur.

The bill would also allow districts to require employees, applicants and volunteers to pay the background check fees, rather than the district covering those costs.

Currently, teachers undergo a background check as part of receiving or renewing a teaching license.

Licensing fees charged to them cover the costs of background checks. Periodic checks are also required for non-teaching staff such as bus drivers.

A district may choose to require non-certified employees, such as custodians, secretaries, and lunch clerks, to undergo a background check when they are hired, although the district must cover those costs. Becky Williams, the human resources director for Davis School District, said shifting those fees would save her district approximately $300,000 over six years. Pre-employ.com offers background check services to thousands of organizations and is the largest supplier of volunteer background checks in the nation. Full descriptions can be found here:

http://www.mybackgroundcheck.com/Business/Volunteer

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