PRINTER'S NO. 3252
No. 2331 Session of 2004
INTRODUCED BY BAKER, ARGALL, MARSICO, HERSHEY, R. STEVENSON,
ARMSTRONG, BEBKO-JONES, BELFANTI, BOYD, CAPPELLI, CAUSER,
CREIGHTON, DALLY, DeLUCA, D. EVANS, FORCIER, GEIST,
GILLESPIE, GINGRICH, GOOD, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HARHAI, HARRIS,
HERMAN, HORSEY, KELLER, MACKERETH, MAJOR, R. MILLER,
S. MILLER, O'NEILL, PAYNE, PISTELLA, REICHLEY, SCAVELLO,
TIGUE, WEBER, WILT AND YOUNGBLOOD, FEBRUARY 3, 2004
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, FEBRUARY 3, 2004
AN ACT
1 Providing for college and university faculty criminal history
2 record and information; and conferring powers and imposing
3 duties on the Department of Education and the Pennsylvania
4 State Police.
5 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
6 hereby enacts as follows:
7 Section 1. Short title.
8 This act shall be known and may be cited as the College and
9 University Criminal History Record Act.
10 Section 2. Definitions.
11 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
12 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
13 context clearly indicates otherwise:
14 "Branch campus." A branch campus is a unit of an institution
15 of higher education which is distinguished by all of the
16 following characteristics:
1 (1) An academic degree-granting program or organized
2 parts thereof offered on a continuing basis.
3 (2) Location separately identifiable from the main
4 campus of the parent institution and providing the services
5 normally associated with the campus.
6 (3) Legal authority for governance, administration and
7 general operation derived from the charter or enabling
8 legislation of the parent institution or of the State System
9 of Higher Education.
10 "Community colleges." Institutions now or hereafter created
11 pursuant to Article XIX-A of the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30,
12 No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949, or the act of
13 August 24, 1963 (P.L.1132, No.484), known as the Community
14 College Act of 1963.
15 "Department." The Department of Education of the
16 Commonwealth.
17 "Independent institution of higher education." An
18 institution of higher education which is operated not for
19 profit, located in and incorporated or chartered by the
20 Commonwealth, entitled to confer degrees as set forth in 24
21 Pa.C.S. Ch. 65 (relating to private colleges, universities and
22 seminaries), and entitled to apply to itself the designation
23 "college" or "university" as provided for by standards and
24 qualifications prescribed by the State Board of Education
25 pursuant 24 Pa.C.S. Ch. 65.
26 "Institution of higher education." An independent
27 institution of higher education, a community college, a State-
28 owned institution or a State-related institution, any of which
29 is approved by the Department of Education.
30 "State-owned institutions." Those institutions which are
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1 part of the State System of Higher Education pursuant to Article
2 XX-A of the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known as the
3 Public School Code of 1949.
4 "State-related institutions." The Pennsylvania State
5 University, the University of Pittsburgh, Temple University and
6 Lincoln University and their branch campuses.
7 Section 3. Scope.
8 This act relates to institutions of higher education in this
9 Commonwealth.
10 Section 4. Criminal history record information.
11 (a) General rule.--An institution of higher education shall
12 require an individual seeking to become a member of the faculty
13 to have obtained the following information within the preceding
14 one-year period and to submit the information with the
15 individual's application for employment:
16 (1) Pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S. Ch. 91 (relating to criminal
17 history record information), a report of criminal history
18 record information from the Pennsylvania State Police or a
19 statement from the Pennsylvania State Police that the central
20 repository contains no such information relating to the
21 individual. The criminal history record information shall be
22 limited to that which is disseminated pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S.
23 § 9121(b)(2) (relating to general regulations).
24 (2) A report of Federal criminal history record
25 information. The department shall be the intermediary for
26 purposes of this paragraph. For purposes of this paragraph,
27 the individual shall submit a full set of fingerprints to the
28 Pennsylvania State Police, which shall forward them to the
29 Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal
30 history record check. The department shall submit the
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1 information to the administrator of the institution of higher
2 education prior to commencing employment. The administrator
3 shall ensure confidentiality of the information.
4 (b) Fees.--The Pennsylvania State Police:
5 (1) May charge the individual a fee of not more than $10
6 to conduct the criminal history record check required under
7 subsection (a)(1).
8 (2) May charge a fee of not more than the established
9 charge by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the
10 criminal history record check required under subsection
11 (a)(2).
12 (3) Shall develop a billing system to allow institutions
13 of higher education and administrators to assume
14 responsibility for the fee required under this subsection.
15 (4) Shall allow institutions of higher education and
16 administrators to establish an account for quarterly payment.
17 Section 5. Use of records for employment of faculty.
18 (a) General rule.--Notwithstanding the provisions of 18
19 Pa.C.S. § 9125 (relating to use of records for employment), when
20 an administrator of an institution of higher education is in
21 receipt of information which is part of the individual's
22 criminal history record information file, the administrator may
23 use that information for the purpose of deciding whether or not
24 to hire the individual as a faculty member.
25 (b) Notice.--The administrator shall notify in writing the
26 individual seeking to become a member of the faculty if the
27 decision not to hire the individual is based in whole or in part
28 on criminal history record information.
29 (c) Policy.--An institution of higher education shall
30 develop and implement a written policy regarding its use of
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1 criminal history record information in its hiring practices
2 concerning faculty. The policy shall be provided to the
3 individual seeking to become a member of the faculty prior to
4 commencing employment. In addition, the institution of higher
5 education shall submit its policy to the department.
6 Section 6. Applicability.
7 This act shall apply to applications for employment submitted
8 by individuals seeking to become a faculty member at an
9 institution of higher education on or after the effective date
10 of this act.
11 Section 7. Effective date.
12 This act shall take effect in 90 days.
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