THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

INTRODUCED BY VANCE, WASHINGTON, BAKER, BRUBAKER, O'PAKE, BOSCOLA, BROWNE, ERICKSON, FONTANA, KITCHEN, PICCOLA, RAFFERTY, TOMLINSON, WAUGH, D. WHITE, M. WHITE, WONDERLING AND MELLOW, MARCH 19, 2009

SENATOR VANCE, AGING AND YOUTH, AS AMENDED, JUNE 1, 2009   

AN ACT

Amending the act of November 6, 1987 (P.L.381, No.79), entitled

"An act relating to the protection of the abused, neglected,

exploited or abandoned elderly; establishing a uniform

Statewide reporting and investigative system for suspected

abuse, neglect, exploitation or abandonment of the elderly;

providing protective services; providing for funding; and

making repeals," further providing for legislative policy,

for definitions, for involuntary intervention by emergency

court order, for information relating to prospective facility

personnel and for grounds for denying employment; providing

for certificate of employability; further providing for

provisional employees for limited periods; providing for

requirements concerning employees, for comparison study by

Department of Aging and for applicability relating to

criminal history for employees.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Section 102 of the act of November 6, 1987

(P.L.381, No.79), known as the Older Adults Protective Services

Act, renumbered December 18, 1996 (P.L.1125, No.169), is amended

to read:

Section 102.  Legislative policy.

It is declared the policy of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

that older adults who lack the capacity to protect themselves

and are at imminent risk of abuse, neglect, exploitation or

abandonment shall have access to and be provided with services

necessary to protect their health, safety and welfare. It is not

the purpose of this act to place restrictions upon the personal

liberty of incapacitated older adults, but this act should be

liberally construed to assure the availability of protective

services to all older adults in need of them. Such services

shall safeguard the rights of incapacitated older adults while

protecting them from abuse, neglect, exploitation and

abandonment. It is the intent of the General Assembly to provide

for the detection and reduction, correction or elimination of

abuse, neglect, exploitation and abandonment, and to establish a

program of protective services for older adults in need of them.

It is further declared the policy of the Commonwealth that

the conviction of any offense that involves serious physical

harm, a threat of serious physical harm or conduct which

evidences a reckless disregard for the vulnerability of care-

dependent populations may legitimately warrant a lifetime ban on

employment in facilities covered under this act. Further, for

facilities covered under this act, it is the policy of the

Commonwealth that the conviction of any offenses involving 

misappropriation or misuse of property or convictions which

involved inappropriate or irresponsible behavior may 

legitimately warrant a ban on employment.

Section 2.  The definitions of "care," "employee,"

"exploitation" and "facility" in section 103 of the act, amended

December 18, 1996 (P.L.1125, No.169), are amended to read:

Section 103.  Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

* * *

"Care."  Services provided to meet a person's need for

personal care or health care[. Services may include homemaker

services, assistance with activities of daily living, physical

therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, medical social

services, home-care aide services, companion-care services,

private duty nursing services, respiratory therapy, intravenous

therapy, in-home dialysis and durable medical equipment

services,] which are routinely provided unsupervised and which

require interaction with the care-dependent person. The term

does not include durable medical equipment delivery.

* * *

"Employee."  [An individual who is employed by a facility.

The term includes contract employees who have direct contact

with residents or unsupervised access to their personal living

quarters. The term includes any person who is employed or who

enters into a contractual relationship to provide care to a

care-dependent individual for monetary consideration in the

individual's place of residence.] An individual who has direct

contact with residents or unsupervised access to their living

quarters and is either employed by a facility or enters into a

contractual relationship with a facility to provide care to a

care-dependent individual for monetary consideration in the

individual's place of residence.

"Exploitation."  An act or course of conduct by a caretaker

or other person, including an individual who is acting under a

power of attorney, against an older adult or an older adult's

resources, without the informed consent of the older adult or

with consent obtained through misrepresentation, coercion or

threats of force, that results in monetary, personal or other

benefit, gain or profit for the perpetrator or monetary or

personal loss to the older adult.

"Facility."  Any of the following:

(1)  A domiciliary care home as defined in section 2202-A

of the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.177, No.175), known as The

Administrative Code of 1929.

(2)  [A home health care agency.

(3)  A long-term care nursing facility as defined in

section 802.1 of the act of July 19, 1979 (P.L.130, No.48),

known as the Health Care Facilities Act.] The following

entities as defined in section 802.1 of the act of July 19,

1979 (P.L.130, No.48), known as the Health Care Facilities

Act:

(i)  A home health care agency.

(ii)  A long-term care nursing facility.

(iii)  A hospice.

(iv)  A home care agency.

(v)  A home care registry.

(4)  An older adult daily living center as defined in

section 2 of the act of July 11, 1990 (P.L.499, No.118),

known as the Older Adult Daily Living Centers Licensing Act.

(5)  A personal care home or assisted living residence as

defined in section 1001 of the act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31,

No.21), known as the Public Welfare Code.

(6)  A continuing care provider as defined in section 3

of the act of June 18, 1984 (P.L.391, No.82), known as the

Continuing-Care Provider Registration and Disclosure Act.

The term does not include an entity licensed by the Department

of Health to provide drug and alcohol addiction treatment

services.

* * *

Section 3.  Section 307(a) and (b) of the act, amended

December 18, 1996 (P.L.1125, No.169), are amended to read:

Section 307.  Involuntary intervention by emergency court order.

(a)  Emergency petition.--[Where there was clear and

convincing evidence that if protective services are not

provided, the person to be protected is at imminent risk of

death or serious physical harm, the agency may petition the

court for an emergency order to provide the necessary services.] 

An agency may petition a court of common pleas for an emergency

order to provide protective services to an older adult who is at

imminent risk of financial exploitation, death or serious

physical harm. The court of common pleas shall grant the

agency's petition if it finds, by a preponderance of the

evidence, that failure to provide protective services will place 

the older adult at imminent risk of financial exploitation, 

death or serious physical harm. The courts of common pleas of

each judicial district shall ensure that a judge or [district

justice] magisterial district judge is available on a 24-hour-a-

day, 365-day-a-year basis to accept and [decide] rule on

petitions for an emergency court order under this section

whenever the agency determines that a delay until normal court

hours would significantly increase the danger the older adult

faces.

(b)  Limited order.--The court, after finding [clear and

convincing] a preponderance of evidence of the need for an

emergency order, shall order only such services as are necessary

to remove the conditions creating the established need.

* * *

Section 4.  Sections 501 and 502 of the act, added December

18, 1996 (P.L.1125, No.169), are amended to read:

Section 501.  Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this chapter

shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Applicant."  An individual [who submits an application,

which is] being considered for employment[, to a facility.] or

engagement by a facility as an employee.

"State Police."  The Pennsylvania State Police.

Section 502.  Information relating to [prospective facility

personnel] applicants.

(a)  General rule.--[A facility shall require all applicants

to submit with their applications, and shall require all 

administrators and any operators who have or may have direct

contact with a recipient] Prior to hiring or engaging an

applicant, a facility shall require the applicant to submit[,] 

the following information obtained within the preceding one-year

period:

(1)  Pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S. Ch. 91 (relating to criminal

history record information), a report of criminal history

record information from the State Police or a statement from

the State Police that their central repository contains no

such information relating to [that person] the applicant. The

criminal history record information shall be limited to that

which is disseminated pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S. § 9121(b)(2) 

(relating to general regulations).

(2)  Where the applicant is not and for the two years

immediately preceding the date of application has not been a

resident of this Commonwealth, [administration shall require

the applicant to submit with the application for employment] 

a report of Federal criminal history record information

pursuant to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's

appropriation under the Departments of State, Justice, and

Commerce, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriation

Act, 1973 (Public Law 92-544, 86 Stat. 1109). The department

shall be the intermediary for the purposes of this paragraph.

For the purposes of this paragraph, the applicant shall

submit a full set of fingerprints [to the State Police, which

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shall forward them] in a manner prescribed by the department.

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The Commonwealth shall submit the fingerprints to the Federal

Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history

record check. The information obtained from the criminal

record check shall be used by the department to determine the

applicant's eligibility. The determination shall be submitted

to the [administrator] facility by the applicant prior to

commencing employment. The [administrator] facility shall 

insure confidentiality of the information.

(a.1)  Additional information.--The department or the State

Police may require the applicant to submit additional

information from a court or other authority if the criminal

history record does not provide the disposition of a criminal

charge or the information needed to compare a Federal or out-of-

State criminal offense to Pennsylvania criminal offenses.

(b)  Fees.--The State Police may charge the applicant a fee

of not more than $10 to conduct the criminal record check

required under subsection (a)(1). The State Police may charge a

fee of not more than the established charge by the Federal

Bureau of Investigation for the criminal history record check

required under subsection (a)(2). The State Police shall develop

a billing system to allow facilities [and administrators] to

assume responsibility for the fee under this subsection. The

State Police shall allow facilities [or administrators] to

establish an account for quarterly payment.

Section 5.  Section 503(a) of the act, amended June 9, 1997

(P.L.160, No.13), is amended and the section is amended by

adding subsections to read:

Section 503.  Grounds for denying employment.

[(a)  General rule.--In no case shall a facility hire an

applicant or retain an employee required to submit information

pursuant to section 502(a) if the applicant's or employee's

criminal history record information indicates the applicant or

employee has been convicted of any of the following offenses:

(1)  An offense designated as a felony under the act of

April 14, 1972 (P.L.233, No.64), known as The Controlled

Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act.

(2)  An offense under one or more of the following

provisions of 18 Pa.C.S. (relating to crimes and offenses):

Chapter 25 (relating to criminal homicide).

Section 2702 (relating to aggravated assault).

Section 2901 (relating to kidnapping).

Section 2902 (relating to unlawful restraint).

Section 3121 (relating to rape).

Section 3122.1 (relating to statutory sexual

assault).

Section 3123 (relating to involuntary deviate sexual

intercourse).

Section 3124.1 (relating to sexual assault).

Section 3125 (relating to aggravated indecent

assault).

Section 3126 (relating to indecent assault).

Section 3127 (relating to indecent exposure).

Section 3301 (relating to arson and related

offenses).

Section 3502 (relating to burglary).

Section 3701 (relating to robbery).

A felony offense under Chapter 39 (relating to theft

and related offenses) or two or more misdemeanors under

Chapter 39.

Section 4101 (relating to forgery).

Section 4114 (relating to securing execution of

documents by deception).

Section 4302 (relating to incest).

Section 4303 (relating to concealing death of child).

Section 4304 (relating to endangering welfare of

children).

Section 4305 (relating to dealing in infant

children).

Section 4952 (relating to intimidation of witnesses

or victims).

Section 4953 (relating to retaliation against witness

or victim).

A felony offense under section 5902(b) (relating to

prostitution and related offenses).

Section 5903(c) or (d) (relating to obscene and other

sexual materials and performances).

Section 6301 (relating to corruption of minors).

Section 6312 (relating to sexual abuse of children).

(3)  A Federal or out-of-State offense similar in nature

to those crimes listed in paragraphs (1) and (2).]

(a.1)  Lifetime bans.--In no case shall a facility hire or

engage an applicant required to submit information pursuant to

section 502(a) or retain an employee required to submit

information pursuant to section 508, if the applicant's or

employee's criminal history record information indicates the

applicant or employee has been convicted of any of the following

offenses:

(1)  An offense under one of the following provisions of

18 Pa.C.S. (relating to crimes and offenses) which is graded

as a felony:

Chapter 25 (relating to criminal homicide).

Section 2713 (relating to neglect of care-dependent

person).

Section 2901 (relating to kidnapping).

Section 3121 (relating to rape).

Section 3123 (relating to involuntary deviate sexual

intercourse).

Section 3124.1 (relating to sexual assault).

Section 3124.2 (relating to institutional sexual

assault).

Section 3125 (relating to aggravated indecent

assault).

Section 3126 (relating to indecent assault).

<--

Section 3301 (relating to arson and related

offenses).

Section 4302 (relating to incest).

Section 6312 (relating to sexual abuse of children).

(2)  A Federal or out-of-State offense similar in nature

to any offense listed in paragraph (1).

(a.2)  Lifetime bans with possibility of certificate of

employability.--Except as provided in section 503.1, a facility

shall not hire or engage an applicant required to submit

information pursuant to section 502(a) or retain an employee

required to submit information pursuant to section 508 if the

applicant's or employee's criminal history record information

indicates the applicant or employee has been convicted of any of

the following offenses:

(1)  An offense under one of the following provisions of

18 Pa.C.S. which is graded as a felony:

Section 2702 (relating to aggravated assault).

Section 2709.1 (relating to stalking).

Section 3126 (relating to indecent assault).

<--

Section 3122.1 (relating to statutory sexual

<--

assault).

Section 3701 (relating to robbery).

Section 4304 (relating to endangering welfare of

children).

(2)  An offense under one of the following provisions of

18 Pa.C.S. which is graded as a misdemeanor:

Section 2713 (relating to neglect of care-dependent

person).

Section 3126.

(3)  A Federal or out-of-State offense similar in nature

to any offense listed in paragraph (1) or (2).

(a.3)  Ten-year ban.--Except as provided in section 503.1, a

facility shall not hire or engage an applicant required to

submit information pursuant to section 502(a) or retain an

employee required to submit information pursuant to section 508

if the applicant's or employee's criminal history record

information as supplemented under subsection (a.4) indicates the

applicant or employee has been convicted, within ten years

immediately preceding the date of the report, not including any

time spent in incarceration, of any of the following offenses:

(1)  An offense graded a felony under the act of April

14, 1972 (P.L.233, No.64), known as The Controlled Substance,

Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act.

(2)  An offense under one of the following provisions of

18 Pa.C.S. which is graded as a felony:

Section 2902 (relating to unlawful restraint).

Section 3122.1 (relating to statutory sexual

<--

assault).

Section 3502 (relating to burglary).

Section 3702 (relating to robbery of motor vehicle).

Section 4101 (relating to forgery).

Section 4952 (relating to intimidation of witnesses

or victims).

Section 4953 (relating to retaliation against

witness, victim or party).

Section 5902 (relating to prostitution and related

offenses).

(3)  An offense under one of the following provisions of

18 Pa.C.S. which is graded as a misdemeanor:

Chapter 25.

Section 2902.

Section 3127 (relating to indecent exposure).

Section 4101.

Section 4114 (relating to securing execution of

documents by deception).

Section 4303 (relating to concealing death of child).

Section 4305 (relating to dealing in infant

children).

Section 6301(a)(1) (relating to corruption of

minors).

(4)  A felony offense under 18 Pa.C.S. Ch. 39 (relating

to theft and related offenses) or two or more misdemeanors

under 18 Pa.C.S. Ch. 39.

(5)  A Federal or out-of-State offense similar to any

offense listed in paragraph (1), (2), (3) or (4).

(a.4)  Duty of applicant or employee.--An applicant or

employee required to submit information under section 502(a) or

508 who has been incarcerated for an offense enumerated under

subsection (a.2) or (a.3) shall provide the facility with

documentation of time spent in incarceration and the date of

release from incarceration.

* * *

(d)  Right of review.--An applicant or employee may review,

challenge and appeal the completeness or accuracy of that

applicant's or employee's criminal history report under 18

Pa.C.S. Ch. 91 (relating to criminal history record

information). An applicant or employee may challenge the

decision of the department involving the Federal criminal

history record by filing a petition with the department in

accordance with 2 Pa.C.S. (relating to administrative law and

procedure). An applicant or employee provisionally employed

under section 506 may continue to be employed pending the

ultimate resolution of such a challenge and any subsequent

appeal, unless a supersedeas or temporary injunction is entered

prohibiting the continued employment of the individual.

Section 6.  The act is amended by adding a section to read:

Section 503.1.  Certificate of employability.

(a)  General rule.--

(1)  An individual who would otherwise be precluded from

employment by a facility under section 503(a.2) may petition

for a certificate of employability provided that at least ten

years, not including any time spent in incarceration, have

passed since the individual's conviction of any offense

listed under section 503(a.2).

(2)  An individual who would otherwise be precluded from

employment by a facility under section 503(a.3) may petition

for a certificate of employability provided that at least

five years, not including any time spent in incarceration,

have passed since the individual's conviction of any offense

listed under section 503(a.3).

(3)  A certificate of employability granted under this

section shall be applicable to any facility subject to this

act. The issuance of a certificate of employability shall

permit an individual to seek and possibly obtain employment

subject to this act, but in no way guarantees that a facility

will offer a position to the individual.

(b)  Petition and hearing.--An individual seeking a

certificate of employability shall file a petition with the

department. A hearing officer designated by the department shall

conduct a hearing on the petition in accordance with the

provisions of 2 Pa.C.S. (relating to administrative law and

procedure). The petition shall indicate whether the individual

requests a face-to-face hearing, which will be conducted at the

department's offices in Harrisburg. If not specified, the

hearing may be conducted by telephone or other means as

determined by the department.

(c)  Determination.--

(1)  The department shall make a written determination as

to whether the petitioning individual will receive a

certificate of employability. The department must apply the

criteria of this subsection in reaching its decision.

(2)  A determination by the department shall be a final

agency determination with a right to appeal to the

Commonwealth Court.

(d)  Evidence.--The individual petitioning for a certificate

of employability has the burden of proving by a preponderance of

the evidence the individual's fitness to work with care-

dependent individuals. The department's determination about the

individual's fitness and whether it should issue a certificate

of employability shall include the following factors:

(1)  The amount of time that has elapsed since the

individual's last conviction of an offense listed in section

503 and, if applicable, proof of the individual's release

from incarceration.

(2)  The length, consistency and character of the

individual's employment history.

(3)  The circumstances of a section 503 offense for which

the individual was convicted and the nature of the

conviction.

(4)  If the individual asserts that a section 503 offense

was related to the individual's substance abuse, whether the

individual has undergone substance abuse treatment, is

maintaining recovery and the length of time the individual

has been in recovery.

(5)  Other evidence of postconviction rehabilitation,

including the individual's history of community service,

psychological counseling and character references.

(6)  In addition to evidence presented in the petition

for a certificate of employability, the department may

consider oral or written testimony or statements, relevant to

the factors listed above, from:

(i)  Licensed professionals.

(ii)  Members of the community.

(iii)  Public officials.

(iv)  Former employers of the individual.

(v)  A facility intending to hire or engage the

applicant.

(vi)  Others with knowledge of the individual or

other evidence relevant to the petition.

(7)  In addition to evidence presented in the petition

for a certificate of employability, the department may

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consider written statements submitted by the petitioning

individual that were prepared by shall notify the following

<--

individuals about the proceeding and the opportunity for them

to provide a written statement and shall consider any written

statement submitted by them:

(i)  A district attorney or other prosecutor in the

jurisdiction where the individual was convicted of an

offense listed in section 503.

(ii)  The victim, or family members of the victim, of

any section 503 offense committed by the individual.

(e)  Submission of evidence.--An individual petitioning for a

certificate of employability shall submit any and all written

evidence relevant to subsection (d) within 30 days of the

initial filing of the petition with the department. Any

submission of written evidence listed under subsection (d) after

this 30-day period shall be accepted by the hearing officer for

good cause shown.

(f)  Determination.--The department's hearing officer shall:

(1)  Conduct a hearing on a petition for a certificate of

employability within 90 days of the petition being received.

(2)  Issue a determination within 30 days of the hearing.

(3)  Have the authority to grant an extension of the

deadlines set by paragraph (1) or (2) if the petitioning

individual or the department shows good cause for an

extension.

(g)  Rules and regulations.--The department shall establish

rules and regulations for the review of petitions for a

certificate of employability consistent with this section.

Copies of the rules and regulations shall be made available for

distribution to the public.

(h)  Fees.--The department shall, by regulation, establish

reasonable fees to petition for a certificate of employability.

No petition shall be considered by the department unless

accompanied by a fee.

(i)  Notice to applicants.--Notification of the provisions of

this section shall be provided by the facility in a form

designated by the department, to each applicant.

(j)  Limitation of certificate of employability.--

Certificates of employability shall state that their only

purpose is to exempt successful petitioners from the criminal

record hiring prohibitions of this act and that they do not

address any other qualifications of the individual to be

employed in a facility or obligate facilities to hire or engage

a particular individual.

(k)  Grandfathering for training purposes.--An individual who

is granted a certificate of employability and who has not been

employed in a facility within a year of the date of petition for

the certificate will not be exempted from any training

requirements imposed by law for new employees.

Section 7.  Section 506 of the act, added December 18, 1996

(P.L.1125, No.169), is amended to read:

Section 506.  Provisional [employees] employment for limited

periods.

Notwithstanding [section 502 administrators] sections 502 and 

503, facilities may employ applicants on a provisional basis for

a single period not to exceed 30 days or, for applicants under

section 502(a)(2), a period of 90 days, if all of the following

conditions are met:

(1)  The applicant has applied for the information

required under section 502 and the applicant provides a copy

of the appropriate completed request forms to the

[administrator] facility.

(2)  The [administrator] facility has no knowledge of

information pertaining to the applicant which would

disqualify [him] the applicant from employment pursuant to

section 503, subject to 18 Pa.C.S. § 4911 (relating to

tampering with public records or information).

(3)  The applicant swears or affirms in writing that [he]

the applicant is not disqualified from employment under

section 503.

(4)  [If] Except as provided under section 503(a), if the

information obtained under section 502 reveals that the

applicant is disqualified from employment under section 503,

the applicant shall be immediately dismissed by the

[administrator] facility.

(5)  The facility agrees to supervise applicants during

the provisional employment. The department shall develop

guidelines regarding the supervision of applicants. [For a

home health care agency, supervision shall include random

direct supervision by an employee who has been employed by

the facility for a period of one year.]

Section 8.  The act is amended by adding a section to read:

Section 506.1.  Requirements concerning employees.

The following shall apply:

(1)  If the information obtained under section 502(a)

reveals that an employee is disqualified from employment

under sections 503(a.2) or (a.3), and the employee files a

petition for a certificate of employability pursuant to

section 503.1, that the employee shall either, at the option

of the facility, be placed on suspension without pay or

continue employment under appropriate supervision with no

unsupervised direct contact with residents until such time as

a certificate of employability is issued or an appeal is

filed. The department shall develop guidelines regarding the

supervision of employees under this paragraph.

(2)  If the information obtained under section 502(a)

reveals that an employee is disqualified from employment

under section 503(a.1), or is disqualified from employment

under section 503(a.2) or (a.3) and fails to file a petition

for a certificate of employability within 30 days of

receiving a prohibitive hire letter from the department, the

employee shall be immediately dismissed.

(3)  Except as provided in paragraph (4), if a petition

for a certificate of employability of an employee is denied

pursuant to section 503.1, the employee on suspension or

supervised employment shall be immediately dismissed.

(4)  If an appeal of the denial of a certificate of

employability is filed by an individual on suspension or

supervised employment, then the facility shall have the

option to continue the suspension period as described in

paragraph (1).

(5)  Within 60 days of the effective date of this

section, facilities shall provide copies of sections 503,

503.1 and 506.1 to all employees.

Section 9.  Section 508 of the act, amended June 9, 1997

(P.L.160, No.13), is amended to read:

Section 508.  Applicability.

This chapter shall apply as follows:

[(1)  An individual who, on the effective date of this

chapter, has continuously for a period of one year been an

employee of the same facility shall be exempt from section

502 as a condition of continued employment.

(2)  If an employee is not exempt under paragraph (1),

the employee and the facility shall comply with section 502

within one year of the effective date of this chapter.

(3)  If an employee who is exempt under paragraph (1)

seeks employment with a different facility, the employee and

the facility shall comply with section 502.]

(3.1)  (i)  A facility shall, within 18 months of the

effective date of this paragraph, comply with sections

502 and 503 as a condition of continued employment for

each employee.

(ii)  The facility may use criminal history record

information previously used to comply with sections 502

and 503, upon certification by the facility that:

(A)  The employee has been continuously employed

by the facility since the date that the employee was

hired or engaged under this act.

(B)  The facility has no knowledge that the

employee has been convicted of any criminal offense

since the date of the criminal history record

information on file for that employee.

(iii)  If the facility cannot certify both conditions

under subparagraph (ii), it shall require the employee to

obtain a new criminal history record pursuant to section

502 before determining the employee's compliance with

sections 502 and 503.

(4)  An employee who has obtained the information

required under section 502 or 503 may transfer to another

facility established and supervised by the same owner and is

not required to obtain additional reports before making the

transfer.

Section 10.  The Secretary of Aging shall coordinate a

comparison study on the impact of utilizing the Pennsylvania

State Police criminal background check system and the Federal

Bureau of Investigation background check system pursuant to

Chapter 5 of the act. The purpose of the study shall be to

assess the feasibility of changing the current procedure to

require the Federal Bureau of Investigation check exclusively

for all applicants and employees or to continue the current

procedure of utilizing both systems, with the Pennsylvania State

Police check being the baseline system. Such study shall

include: a detailed review of the scope of the information

obtained through the use of each system; the rate of accuracy of

each system; the efficiency in terms of the turnaround time

associated with each system; the step-by-step process involved

in the completion of the checks required in each system; the

estimated fiscal impact to the Department of Aging and to

facilities associated with each system; and current information

regarding any advancements that have occurred with the

technology involving criminal background checks as well as any

changes that have occurred in the legal framework governing

background checks. No later than one year from the effective

date of this section, the Secretary of Aging shall report to the

Aging and Youth Committee of the Senate and the Aging and Older

Adult Services Committee of the House of Representatives the

results of the study.

Section 11.  The provisions of this act are severable. If any

provision of this act or its application to any person or

circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect

other provisions or applications of this act which can be given

effect without the invalid provision or application.

Section 12.  This act shall take effect in 180 days.