A very important deadline is fast approaching for any Pennsylvania organization which serves or provides services to children. Effective July 1, 2015, all unpaid volunteers who are, “responsible for the welfare of a child or [have] direct contact with children” as part of their volunteer services are to complete the clearances below before he/she volunteers with any organization.
The required background checks are:
1. Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Record Check 2. Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance certifying the applicant is not named in the statewide database “as the alleged perpetrator in a pending child abuse investigation or as the perpetrator of a founded report or indicated report” of child abuse.
3. Federal Bureau of Investigation Criminal Background Check
Volunteers are not required to complete the federal criminal background check (#3) if they have lived continuously in Pennsylvania for the previous 10 years; provided that they swear or affirm in writing that 1) they have not been the perpetrator of child abuse in the previous five (5) years and 2) they have not been convicted of one of the prohibited offenses.
Volunteers can visit KeepKidsSafe.pa.gov for more information about the new law and for information on how to complete the background checks online. Once a volunteer obtains the required clearances, he/she can transfer those clearances, which allows him/her to volunteer with any impacted organization.
Any organization that has questions about the impact of this law on the organization should contact legal counsel for more complete advice and guidance.