BILL NUMBER: AB 1934 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 24, 2002
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 18, 2002
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Corbett
FEBRUARY 12, 2002
An act to amend Section 1105 of the Penal Code, and to
add Sections 7910 and 7911 to the Public Utilities Code, relating
An act to add Section 7910 to the Public Utilities
Code, relating to telephone corporations.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1934, as amended, Corbett. Telephone corporations: background
security checks.
(1) Existing
Existing law permits telephone corporations to
construct, own, control, operate and manage telephone lines and to
provide telephone service for compensation in the state, subject to
regulation by the Public Utilities Commission.
This bill would require telephone corporations to conduct an
investigation into the background of an applicant for employment to
determine whether the applicant is a threat to the security of the
telecommunications system. The bill would require the investigation
to include whether the applicant has a criminal background which
would require the submission of fingerprints and any requested
related information, to the Department of Justice to obtain summary
criminal history information. The bill would require the applicant
to submit fingerprints and requested related information to the
telephone corporation, to allow the telephone corporation to obtain
summary criminal history information and subsequent arrest service
from the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of
Investigation. The bill would require the Department of Justice to
expeditiously review the state summary criminal history information
in its possession, and any summary criminal history information it
obtains from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and provide a
summary criminal history information to the requesting telephone
corporation. The bill would authorize the Department of Justice to
charge a reasonable fee for furnishing state summary criminal history
information. The bill would require that the summary criminal
history information obtained from the Department of Justice be
confidential.
This bill would also require every person performing service under
a personal services contract to a telephone corporation, including
independent contractors, vendors, and their employees, to provide the
telephone corporation with the same background check, including the
summary criminal history information. The bill would require the
telephone corporation, independent contractor, or vendor to ensure
the confidentiality of the summary criminal history information
received under these provisions.
The bill would provide that its provisions do not apply to persons
that do not have contact or access to critical elements of the
telephone network.
Since an unauthorized disclosure of state summary criminal history
information is a crime under existing provisions of law, this bill,
by including telephone corporations as entities to which this
prohibition is applicable, would impose a state-mandated local
program by expanding the definition of a crime.
(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
This bill would, with certain exceptions, require telephone
corporations to perform or have performed an investigation into the
background of applicants for employment, certain employees,
independent contractors, and vendors.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:
yes no . State-mandated local program:
yes no .
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 11105 of the Penal Code is amended to
SECTION 1. Section 7910 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to
read:
7910. (a) Telephone corporations shall perform background checks
of applicants for employment, according to current business
practices.
(b) A background check equivalent to that described in subsection
(a) shall also be conducted on all of the following:
(1) Persons hired by a telephone corporation under a personal
services contract.
(2) Independent contractors and their employees.
(3) Vendors and their employees.
(c) Except as otherwise provided by contract, the telephone
corporation shall not be responsible for administering the background
checks and shall not assure the cost of the background checks of
individuals who are not employees of the telephone corporation.
(d) This section is inapplicable to persons that do not have
direct contact with or access to the telephone network, the telephone
corporation's central office, or customer premises.
(e) This section shall not be applicable to temporary workers
performing emergency functions to restore the network of a telephone
corporation to its normal state in the event of a natural disaster or
an emergency that threatens or results in the loss of service.
read:
11105. (a) (1) The Department of Justice shall maintain state
summary criminal history information.
(2) As used in this section:
(A) "State summary criminal history information" means the master
record of information compiled by the Attorney General pertaining to
the identification and criminal history of any person, such as name,
date of birth, physical description, fingerprints, photographs, date
of arrests, arresting agencies and booking numbers, charges,
dispositions, and similar data about the person.
(B) "State summary criminal history information" does not refer to
records and data compiled by criminal justice agencies other than
the Attorney General, nor does it refer to records of complaints to
or investigations conducted by, or records of intelligence
information or security procedures of, the office of the Attorney
General and the Department of Justice.
(b) The Attorney General shall furnish state summary criminal
history information to any of the following, if needed in the course
of their duties, provided that when information is furnished to
assist an agency, officer, or official of state or local government,
a public utility, or any entity, in fulfilling employment,
certification, or licensing duties, Chapter 1321 of the Statutes of
1974 and of Section 432.7 of the Labor Code shall apply:
(1) The courts of the state.
(2) Peace officers of the state as defined in Section 830.1,
subdivisions (a) and (e) of Section 830.2, subdivision (a) of Section
830.3, subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 830.5, and subdivision
(a) of Section 830.31.
(3) District attorneys of the state.
(4) Prosecuting city attorneys of any city within the state.
(5) Probation officers of the state.
(6) Parole officers of the state.
(7) A public defender or attorney of record when representing a
person in proceedings upon a petition for a certificate of
rehabilitation and pardon pursuant to Section 4852.08.
(8) A public defender or attorney of record when representing a
person in a criminal case and if authorized access by statutory or
decisional law.
(9) Any agency, officer, or official of the state if the criminal
history information is required to implement a statute or regulation
that expressly refers to specific criminal conduct applicable to the
subject person of the state summary criminal history information, and
contains requirements or exclusions, or both, expressly based upon
that specified criminal conduct.
(10) Any city or county, or city and county, or district, or any
officer, or official thereof if access is needed in order to assist
that agency, officer, or official in fulfilling employment,
certification, or licensing duties, and if the access is specifically
authorized by the city council, board of supervisors, or governing
board of the city, county, or district if the criminal history
information is required to implement a statute, ordinance, or
regulation that expressly refers to specific criminal conduct
applicable to the subject person of the state summary criminal
history information, and contains requirements or exclusions, or
both, expressly based upon that specified criminal conduct.
(11) The subject of the state summary criminal history information
under procedures established under Article 5 (commencing with
Section 11120) of Chapter 1 of Title 1 of Part 4.
(12) Any person or entity when access is expressly authorized by
statute if the criminal history information is required to implement
a statute or regulation that expressly refers to specific criminal
conduct applicable to the subject person of the state summary
criminal history information, and contains requirements or
exclusions, or both, expressly based upon that specified criminal
conduct.
(13) Health officers of a city, county, or city and county, or
district, when in the performance of their official duties enforcing
Section 120175 of the Health and Safety Code.
(14) Any managing or supervising correctional officer of a county
jail or other county correctional facility.
(15) Any humane society, or society for the prevention of cruelty
to animals, for the specific purpose of complying with Section 14502
of the Corporations Code for the appointment of level 1 humane
officers.
(16) Local child support agencies established by Section 17304 of
the Family Code. When a local child support agency closes a support
enforcement case containing summary criminal history information, the
agency shall delete or purge from the file and destroy any documents
or information concerning or arising from offenses for or of which
the parent has been arrested, charged, or convicted, other than for
offenses related to the parent's having failed to provide support for
minor children, consistent with the requirements of Section 17531 of
the Family Code.
(17) County child welfare agency personnel who have been delegated
the authority of county probation officers to access state summary
criminal history information pursuant to Section 272 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code for the purposes specified in Section 16504.5
of the Welfare and Institutions Code. Information from criminal
history records provided pursuant to this subdivision shall not be
used for any purposes other than those specified in this section and
Section 16504.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. When an agency
obtains records obtained both on the basis of name checks and
fingerprint checks, final placement decisions shall be based only on
the records obtained pursuant to the fingerprint check.
(18) (A) A telephone corporation, when requested for the purpose
of conducting an investigation into the background of applicants
pursuant to Section 7910 of the Public Utilities Code.
(B) A person performing service under a personal services contract
with a telephone corporation, including independent contractors,
vendors, and their employees, when requested for the purpose of
conducting a background investigation pursuant to Section 7911 of the
Public Utilities Code.
(c) The Attorney General may furnish state summary criminal
history information upon a showing of a compelling need to any of the
following, provided that when information is furnished to assist an
agency, officer, or official of state or local government, a public
utility, or any entity, in fulfilling employment, certification, or
licensing duties, Chapter 1321 of the Statutes of 1974 and of Section
432.7 of the Labor Code shall apply:
(1) Any public utility as defined in Section 216 of the Public
Utilities Code that operates a nuclear energy facility when access is
needed in order to assist in employing persons to work at the
facility, provided that, if the Attorney General supplies the data,
he or she shall furnish a copy of the data to the person to whom the
data relates.
(2) To a peace officer of the state other than those included in
subdivision (b).
(3) To a peace officer of another country.
(4) To public officers (other than peace officers) of the United
States, other states, or possessions or territories of the United
States, provided that access to records similar to state summary
criminal history information is expressly authorized by a statute of
the United States, other states, or possessions or territories of the
United States if the information is needed for the performance of
their official duties.
(5) To any person when disclosure is requested by a probation,
parole, or peace officer with the consent of the subject of the state
summary criminal history information and for purposes of furthering
the rehabilitation of the subject.
(6) The courts of the United States, other states, or territories
or possessions of the United States.
(7) Peace officers of the United States, other states, or
territories or possessions of the United States.
(8) To any individual who is the subject of the record requested
if needed in conjunction with an application to enter the United
States or any foreign nation.
(9) Any public utility as defined in Section 216 of the Public
Utilities Code, if access is needed in order to assist in employing
current or prospective employees who in the course of their
employment may be seeking entrance to private residences. The
information provided shall be limited to the record of convictions
and any arrest for which the person is released on bail or on his or
her own recognizance pending trial.
If the Attorney General supplies the data pursuant to this
paragraph, the Attorney General shall furnish a copy of the data to
the current or prospective employee to whom the data relates.
Any information obtained from the state summary criminal history
is confidential and the receiving public utility shall not disclose
its contents, other than for the purpose for which it was acquired.
The state summary criminal history information in the possession of
the public utility and all copies made from it shall be destroyed not
more than 30 days after employment or promotion or transfer is
denied or granted, except for those cases where a current or
prospective employee is out on bail or on his or her own recognizance
pending trial, in which case the state summary criminal history
information and all copies shall be destroyed not more than 30 days
after the case is resolved.
A violation of this paragraph is a misdemeanor, and shall give the
current or prospective employee who is injured by the violation a
cause of action against the public utility to recover damages
proximately caused by the violations. Any public utility's request
for state summary criminal history information for purposes of
employing current or prospective employees who may be seeking
entrance to private residences in the course of their employment
shall be deemed a "compelling need" as required to be shown in this
subdivision.
Nothing in this section shall be construed as imposing any duty
upon public utilities to request state summary criminal history
information on any current or prospective employees.
(10) To any campus of the California State University or the
University of California, or any four-year college or university
accredited by a regional accreditation organization approved by the
United States Department of Education, if needed in conjunction with
an application for admission by a convicted felon to any special
education program for convicted felons, including, but not limited
to, university alternatives and halfway houses. Only conviction
information shall be furnished. The college or university may
require the convicted felon to be fingerprinted, and any inquiry to
the department under this section shall include the convicted felon's
fingerprints and any other information specified by the department.
(d) Whenever an authorized request for state summary criminal
history information pertains to a person whose fingerprints are on
file with the Department of Justice and the department has no
criminal history of that person, and the information is to be used
for employment, licensing, or certification purposes, the fingerprint
card accompanying the request for information, if any, may be
stamped "no criminal record" and returned to the person or entity
making the request.
(e) Whenever state summary criminal history information is
furnished as the result of an application and is to be used for
employment, licensing, or certification purposes, the Department of
Justice may charge the person or entity making the request a fee that
it determines to be sufficient to reimburse the department for the
cost of furnishing the information. In addition, the Department of
Justice may add a surcharge to the fee to fund maintenance and
improvements to the systems from which the information is obtained.
Notwithstanding any other law, any person or entity required to pay a
fee to the department for information received under this section
may charge the applicant a fee sufficient to reimburse the person or
entity for this expense. All moneys received by the department
pursuant to this section, Sections 11105.3 and 12054 of the Penal
Code, and Section 13588 of the Education Code shall be deposited in a
special account in the General Fund to be available for expenditure
by the department to offset costs incurred pursuant to those sections
and for maintenance and improvements to the systems from which the
information is obtained upon appropriation by the Legislature.
(f) Whenever there is a conflict, the processing of criminal
fingerprints and fingerprints of applicants for security guard or
alarm agent registrations or firearms qualification permits submitted
pursuant to Section 7514 of the Business and Professions Code shall
take priority over the processing of applicant fingerprints.
(g) It is not a violation of this section to disseminate
statistical or research information obtained from a record, provided
that the identity of the subject of the record is not disclosed.
(h) It is not a violation of this section to include information
obtained from a record in (1) a transcript or record of a judicial or
administrative proceeding or (2) any other public record if the
inclusion of the information in the public record is authorized by a
court, statute, or decisional law.
(i) Notwithstanding any other law, the Department of Justice or
any state or local law enforcement agency may require the submission
of fingerprints for the purpose of conducting summary criminal
history information checks that are authorized by law.
(j) The state summary criminal history information shall include
any finding of mental incompetence pursuant to Chapter 6 (commencing
with Section 1367) of Title 10 of Part 2 arising out of a complaint
charging a felony offense specified in Section 290.
SEC. 2. Section 7910 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to
read:
7910. (a) A telephone corporation shall conduct an investigation
into the background of applicants for employment. The background
check shall include whether the applicant has any arrests pending
adjudication for, has entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to,
or been found guilty or convicted of, a felony or a misdemeanor
relevant to whether the applicant would be a threat to the security
of the telecommunications system, regardless of whether the
conviction has been expunged. The criminal background investigation
shall include the submission of fingerprints and any requested
related information, to the Department of Justice, and the obtaining
of summary criminal history information, pursuant to this section.
For purposes of this section, "arrests pending adjudication" include
outstanding arrest warrants, arrests for offenses where the applicant
is presently awaiting the settling of a trial date, arrests where
the applicant is presently awaiting trial, whether the applicant is
incarcerated, escaped incarceration, or has been released on bail or
on his or her own recognizance. "Arrests pending adjudication" do
not include arrests where no complaint was filed or a complaint was
filed and dismissed.
(b) Upon request by the telephone corporation, the applicant shall
submit fingerprints and requested related information to the
telephone corporation, to allow the telephone corporation to obtain
summary criminal history information and subsequent arrest service
from the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, pursuant to Section 11105 and 11105.2 of the Penal
Code. The telephone corporation shall submit fingerprints of the
applicant, along with any requested related information, to the
Department of Justice, for the purpose of obtaining summary criminal
history information from the Department of Justice and the Federal
Bureau of Investigation relevant to the background investigation
required in subdivision (a). The Department of Justice shall forward
requests for federal level summary criminal history information to
the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Fingerprints submitted pursuant
to this section include fingerprints taken by the use of live scan
technology or an electronic fingerprinting system.
(c) The Department of Justice shall expeditiously review the state
summary criminal history information in its possession, and any
criminal history information it obtains from the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, and provide a summary criminal history information
pursuant to Section 11105 of the Penal Code to the requesting
telephone corporation.
(d) The Department of Justice may charge a reasonable fee for
furnishing state summary criminal history information, pursuant to
subdivision (e) of Section 11105 of the Penal Code, as well as a fee
that may not exceed its actual costs incurred in obtaining
information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(e) All summary criminal history information obtained from the
Department of Justice is confidential. Each telephone corporation
receiving criminal history information shall ensure the following:
(1) No person receiving the summary criminal history information
shall disclose its contents other than to discuss the results with
the applicant, or provide copies of the information.
(2) The summary criminal history information shall be stored in a
secure place, accessible only to persons responsible for the
screening of applicants.
(3) The summary criminal history information shall be destroyed in
a secure manner, including shredding, promptly after the hiring
determination is made.
(f) This section does not apply to persons that do not have
contact or access to critical elements of the telecommunications
network.
SEC. 3. Section 7911 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to
read:
7911. (a) Every person performing service under a personal
services contract with a telephone corporation, including independent
contractors, vendors, and their employees, shall provide the
telephone corporation with a background check. The background check
shall include whether the person has any arrests pending adjudication
for, has entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to, or been
found guilty or convicted of, a felony or a misdemeanor relevant to
whether the applicant would be a threat to the security of the
telecommunications system, regardless of whether the conviction has
been expunged. The criminal background investigation shall include
the submission of fingerprints and any requested related information,
to the Department of Justice, and the obtaining of summary criminal
history information, pursuant to this section. For purposes of this
section, "arrests pending adjudication" include outstanding arrest
warrants, arrests for offenses where the person is presently awaiting
the settling of a trial date, arrests where the person is presently
awaiting trial, whether the person is incarcerated, escaped
incarceration, or has been released on bail or on his or her own
recognizance. "Arrests pending adjudication" do not include arrests
where no complaint was filed or a complaint was filed and dismissed.
(b) The person described in subdivision (a) shall submit
fingerprints and requested related information to the Department of
Justice, for the purpose of obtaining summary criminal history
information from the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of
Investigation relevant to the background investigation required in
subdivision (a). The Department of Justice shall forward requests
for federal level summary criminal history information to the Federal
Bureau of Investigation. Fingerprints submitted pursuant to this
section include fingerprints taken by the use of live scan technology
or an electronic fingerprinting system.
(c) The Department of Justice shall expeditiously review the state
summary criminal history information in its possession, and any
criminal history information it obtains from the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, and provide a summary criminal history information
pursuant to Section 11105 of the Penal Code to the person requesting
the information pursuant to subdivision (a). That information shall
be provided to the telephone corporation for whom services are being
performed.
(d) The Department of Justice may charge a reasonable fee for
furnishing state summary criminal history information, pursuant to
subdivision (e) of Section 11105 of the Penal Code, as well as a fee
that may not exceed its actual costs incurred in obtaining
information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(e) All summary criminal history information obtained from the
Department of Justice is confidential. Each telephone corporation,
independent contractor, or vendor receiving summary criminal history
information shall ensure the following:
(1) No person receiving the summary criminal history information
shall disclose its contents other than to discuss the results with
the applicant, or provide copies of the information.
(2) The summary criminal history information shall be stored in a
secure place, accessible only to persons responsible for the
screening of applicants.
(3) The summary criminal history information shall be destroyed in
a secure manner, including shredding, promptly after the personal
services contract has been completed or terminated.
(f) This section does not apply to persons that do not have
contact or access to critical elements of the telephone network.
SEC. 4. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.