CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECKS

Pursuant to 45 CFR Part 2540.200, criminal history checks are required for all individuals receiving a living allowance, stipend, national service educational award, or salary through a program receiving assistance under the national service laws—regardless of the type of service the individual is performing or the individual’s access to vulnerable populations. Previously, the criminal history checks were required only for individuals with recurring access to vulnerable populations.

Through the submission process, applicants provide assurances that they will comply with the criminal history check requirements for any individual who will receive a living allowance, stipend, education award, or salary through the program and was hired or enrolled on or after October 1, 2009. Grantees should maintain records detailing the steps they took to conduct the search and the results of the search.

A National Service Criminal History Check consists of (1) a State criminal registry search, which involves a search of State law enforcement and court records (by name and/or fingerprint) to determine whether an applicant has a criminal history, and (2) a National Sex Offender Public Registry (NSOPR) check, which consists of individuals that are required by their States to register as sex offenders.

All states, including the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands have state criminal registries that you can contact. The addresses and phone numbers for these state registries can be found on pages 108-112 in the Staff Screening Tool Kit, which is located on-line at www.nationalservice.gov/screeningtoolkit.

All 50 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico participate in the National Sex Offender Public Registry. It can be accessed at no cost at www.nsopr.gov.