[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2534 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2534

   To amend the National Child Protection Act of 1993 to establish a 
    permanent background check system for private security officers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 10, 2016

  Mr. Toomey introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the National Child Protection Act of 1993 to establish a 
    permanent background check system for private security officers.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Security Officer Screening 
Improvement Act of 2016''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification 
        System of the Federal Bureau of Investigation maintains 
        fingerprints and criminal history records on more than 
        71,000,000 individuals.
            (2) Congress has worked with the States to make criminal 
        history background checks available to employers of private 
        security officers through the Private Security Officer 
        Employment Authorization Act of 2004 (28 U.S.C. 534 note) and 
        statutes enacted by dozens of States in compliance with Public 
        Law 92-544. However, there are still numerous persons employed 
        as private security officers, entrusted to safeguard and 
        protect people and property, who do not undergo criminal 
        history background checks authorized by Federal and State law.

SEC. 3. BACKGROUND CHECKS.

    The National Child Protection Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 5119 et seq.) 
is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 5 as section 6; and
            (2) by inserting after section 4 the following:

``SEC. 5. PROGRAM FOR NATIONAL CRIMINAL HISTORY BACKGROUND CHECKS.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) the term `covered entity' means any person that 
        employs a private security officer;
            ``(2) the term `covered individual' means an individual who 
        is employed or applying for employment as a private security 
        officer;
            ``(3) the term `criminal history review designee' means the 
        entity, if any, designated by the Attorney General under 
        subsection (b)(3) to carry out the criminal history review 
        program;
            ``(4) the term `criminal history review program' means the 
        program established under subsection (d);
            ``(5) the term `qualified State program' means a program of 
        a State authorized agency that provides access to national 
        criminal history background checks, as authorized by Federal or 
        State law;
            ``(6) the term `private security officer' has the meaning 
        given the term in subsection (c)(3) of the Private Security 
        Officer Employment Authorization Act of 2004 (28 U.S.C. 534 
        note); and
            ``(7) the term `State' means a State of the United States, 
        the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 
        American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of 
        the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of 
        Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the 
        Republic of Palau.
    ``(b) Establishment of Program.--
            ``(1) Purpose.--The purpose of this subsection is to 
        facilitate widespread access to State and national criminal 
        history background checks, not otherwise authorized by Federal 
        or State law, on private security officers and prospective 
        private security officers.
            ``(2) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
        of enactment of the Security Officer Screening Improvement Act 
        of 2016, the Attorney General shall establish--
                    ``(A) policies and procedures to carry out the 
                duties described in subsection (c); and
                    ``(B) a criminal history review program in 
                accordance with subsection (d).
            ``(3) Designees.--The Attorney General may designate one or 
        more entities to carry out the duties described in subsection 
        (c) or (d).
    ``(c) Access to State and National Background Checks.--
            ``(1) Duties.--The Attorney General shall--
                    ``(A) inform covered entities about how to request 
                State and national background checks--
                            ``(i) for covered entities located in a 
                        State with a qualified State program, by 
                        referring the covered entity to the State 
                        authorized agency; or
                            ``(ii) for covered entities located in a 
                        State without a qualified State program, by 
                        providing information on alternative methods of 
                        obtaining a State and national background 
                        check;
                    ``(B) complete a check of the national criminal 
                history background check system upon request from a 
                covered entity; and
                    ``(C) provide information received in response to 
                such national criminal history background check to the 
                criminal history review designee, if any.
            ``(2) Required information.--A request for a State and 
        national criminal history background check shall include--
                    ``(A) the fingerprints of the covered individual;
                    ``(B) other documents required by State law for a 
                State criminal history background check; and
                    ``(C) the appropriate fee.
            ``(3) Fees.--The Attorney General shall, in addition to the 
        fee for the non-criminal justice, non-law enforcement national 
        criminal history background check authorized under title II of 
        the Department of Justice Appropriations Act, 1991 under the 
        heading `salaries and expenses' under the heading `Federal 
        Bureau of Investigation' (Public Law 101-105; 28 U.S.C. 534 
        note)--
                    ``(A) collect a fee to offset the costs of carrying 
                out the duties described in subsection (d), in an 
                amount equal to the cost of conducting the criminal 
                history review; and
                    ``(B) remit such fee to the Federal Bureau of 
                Investigation.
    ``(d) Criminal History Review Program.--
            ``(1) Purpose.--The purpose of this subsection is to 
        provide covered entities with reliable and accurate information 
        regarding the fitness of covered individuals for performing 
        security services.
            ``(2) Requirements.--The Attorney General shall--
                    ``(A) establish procedures to securely receive 
                criminal history records;
                    ``(B) make determinations regarding whether the 
                criminal history records received in response to a 
                criminal history background check conducted under this 
                section indicate that the covered individual has a 
                criminal history that may bear on the covered 
                individual's fitness to perform security services; and
                    ``(C) convey to the covered entity that submitted 
                the request for a State and national criminal history 
                background check--
                            ``(i) the fitness and suitability of the 
                        covered individual based solely on the criteria 
                        described in paragraph (3); and
                            ``(ii) that the covered entity should 
                        consult the Equal Employment Opportunity 
                        Commission Enforcement Guidance #915.002, dated 
                        April 25, 2012, `Consideration of Arrest and 
                        Conviction Records in Employment Decisions 
                        under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 
                        1964', or any successor thereto issued by the 
                        Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
            ``(3) Criminal history review criteria.--In determining 
        whether a criminal history record indicates that a covered 
        individual has a criminal history that may bear on the fitness 
        of the covered individual to perform security services, the 
        Attorney General shall employ the criteria used to evaluate 
        individuals under the Private Security Officer Employment 
        Authorization Act of 2004 (28 U.S.C. 534 note).
            ``(4) Application processing.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Attorney General shall 
                establish the process by which a covered entity in a 
                State without a qualified State program may obtain a 
                State and national criminal history background check.
                    ``(B) Challenge to completeness of record.--A 
                covered individual may challenge the completeness of 
                any information in the criminal history record of the 
                individual by contacting the Federal Bureau of 
                Investigation under the procedure set out in section 
                16.34 of title 28, Code of Federal Regulations, or any 
                successor thereto.
            ``(5) Participation in program.--The Attorney General shall 
        determine whether an entity is a covered entity.
            ``(6) Privacy of information.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Any entity authorized to receive 
                or transmit fingerprints or criminal history records 
                under this section--
                            ``(i) shall use the fingerprints, criminal 
                        history records, or information in the criminal 
                        history records only for the purposes 
                        specifically set forth in this section; and
                            ``(ii) shall maintain adequate security 
                        measures to ensure the confidentiality of the 
                        fingerprints, the criminal history records, and 
                        the information in the criminal history 
                        records.
                    ``(B) Retention of fingerprints by the fbi.--In 
                accordance with State or Federal procedures, for the 
                purpose of providing fingerprint verification, criminal 
                investigation, or subsequent hit notification services, 
                or for the retention of criminal history, the Federal 
                Bureau of Investigation may retain any fingerprints 
                submitted to the Federal Bureau of Investigation under 
                this section.
            ``(7) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this subsection 
        shall be construed to change or replace any background check 
        program authorized by Federal or State law on the day before 
        the date of enactment of the Security Officer Screening 
        Improvement Act of 2016.''.
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