Background Check Procedures 620-01-40
(Revised 5/1/24 ML #3820)
The fingerprint background check shall be completed for all owners, operators, staff members, and emergency designees, upon hire and at least once every five years after. Staff members who are hired before the age of 18 must complete the fingerprint background check when they turn eighteen.
Fingerprint background checks shall also be completed for any individual residing in a home where care is provided who is age 18 and older, upon application, renewal, annual review or upon moving into residence and at least once every five years thereafter.
An SFN 433 must be submitted annually for any individual residing in a home where care is provided who is age 12 through 17 upon application, renewal, annual review and upon residence at the location of the child care.
If a volunteer or support staff including therapists and extracurricular programming is providing unsupervised child care, the individuals shall meet the qualifications of a staff member responsible for caring for or teaching children, including a fingerprint-based background check.
The owner/operator of a licensed child care program must complete and submit a fingerprint background check results memo with any application for licensure, renewal, or annual review. Any child care with a governing board, will need to choose a Board Designee to sign applications and be fingerprinted for background check.
If an individual has completed a fingerprint-based background check for one early childhood services program moves to another early childhood services program, the original fingerprint results may be used if the individual has not been separated from child care employment for more than 180 days. The individual must complete an Authorization to Transfer Background Check Results form (SFN 375) allowing CBCU to share the results of the fingerprint memo with the new program. The authorization shall be submitted upon offer of employment and results must be received prior to the individual beginning employment. The SFN 375 must accompany the fingerprint memo when it is uploaded into the Licensing System.
Operators are required to maintain a written policy on how they will determine who can be employed in their program and what offenses will disqualify an individual from employment.
CBCU will provide the results memo to the operator and current or prospective staff member of the child care program who requested the background check. The results memo will have a statement that indicates whether the staff member is eligible or ineligible, without revealing specific disqualifying information.
Potential providers/staff who have NOT lived outside of North Dakota during the past five years may work unsupervised upon qualifying results of the following:
1. A Federal Bureau of Investigation fingerprint check using Next Generation Identification;
2. A search of the National Crime Information Center's National Sex Offender Registry; and
3. An in-state (ND) search of the following registries, repositories, or databases:
a. State criminal registry or repository, with the use of fingerprints being:
b. State sex offender registry or repository; and
c. State-based child abuse and neglect registry and database.
Potential providers/staff who HAVE lived outside of North Dakota during the past five years may work:
1. SUPERVISED upon qualifying results of the following:
a. A Federal Bureau of Investigation fingerprint check using Next Generation Identification;
b. A search of the National Crime Information Center's National Sex Offender Registry; and
c. An in-state (ND) search of the following registries, repositories, or databases:
i. State criminal registry or repository, with the use of fingerprints being:
ii. State sex offender registry or repository; and
iii. State-based child abuse and neglect registry and database.
2. UNSUPERVISED upon qualifying results of the above in addition to:
a. An inter-state search of the following registries, repositories, or database for each state where such staff member resided during the preceding five years:
i. State criminal registry or repository, with the use of fingerprints being:
ii. State sex offender registry or repository; and
iii. State-based child abuse and neglect registry and database.
