Background checks of the SACWIS and the Sex Offender Registries are conducted internally
within the Department and are initiated via submission of a written authorization, on a form
prescribed by the Department, which is completed and signed by each individual subject to
background check.
Results of the background check fall into the following categories:
• The individual cleared the background check. There is no history of criminal conviction
and/or child abuse/neglect;
• The individual has been convicted of a crime that does not bar licensure;
• The individual is/is not an indicated perpetrator of child abuse/neglect;
• The individual has been convicted of a crime that bars licensure, or,
• The individual has been convicted of a crime that is classified as a bar to licensure but
may be waived if certain criterion are met.
The Department’s Central Office of Licensing controls the dissemination of the background
check results. A summary of the results is forwarded to the Department licensing representative
and the licensed child welfare agency or licensed child care facility that currently serves or will
serve as the supervising agency for the license. If the background check yields results that would
bar the issuance of a license or employment, the individual that is the subject of the background
check will be notified. Any individual that receives such a notice has an opportunity to appeal
the results of his/her background check by submitting documentation to support that he or she is
not the individual identified in the background check report, that the report is inaccurate, that he
or she was never convicted of the crimes as alleged in the report, or that he or she has been
granted a full Pardon by the Governor.
In cases involving criminal convictions that do not bar licensure or reports of indicated
abuse/neglect, the Department has established, by rule, a list of criteria that must be applied in an
assessment format. The criteria includes determining the length of time that has passed since the
incidents, rehabilitation and the seriousness of the crime or abuse/neglect in relationship to the
individual’s current ability to care for or have contact with children. Department or private
agency licensing staff, or, in the case of employment decisions, the child care facility, must meet
with the individual, review the criteria and complete a written assessment. The assessment must
be returned to the Central Office of Licensing with a recommendation to clear the individual or
to deny a clearance based on the results of the assessment. The Department will receive notice
of any subsequent criminal charges/convictions or child/abuse reports that occur with regard to
licensees, household members and employees of child care facilities. The information comes to
the Central Office of Licensing in the form of a revised criminal history or a pending child
abuse/neglect report. When the Department receives a revised history, the Department sends a
new notice to the Department or private agency licensing staff or to the employer, who must
assess the new information in the same manner as any background report. A revised history may
result licensing enforcement action against the facility or home by the Department, private child
welfare agency, or both.
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