Sec. 212. Ensuring accuracy of Federal criminal records
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/bill/115/s/1917/is/section-212A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
Section 534 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: In this subsection— the term applicant means the individual to whom a record sought to be exchanged pertains; the term high-risk, public trust position means a position designated as a public trust position under section 731.106(b) of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation; the term incomplete , with respect to a record, means the record— indicates that an individual was arrested but does not describe the offense for which the individual was arrested; or indicates that an individual was arrested or criminal proceedings were instituted against an individual but does not include the final disposition of the arrest or of the proceedings if a final disposition has been reached; the term record means a record or other information collected under this section that relates to— an arrest by a Federal law enforcement officer; or a Federal criminal proceeding; the term reporting jurisdiction means any person or entity that provides a record to the Attorney General under this section; and the term requesting entity — means a person or entity that seeks the exchange of a record for civil purposes that include employment, housing, credit, or any other type of application; and does not include a law enforcement or intelligence agency that seeks the exchange of a record for— investigative purposes; or purposes relating to law enforcement employment.
The definition of the term requesting entity under subparagraph
(A)shall not be construed to authorize access to records that is not otherwise authorized by law. The Attorney General shall establish and enforce procedures to ensure the prompt release of accurate records exchanged for employment-related purposes through the records system created under this section. The procedures established under paragraph
(2)shall include the following: If the Attorney General determines that a record is inaccurate, the Attorney General shall promptly correct the record, including by making deletions to the record if appropriate. If the Attorney General determines that a record is incomplete or cannot be verified, the Attorney General— shall attempt to complete or verify the record; and if unable to complete or verify the record, may promptly make any changes or deletions to the record. For purposes of this subparagraph, an incomplete record includes a record that indicates there was an arrest and does not include the disposition of the arrest. If the Attorney General determines that a record is an incomplete record described in clause (ii), the Attorney General shall, not later than 10 days after the date on which the requesting entity requests the exchange and before the exchange is made, obtain the disposition (if any) of the arrest. The Attorney General shall notify each appropriate reporting jurisdiction of any action taken under subparagraph
(A)or (B). In connection with an exchange of a record under this section, the Attorney General shall— notify the applicant that the applicant can obtain a copy of the record as described in clause
(ii)if the applicant demonstrates a reasonable basis for the applicant’s review of the record; provide to the applicant an opportunity, upon request and in accordance with clause (i), to— obtain a copy of the record; and challenge the accuracy and completeness of the record; promptly notify the requesting entity of any such challenge; not later than 30 days after the date on which the challenge is made, complete an investigation of the challenge; provide to the applicant the specific findings and results of that investigation; promptly make any changes or deletions to the records required as a result of the challenge; and report those changes to the requesting entity. An exchange shall not include any record— except as provided in clause (ii), about an arrest more than 2 years old as of the date of the request for the exchange, that does not also include a disposition (if any) of that arrest; relating to an adult or juvenile nonserious offense of the sort described in section 20.32(b) of title 28, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on July 1, 2009; or to the extent the record is not clearly an arrest or a disposition of an arrest. The prohibition under clause (i)(I) shall not apply in the case of a background check that relates to— law enforcement employment; or any position that a Federal agency designates as a— national security position; or high-risk, public trust position. The Attorney General may collect a reasonable fee for an exchange of records for employment-related purposes through the records system created under this section to defray the costs associated with exchanges for those purposes, including any costs associated with the investigation of inaccurate or incomplete records. . Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall issue regulations to carry out section 534(g) of title 28, United States Code, as added by subsection (a). In this subsection, the term record has the meaning given the term in subsection
(g)of section 534 of title 28, United States Code, as added by subsection (a). Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit to Congress a report on the implementation of subsection
(g)of section 534 of title 28, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), that includes— the number of exchanges of records for employment-related purposes made with entities in each State through the records system created under such section 534; any prolonged failure of a Federal agency to comply with a request by the Attorney General for information about dispositions of arrests; and the numbers of successful and unsuccessful challenges to the accuracy and completeness of records, organized by the Federal agency from which each record originated.