Act 153 of 2014 and Act 15 of 2015 amended Pennsylvania’s Child Protective Services Law (CPSL) to require individuals that have contact with children to obtain state required certifications and clearances every 60 months.

Specifically, the law requires employees and volunteers responsible for the welfare of a child or having contact with children to obtain the required clearances prior to employment and then again every 60 months.

Aside from the new periodic background check requirement, the most notable change to the law is the requirement that volunteers also obtain the required clearances. While the former Pennsylvania law had no such requirement for volunteers, under the new law these individuals must now submit the required clearances prior to hire and then again every 60 months.

Applicability of the Law

1. Employees Having Contact with Children

Section 6344 of the Act provides that the clearance requirements apply to: “An individual 14 years of age or older applying for a paid position as an employee responsible for the welfare of a child or having direct contact with children.” Section 6303 defines “direct contact with children” as the care, supervision, guidance or control of children or routine interaction with children. A “child” is defined as an individual younger than 18 years of age.

It is up to each employer to conduct an individualized assessment of each employee to determine whether the employee falls within this definition of “direct contact with children” and is therefore subject to the clearance requirements.

With respect to the “direct contact with children” analysis, the Pennsylvania Department of Education (the “Department”) has issued a FAQs document that provides two areas for employers to consider when making this determination. The first is whether the employee has direct contact with children because he or she provides care, supervision, guidance or control of children or has routine interaction with children. Since these terms are not defined in the statute, the Department suggests that the common meaning of these terms be used with child safety serving as the paramount consideration.

If it is determined that the employee does not provide care, supervision, guidance or control of children, employers should then move on to the second area for consideration—whether the employee has routine interaction with children. With regard to routine interaction, consideration should be given to what the employee’s role is within the agency, and based on that role, a determination should be made whether his or her contact with children is regular, ongoing contact that is integral to his or her day-to-day job responsibilities.

If a determination is made that the employee does not have direct contact with children, clearances are not required.

Please be sure to consult your legal counsel when making these determinations. You should also consult with your insurer regarding possible insurance coverage implications.

2. Volunteers Having Contact with Children

Section 6344.2 further provides that “volunteers having contact with children” are also subject to the same clearance requirements, with a small exception for some individuals as further discussed below.

Beginning July 1, 2015, any adult applying for an unpaid position as a volunteer responsible for a child’s welfare or having “direct volunteer contact” with children must obtain the required clearances. The definition of “child” is the same as it is for employees having direct contact with children. “Direct volunteer contact” is defined as “the care, supervision, guidance or control of children and routine interaction with children.” “Routine interaction” is defined as “regular and repeated contact that is integral to a person’s employment or volunteer responsibilities.”

In order to determine who in your agency or organization is required to obtain clearances as a condition of volunteering with children, you must first confirm that the applicant is an adult, as only adult volunteers are required to obtain clearances. An “adult” is defined as an individual 18 years of age or older.

Next, you should carefully consider whether the volunteer is responsible for the child’s welfare or has direct volunteer contact with children. Determining whether a volunteer is responsible for the welfare of a child means that the volunteer is acting in lieu of or on behalf of a parent. If a determination is made that the volunteer is not responsible for the welfare of a child, you then move on to the second area for consideration—whether the volunteer has “direct volunteer contact” with children. This was discussed in more detail above.

If a determination is made that the volunteer is not responsible for the child’s welfare and does not have direct volunteer contact with children, clearances are not required.

Please be sure to consult your legal counsel when making these determinations. You should also discuss with your insurers possible insurance coverage implications.

The law also provides an exception from the fingerprint-based federal criminal history requirement for certain volunteers who are applying for an unpaid position and can satisfy certain requirements. The clearance requirements are discussed in more detail below.

Clearance Requirements

1. Employees Having Contact with Children

All employees having contact with children must obtain the following clearances:

Beginning Dec. 31, 2014, clearances must be submitted prior to the commencement of employment or service. Clearances must then be obtained every 60 months. Any employee with a current certification issued prior to Dec. 31, 2014 shall be required to obtain the required certifications within 60 months from the date of the person’s oldest certification or, if the current certification is older than 60 months, by Dec. 31, 2015. An employee without a certification or who was previously not required to have a certification must obtain the required certifications no later than Dec. 31, 2015.

2. Volunteers Having Contact with Children

For prospective volunteers, the following clearances must be obtained:

However, a volunteer is not required to submit a fingerprint-based federal criminal history through the Pennsylvania State Police or its authorized agent (FBI) if the following apply:

Volunteers who are not required to obtain the FBI clearance because they are applying for an unpaid position and have been a continuous resident of Pennsylvania for the past 10 years (or previously obtained the FBI clearance) must swear or affirm in writing that they are not disqualified from service based upon a conviction of an offense under § 6344.

Beginning Aug. 25, 2015, prospective volunteers must submit clearances prior to the commencement of service and will be required to obtain clearances every 60 months from the date of the person’s most recent certification or, if the current certification is older than 60 months, by Aug. 25, 2016. A volunteer without a certification or who was previously not required to have a certification must obtain the required certifications no later than July 1, 2016.

Use of a Third-Party Vendor

The Department has stated that third-party vendors may be used to process the Child Abuse and Pennsylvania State Police clearance requirements.

Third-party vendors are not permitted to conduct background checks or clearances through other databases in lieu of the steps outlined by the Department. The fingerprint-based federal criminal history search through the FBI must be done through the state’s mandated vendor. In addition, institutions remain responsible for the employment decision based on the information obtained.

For additional information on the Act 153 requirements, see the Department’s FAQ documents for employees having contact with children and volunteers.

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