Current through all regulations passed and filed through December 11, 2023
(A) What records
are included in a background check?
(1)
Bureau of criminal investigation (BCI) records pursuant to section
5104.013 of the Revised
Code.
(2) Federal bureau of
investigation (FBI) records pursuant to section
5104.013 of the Revised
Code.
(3) National sex offender
registry.
(4) State sex offender
registry.
(5) Statewide automated
child welfare information system (SACWIS) records.
(B) Who shall have a background check?
(1) An owner and administrator of a licensed
child care center or applicants to be licensed as a
child care center.
(2) An
employee in a licensed child care center as defined in rule
5101:2-12-01
of the Administrative Code.
(3) A
child care staff member in a licensed child care center as defined in rule
5101:2-12-01
of the Administrative Code, including substitutes.
(C) When is a background check required?
(1) At application for a child care center
license.
(2) Prior to the first day
of employment for employees and child care staff members.
(3) Every five years from the date of the
most recent
BCI records check.
(D) How is a background check obtained?
The individual shall:
(1)
Create a profile
in the Ohio professional registry (OPR).
(2)
Submit
fingerprints electronically according to the process established by BCI and
have the BCI and FBI results sent directly to the Ohio department of job and
family services (ODJFS). Information on how to obtain a background check can be
found at
https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Business/Services-for-Business/WebCheck.
(3) Complete and submit
the
request for a background check for
child care in the OPR
.
(E) What if an individual previously resided
in a state other than Ohio?
(1) ODJFS will
contact any states in which the individual resided in the previous five years
to request the information required in paragraph (A) of this rule.
(2) Any information received from other
states will be reviewed and considered by ODJFS as part of the background check
review pursuant to paragraph
(G) of this rule.
(F)
What happens if
an individual does not complete the full background check determination
process?
(1)
If
the individual completes only the requirements in paragraph (D)(2) of this rule
or only the requirements in paragraph (D)(3) of this rule and does not submit
the other component within forty-five days, the background check process will
end and a determination of eligibility will not be made.
(2)
ODJFS will notify
the individual and the program that the background check determination process
has ended.
(3)
The individual will need to complete the requirements
of paragraphs (D)(2) and (D)(3) of this rule to restart the background check
determination process in the future.
(G)
What makes an individual ineligible
to own or be employed in a
center?
(1) A conviction or guilty plea
to an offense listed in division (A)(5) of section
109.572 of the Revised Code,
unless the individual meets the rehabilitation criteria in appendix A to this
rule.
(a) Section
109.572 of the Revised Code
requires that this rule applies to records of convictions that have been sealed
pursuant to section 2953.32 of the Revised
Code.
(b) A conviction of or a plea
of guilty to an offense listed in division (A)(5) of section
109.572 of the Revised Code is
not prohibitive if the individual has been granted an unconditional pardon for
the offense pursuant to Chapter 2967. of the Revised Code or the conviction or
guilty plea has been set aside pursuant to law. For purposes of this rule,
"unconditional pardon" includes a conditional pardon to which all conditions
have been performed or have transpired.
(2) Being registered or required to be
registered on the national or state sex offender registry or
repository.
(3) The individual is
identified in SACWIS as the perpetrator for a substantiated finding of child
abuse or neglect in the previous ten years from the date
the request for background check was submitted or the
individual has had a child removed from their home in the previous ten years
pursuant to section 2151.353 of the Revised Code due
to a court determination of abuse or neglect caused by that specific
person.
(H) What happens after
the individual requests
the background check in the OPR and submits fingerprints through a webcheck
location?
(1)
The program and individual will receive notification of
preliminary approval generated from the OPR.
(2) The center
will receive the JFS 01176 "Program Notification of Background Check Review for
Child Care (rev. 9/2019) from ODJFS and shall keep it on file, if not available in the OPR.
(a) For those individuals not eligible for
employment, the center shall not hire the individual or shall terminate them
from employment immediately upon receipt of the JFS 01176.
(b)
Until preliminary
approval is received from ODJFS, an administrator, child care staff member or
employee hired on or after the effective date of this rule cannot engage in any
assigned duties or be near children.
(c)
A child
care staff
member with preliminary approval but not a JFS 01176 on file
at the center or in the OPR shall not be left
alone with children and shall be supervised at all times by another child care
staff member with a JFS 01176 on file or in the OPR
.
(d)
Only child care
staff members with a JFS 01176 on file at the center or in the OPR may be left
alone with children.
(3) The
individual will receive the JFS 01177 "Individual Notification of Background
Check Review for Child Care" (rev. 9/2019) from ODJFS.
(a) If the individual believes the
information received is not accurate, the individual may directly contact the
agency that contributed the questioned information.
(b) If the individual disagrees with the
employment eligibility decision made by ODJFS, a JFS 01178 "Request for Review
of Background Check Decision for Child Care" (10/2017) shall be completed to
request a review of the decision. The JFS 01178 shall
be submitted within fourteen business days from the date on the JFS
01177.
(I) What happens after
an individual submits a JFS 01178 to ODJFS?
If an individual requests a review of a background check
decision pursuant to paragraph
(H)(3)(b) of this rule:
(1) The program shall not allow the
individual to be on-site at the program during the review by ODJFS.
(2) If the individual is determined to be
eligible for employment, the program may allow the individual to be employed
and shall keep the updated JFS 01176 on file pursuant to paragraph
(H)(2) of this rule.
(J)
What are the background check requirements
if an individual
becomes employed at another licensed
program?
(1) Only the
request
for a background check for child care in the OPR is required if the
individual meets all of the following:
(a) The
individual has a current background check determination by ODJFS completed in
the previous five years pursuant to this rule.
(b) The individual has been employed by a
licensed child care center,
licensed type A home, licensed type B home, approved day camp, a preschool
or school-age program approved to provide publicly funded child care or
certified as an in-home aide or was a resident of a
licensed type A home or licensed type B home in the previous one hundred
eighty consecutive days.
(2) Upon receipt of the
request, ODJFS will provide the JFS
01176
based on the existing background check determination to the new employer.
Click to
view Appendix
Click to
view Appendix
Effective:
9/29/2019
Five Year Review (FYR) Dates:
7/2/2019 and
09/29/2024
Promulgated
Under: 119.03
Statutory
Authority: 5104.013
Rule
Amplifies: 5104.013,
5104.03
Prior
Effective Dates: 03/01/1981, 09/01/1986, 01/02/1992 (Emer.), 04/01/1992,
07/01/2003, 09/01/2005, 01/01/2007, 09/01/2008, 07/01/2010, 09/29/2011,
11/01/2015, 12/31/2016, 10/29/2017