HB 582 -- Criminal Records

Co-Sponsors:  Stevenson, Goodman, Moore, Phillips, Walker, Young,
Dougherty, Donnelly, Jolly, Dusenberg

This bill makes several changes to the laws governing criminal
records and the collection of information by law enforcement and
the departments of Social Services, Health and Senior Services,
and Mental Health.  In its main provisions, the bill:

(1)  Requires records regarding arrests to be sent to the central
repository within 15 days.  Current law requires them to be sent
within 30 days;

(2)  Allows the subject of a criminal record in the central
repository to challenge the accuracy of the record;

(3)  Creates the crime of unlawful disclosure of criminal history
information, a class A misdemeanor.  The crime is committed when
a person obtains "criminal history record information" from the
central repository under false pretenses or disseminates the
information to anyone other than the original requester for its
intended purpose;

(4)  Expands the definition of licensed day care "provider" and
defines "qualified entity" as a person or entity that provides
health care, education, or recreation for children, the elderly,
or the disabled;

(5)  Amends the process by which qualified entities (rather than
"youth services agencies") may obtain a criminal record review of
a provider;

(6)  Adopts the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact,
which is an agreement to facilitate the exchange of criminal
history information for noncriminal justice purposes;

(7)  Adds several state agencies to the list of entities
requiring applicants to submit fingerprints for a criminal
history check;

(8)  Prohibits school employees from having unsupervised contact
with students until a criminal history background check has been
completed by the state and the Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI).  If the background check reveals a conviction, the
information will be reported to the Department of Elementary and
Secondary Education.  A school official making a report to the
department under this section will not be held civilly liable.
This section becomes effective on January 1, 2004;

(9)  Allows the juvenile court or the Division of Family Services
to request a criminal history record check on the Missouri
Uniform Law Enforcement System (MULES) and the National Crime
Information Center on each person age 18 or older living in the
home where a child will be temporarily placed.  If a placement is
denied and the denial is contested, those persons must submit
fingerprints to be checked with the repository and the FBI;

(10)  Requires the Division of Family Services, when
investigating foster parent licensee applicants, to conduct a
search for orders of protection issued against the applicant.
The Office of State Courts Administrator must allow the division
access to the automated court information system.  Any court
clerk contacted by the division must respond within 10 days;

(11)  Adds several definitions to the Family Care Safety Act,
including "registration-exempt worker," which is any person not
required to register with the family care safety registry.  The
bill allows providers to request a background screening on
registration-exempt workers;

(12)  Allows the release of background screening information with
the written permission of the applicant for purposes other than
an employer-employee relationship;

(13)  Allows the Department of Health and Senior Services and the
Department of Mental Health to use registry information.  Current
law allows only the Department of Social Services to use it;

(14)  Requires school bus driver permit applicants to submit
fingerprints for a background check with the State Highway Patrol
and the FBI.  This section becomes effective on January 1, 2004;

(15)  Expands the list of government entities which may have
access to closed arrest records;

(16)  Allows a criminal justice agency receiving a request for
criminal history information to require positive identification,
including fingerprints, before releasing closed records;

(17)  Adds fingerprinting to the requirements for a person
wishing to have an arrest expunged from his or her record;

(18)  Allows mental health facilities to disclose confidential
records to the Department of Health and Senior Services when
reporting abuse, neglect, or rights violations of patients;

(19)  Disqualifies an applicant from working in a mental health
facility when the person has pled guilty to a felony with a
suspended imposition of sentence.  In addition, existing law
allows the director to grant an exception for some applicants
with felony convictions, but the bill adds several felonies to
the list of crimes for which no exception may be granted;

(20)  Requires applicants for a direct care position at a mental
health facility to sign a consent form to conduct a criminal
background check and disclose his or her criminal history.  The
applicant is also required to disclose if he or she is listed on
the employee disqualification list;

(21)  Makes it a class A misdemeanor for a job applicant at a
mental health facility to knowingly fail to disclose his or her
criminal history;

(22)  Makes it a class A misdemeanor for a provider to knowingly
hire a person who has been disqualified from employment at a
mental health facility; and

(23)  Repeals a provision that prohibits the fingerprinting of
juvenile offenders.

Missouri House of Representatives
Last Updated July 25, 2003 at 10:12 am