§143B-931. Criminal record checks of school personnel

(a)        The Department of Public Safety may provide a criminal record check to the local board of education of a person who is employed in a public school in that local school district or of a person who has applied for employment in a public school in that local school district, if the employee or applicant consents to the record check. The Department may also provide a criminal record check of school personnel as defined in G.S. 115C-332 by fingerprint card to the local board of education from National Repositories of Criminal Histories, in accordance with G.S. 115C-332. The information shall be kept confidential by the local board of education as provided in Article 21A of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes.

(b)        The Department of Public Safety may provide a criminal history record check to the board of directors of a regional school of a person who is employed at a regional school or of a person who has applied for employment at a regional school if the employee or applicant consents to the record check. The Department may also provide a criminal history record check of school personnel as defined in G.S. 115C-238.56N by fingerprint card to the board of directors of the regional school from the National Repositories of Criminal Histories, in accordance with G.S. 115C-238.56N. The information shall be kept confidential by the board of directors of the regional school as provided in G.S. 115C-238.56N.

(c)        The Department of Public Safety may provide a criminal record check to the employer of a person who is employed in a nonpublic school or of a person who has applied for employment in a nonpublic school, if the employee or applicant consents to the record check. For purposes of this subsection, the term nonpublic school is one that is subject to the provisions of Article 39 of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes, but does not include a home school as defined in that Article.

(d)        The Department of Public Safety shall charge a reasonable fee for conducting a criminal record check under this section. The fee shall not exceed the actual cost of locating, editing, researching, and retrieving the information.

(e)        The Department of Public Safety may provide a criminal record check to the schools within the Department of Health and Human Services of a person who is employed, applies for employment, or applies to be selected as a volunteer, if the employee or applicant consents to the record check. The Department of Health and Human Services shall keep all information pursuant to this subsection confidential, as provided in Article 7 of Chapter 126 of the General Statutes.

(f)         The Department of Public Safety shall adopt rules to implement this section.

(1991, c. 705, s. 1; 1993, c. 350, s. 1; 1995, c. 373, s. 2; 1997-443, s. 11A.118(a); 2003-214, s. 1(2); 2011-241, s. 2; 2014-100, ss. 17.1(m), (o).)