Pa. tweaks law on background checks for those working with kids

Administrative staff, certain volunteers, and university employees are no longer required by Pennsylvania law to be fingerprinted and submit to criminal history and child abuse-background checks.

The tweaks to the child protection law were signed by Gov. Tom Wolf  July 1.

Lawmakers had beefed up background-check requirements last legislative session in response to the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse case. But some groups thought the changes went too far – such as university professors who balked at having to be fingerprinted in order to teach their 17-year-old students.

Others were confounded by the employment descriptions lawmakers used to determine who would need the background checks. Schools weren’t sure if parent volunteers would need clearances. Fire companies couldn’t tell if their “junior firefighters” program meant all firefighters would need to be fingerprinted.

“We thought we’d been specific … giving kind of generalized definitions of who would need a background check,” said Rep. Kathy Watson, R-Bucks, who sponsored the changes. “We really weren’t. It still confused people.”

The new law clarifies that only those who are direct supervisors and responsible for the welfare of children must get the background check.

Added to the list of people who need to get the clearances are adult family members who work as caregivers for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

People who work at institutions of higher education are exempt from the background check requirement.

But some universities are still going above and beyond the state requirements. The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is making all its workers and volunteers get the clearances at an estimated upfront cost of $4 million, a spokesman said.

Wolf has waived the background check fee for volunteers in Pennsylvania.