The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part of the
legislative instrument, were prepared by Carla S. Roberts.
DIGEST
SB 492 Original 2022 Regular Session Robert Mills
Present law requires the Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information (bureau) to
maintain a criminal history information system to allow qualified entities to access state and federal
criminal history records on certain individuals who volunteer or work with children, the elderly, and
individuals with disabilities. Defines "qualified entities" as a business or organization, whether
public or private, operated for profit, operated not-for-profit, or voluntary, which provides care or
care placement services, including a business or organization that licenses or certifies individuals
to provide care or care placement services, for children, the elderly, or individuals with disabilities.
Proposed law retains present law.
Present law provides that the cost of providing the information to the qualified entity will be charged
by the bureau to the individual subject to the inquiry, including any additional costs of providing the
national criminal history records.
Proposed law retains present law and also authorizes the bureau to charge the costs to the qualified
entity who is requesting the criminal history record under proposed law.
Proposed law authorizes access to the criminal history information system is to be given to a
qualified entity who collects the information and enters the information on a secure central registry
computer data base in order that local school boards and other school governing authorities can
access the registry to determine if a teacher or substitute teacher is complaint or noncompliant with
present law that requires that applicants be free from certain criminal conduct.
Proposed law defines "applicant", "bureau", "compliant", "criminal history record", "noncompliant",
and "rap back service update", and "secure central registry".
Proposed law establishes an appeal process for removing clerical errors or misinformation that an
applicant was wrongly labeled as noncompliant on the secure central registry computer data base.
Present law prohibits a teacher or anyone who has supervisory authority over a child from being
employed by a school system if that person has committed certain crimes.
Proposed law retains present law and provides that proposed law is not intended to prohibit a school
board or other school governing authority from hiring or retaining a teacher or substitute teacher
when the school governing authority independently determines that the teacher or substitute teacher
has a clean criminal history record, regardless of the fact that the computer data base has listed the
applicant as noncompliant due to clerical error. Proposed law further provides that, if the school
board finds out that the applicant was improperly designated as noncompliant in the computer data base, the school board is to notify the qualified entity and the qualified entity will request a new
criminal history record from the bureau and reenter the applicant's designation based upon the new
criminal history record obtained from the bureau without additional cost tp the applicant.
Proposed law provides that no person can maintain a cause of action for liability against the qualified
entity, the state, or any agency, officer, deputy, or employee of the state of the qualified entity, for
providing the information requested or received in accordance with proposed law.
Effective upon signature of the governor or lapse of time for gubernatorial action.
(Amends R.S. 15:587.1(B)(1)(a) and R.S. 17:15(B); adds R.S. 17:15.1)