Massachusetts CORI Legislation Compliance Information
Posted on 4/24/2012 by Josephine Kenney
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Posted by Josephine Elizabeth Kenney, JD
SVP Compliance/Senior Compliance Counsel
On August 6, 2010 Massachusetts Governor, Deval Patrick signed the 2010 CORI Reform bill into law. This legislation contained several sections each with various effective dates. A section of this legislation which pertained employers became effective on November 4, 2010. This section banned questions concerning applicant’s criminal history from written job applications, unless the information is required for a particular job by federal or state law. First Advantage prepared and distributed a Memorandum and Important Client Alert regarding the above information on August 16, 2010.
Several other sections of this law that also pertain to employers will go into effect on May 4, 2012.
The law will require on 05/04/12 that the employer, or other decision maker, provide a copy of the CORI record to the applicant:
- Prior to questioning the applicant about his/her criminal history; and
- If the employer takes adverse action against the applicant
However, if the employer has provided a copy of the CORI record to the applicant prior to questioning, then they are not obligated to provide a copy of the CORI if they make an adverse decision against the applicant.
The law will also require employers who conduct 5 or more CORI checks per year, to maintain a written CORI policy and provide a copy of the CORI policy and information regarding the process for correcting a CORI record to the applicant
Also, the information employers receive on a CORI record will be limited by the upcoming law; felony information will be limited to 10 years and misdemeanor information will be limited to 5 years.
New Requirements as of 05/04/12 under the 2010 CORI Reform law:
Section 171A. In connection with any decision regarding employment, volunteer opportunities, housing or professional licensing, a person in possession of an applicant’s criminal offender record information shall provide the applicant with the criminal history record in the person’s possession, whether obtained from the department or any other source prior to questioning the applicant about his criminal history. If the person makes a decision adverse to the applicant on the basis of his criminal history, the person shall also provide the applicant with the criminal history record in the person’s possession, whether obtained from the department or any other source; provided, however, that if the person has provided the applicant with a copy of his criminal offender record information prior to questioning the person is not required to provide the information a second time in connection with an adverse decision based on this information.
A person who annually conducts 5 or more criminal background investigations, whether criminal offender record information is obtained from the department or any other source, shall maintain a written criminal offender record information policy providing that, in addition to any obligations required by the commissioner by regulation, it will: (i) notify the applicant of the potential adverse decision based on the criminal offender record information; (ii) provide a copy of the criminal offender record information and the policy to the applicant; and (iii) provide information concerning the process for correcting a criminal record.
Section 172. (3)
Criminal offender record information made available under this section shall be limited to the following: (i) felony convictions for 10 years following the disposition thereof, including termination of any period of incarceration or custody, (ii) misdemeanor convictions for 5 years following the disposition thereof, including termination of any period of incarceration or custody, and (iii) pending criminal charges, which shall include cases that have been continued without a finding until such time as the case is dismissed pursuant to section 18 of chapter 278; provided, however, that prior misdemeanor and felony conviction records shall be available for the entire period that the subject's last available conviction record is available under this section; and provided further, that a violation of section 7 of chapter 209A and a violation of section 9 of chapter 258E shall be treated as a felony for purposes of this section.
Section 172 (c)
In connection with any decision regarding employment, volunteer opportunities, housing or professional licensing, a person in possession of an applicant's criminal offender record information shall provide the applicant with the criminal history record in the person's possession, whether obtained from the department or any other source, (a) prior to questioning the applicant about his criminal history and (b) if the person makes a decision adverse to the applicant on the basis of his criminal history; provided, however, that if the person has provided the applicant with a copy of his criminal offender record information prior to questioning the person is not required to provide the information a second time in connection with an adverse decision based on this information. Failure to provide such criminal history information to the individual in accordance with this section may subject the offending person to investigation, hearing and sanctions by the board.
A copy of the law signed by the Governor can be obtained from:
http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/senate/186/st02pdf/st02583.pdf
The above article is not offered as legal advice but is instead offered for informational purposes. First Advantage Corporation is not a law firm and does not offer legal advice. The above article is therefore not intended as a substitute for the legal advice of an attorney knowledgeable of the user’s individual circumstances. First Advantage Corporation makes no assurances regarding the accuracy, completeness, currency or utility of the above information. Legislative, regulatory and case law developments regularly impact on general research.