Mo. Rev. Stat. § 43.540 — MO Code / Chapter 43 / Section 43.540
43.540 Criminal record review, certain applicants and qualified entities — ...
Status: in_force

43.540. Criminal record review, certain applicants and qualified entities — definitions — Rap Back program, requirements, fingerprints — information to be provided by applicant — confidentiality — notifications and forms provided by patrol. — 1. As used in this section, the following terms mean:

(1) "Applicant" , a person who:

(a) Is actively employed by or seeks employment with a qualified entity;

(b) Is actively licensed or seeks licensure with a qualified entity;

(c) Actively volunteers or seeks to volunteer with a qualified entity; or

(d) Is actively contracted with or seeks to contract with a qualified entity;

(2) "Missouri criminal record review" , a review of criminal history records and sex offender registration records pursuant to sections 589.400 to 589.425 maintained by the Missouri state highway patrol in the Missouri criminal records repository;

(3) "Missouri Rap Back program" , shall include any type of automatic notification made by the Missouri state highway patrol to a qualified entity indicating that an applicant who is employed, licensed, or otherwise under the purview of that entity has been arrested for a reported criminal offense in Missouri as required under section 43.506 ;

(4) "National criminal record review" , a review of the criminal history records maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation;

(5) "National Rap Back program" , shall include any type of automatic notification made by the Federal Bureau of Investigation through the Missouri state highway patrol to a qualified entity indicating that an applicant who is employed, licensed, or otherwise under the purview of that entity has been arrested for a reported criminal offense outside the state of Missouri and the fingerprints for that arrest were forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation by the arresting agency;

(6) "Qualified entity" , an entity that is:

(a) An office or division of state, county, or municipal government, including a political subdivision or a board or commission designated by statute or approved local ordinance, to issue or renew a license, permit, certification, or registration of authority;

(b) An office or division of state, county, or municipal government, including a political subdivision or a board or commission designated by statute or approved local ordinance, to make fitness determinations on applications for state, county, or municipal government employment; or

(c) Any entity that is authorized to obtain criminal history record information under 28 CFR 20.33.

2. The central repository shall have the authority to submit applicant fingerprints to the National Rap Back program to be retained for the purpose of being searched against future submissions to the National Rap Back program, including latent fingerprint searches. Qualified entities may conduct Missouri and national criminal record reviews on applicants and participate in Missouri and National Rap Back programs for the purpose of determining suitability or fitness for a permit, license, or employment, and shall abide by the following requirements:

(1) The qualified entity shall register with the Missouri state highway patrol prior to submitting a request for screening under this section. As part of such registration, the qualified entity shall indicate if it chooses to enroll their applicants in the Missouri and National Rap Back programs;

(2) Qualified entities shall notify applicants subject to a criminal record review under this section that the applicant's fingerprints shall be retained by the state central repository and the Federal Bureau of Investigation and shall be searched against other fingerprints on file, including latent fingerprints;

(3) Qualified entities shall notify applicants subject to enrollment in the National Rap Back program that the applicant's fingerprints, while retained, may continue to be compared against other fingerprints submitted or retained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, including latent fingerprints;

(4) The criminal record review and Rap Back process described in this section shall be voluntary and conform to the requirements established in Pub. L. 92-544 and other applicable state or federal law. As a part of the registration, the qualified entity shall agree to comply with state and federal law and shall indicate so by signing an agreement approved by the Missouri state highway patrol. The Missouri state highway patrol may periodically audit qualified entities to ensure compliance with federal law and this section;

(5) A qualified entity shall submit to the Missouri state highway patrol a request for screening on applicants covered under this section using a completed fingerprint card;

(6) Each request shall be accompanied by a reasonable fee, as provided in section 43.530 , plus the amount required, if any, by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the national criminal record review and enrollment in the National Rap Back program in compliance with applicable state or federal laws;

(7) The Missouri state highway patrol shall provide, directly to the qualified entity, the applicant's state criminal history records that are not exempt from disclosure under chapter 610 or are otherwise confidential under law;

(8) The national criminal history data shall be available to qualified entities to use only for the purpose of screening applicants as described under this section. The Missouri state highway patrol shall provide the applicant's national criminal history record information directly to the qualified entity;

(9) This section shall not require the Missouri state highway patrol to make an eligibility determination on behalf of any qualified entity;

(10) The qualified entity shall notify the applicant, in writing, of his or her right to obtain a copy of any criminal record review, including the criminal history records, if any, contained in the report, and of the applicant's right to challenge the accuracy and completeness of any information contained in any such report and to obtain a determination as to the validity of such challenge before a final determination regarding the applicant is made by the qualified entity reviewing the criminal history information. A qualified entity that is required by law to apply screening criteria, including any right to contest or request an exemption from disqualification, shall apply such screening criteria to the state and national criminal history record information received from the Missouri state highway patrol for those applicants subject to the required screening; and

(11) Failure to obtain the information authorized under this section with respect to an applicant shall not be used as evidence in any negligence action against a qualified entity. The state, any political subdivision of the state, or any agency, officer, or employee of the state or a political subdivision shall not be liable for damages for providing the information requested under this section.

3. The criminal record review shall include the submission of fingerprints to the Missouri state highway patrol, who shall conduct a Missouri criminal record review, including closed record information under section 610.120 . The Missouri state highway patrol shall also forward a copy of the applicant's fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal record review.

4. The applicant subject to a criminal record review shall provide the following information to the qualified entity:

(1) Consent to obtain the applicant's fingerprints, conduct the criminal record review, and participate in the Missouri and National Rap Back programs;

(2) Consent to obtain the identifying information required to conduct the criminal record review, which may include, but not be limited to:

(a) Name;

(b) Date of birth;

(c) Height;

(d) Weight;

(e) Eye color;

(f) Hair color;

(g) Gender;

(h) Race;

(i) Place of birth;

(j) Social Security number; and

(k) The applicant's photo.

5. Any information received by an authorized state agency or a qualified entity pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be used solely for internal purposes in determining the suitability of an applicant. The dissemination of criminal history information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation beyond the authorized state agency or related governmental entity is prohibited. All criminal record check information shall be confidential and any person who discloses the information beyond the scope allowed is guilty of a class A misdemeanor.

6. A qualified entity enrolled in either the Missouri or National Rap Back programs shall be notified by the Missouri state highway patrol that a new arrest has been reported on an applicant who is employed, licensed, or otherwise under the purview of the qualified entity. Upon receiving the Rap Back notification, if the qualified entity deems that the applicant is still serving in an active capacity, the entity may request and receive the individual's updated criminal history record. This process shall only occur if:

(1) The agency has abided by all procedures and rules promulgated by the Missouri state highway patrol and Federal Bureau of Investigation regarding the Missouri and National Rap Back programs;

(2) The individual upon whom the Rap Back notification is being made has previously had a Missouri and national criminal record review completed for the qualified entity under this section; and

(3) The individual upon whom the Rap Back notification is being made is a current employee, licensee, or otherwise still actively under the purview of the qualified entity.

7. The highway patrol shall make available or approve the necessary forms, procedures, and agreements necessary to implement the provisions of this section.

(L. 1988 H.B. 1559 § 1, A.L. 1991 H.B. 566, A.L. 1994 S.B. 693, A.L. 1996 H.B. 1362, A.L. 2002 S.B. 758 merged with S.B. 969, et al., A.L. 2003 S.B. 184, A.L. 2004 H.B. 1055 merged with H.B. 1453, A.L. 2018 H.B. 1350, A.L. 2019 H.B. 694, A.L. 2023 S.B. 28 merged with S.B. 40 merged with S.B. 186) CROSS REFERENCE: No charge for background check of homeless former members of militia or Armed Forces, 610.103