App.A:9-80 Criminal history record background checks for employees of contractors in critical position at designated facility.

2. The Department of Law and Public Safety shall perform criminal history record background checks on applicants employed by or to be employed by independent contractors in a critical position at a designated facility. The department, or a private vendor approved by the department, also shall perform a thorough identity verification check on these applicants, to include, at a minimum, a credit investigation, a Social Security number verification to detect informational inconsistencies, and a cross-referencing of all applicants against appropriate law enforcement advisories and terror watch lists; provided, however, that in no instance shall information obtained from the Violent Gang and Terrorist Organization File (VGTOF) be disseminated to a non-criminal justice agency or an applicant unless that dissemination is authorized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is consistent with federal laws, rules and regulations. An independent contractor shall not employ or hire an applicant for employment in a critical position at a designated facility unless the Attorney General determines that no criminal record information exists on file in the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Identification Division, or in the State Bureau of Identification in the Division of State Police which would disqualify the individual from being employed, and that the applicant is not otherwise disqualified as a result of required identity verification checks, performed pursuant to the provisions of this act. Any person who is employed on the date of enactment of this act by an independent contractor and who works within a designated facility in a position determined by the Attorney General to be a critical position shall be permitted to serve in that capacity unless and until it is determined that the applicant is disqualified pursuant to this section, provided that within 30 days of the Attorney General's determination that the person will be serving in a critical position, an application has been submitted to the Department of Law and Public Safety with the required fees for that person to qualify for employment in a critical position, and the person has consented to and cooperates with the securing of a criminal history record background check and identity verification check conducted in accordance with section 4 of this act. The Attorney General, in consultation with the Director of the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, and industry representatives, shall develop the criteria for qualification of all applicants. Criminal history record background checks and all identity verification checks shall be repeated for previously qualified employees at least once every five years, for as long as they are employed by an independent contractor in a critical position at a designated facility.

L.2006, c.101, s.2.