National Child Protection Act of 1993
PL 103-209 (H.R.1237), enacted 12/20/1993

107 STAT. 2490 
PUBLIC LAW 103-209—DEC. 20, 1993 
Public Law 103-209 
103d Congress 
An Act 
Dec. 20, 1993 
[H.R. 1237] 
National Child 
Protection Act 
of 1993. 
Inter-
governmental 
relations. 
42 use 5101 
note. 
42 use 5119. 
To establish procedures for national criminal background checks for child care 
providers. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of 
America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the "National Child Protection Act 
of 1993". 
SEC. 2. REPORTING CHILD ABUSE CRIME INFORMATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In each State, an authorized criminal justice 
agency of the State shall report child abuse crime information 
to, or index child abuse crime information in, the national criminal 
history background check system. 
(b) 
PROVISION 
OF STATE 
CHILD 
ABUSE 
CRIME 
RECORDS 
THROUGH THE NATIONAL CRIMINAL HISTORY BACKGROUND CHECK 
SYSTEM.—(1) Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Attorney General shall, subject to availability of 
appropriations— 
(A) investigate the criminal history records system of each 
State and determine for each State a timetable by which the 
State should be able to provide child abuse crime records on 
an on-line basis through the national criminal history back-
ground check system; 
(B) in consultation with State officials, establish guidelines 
for the reporting or indexing of child abuse crime information, 
including guidelines relating to the format, content, and 
accuracy of criminal history records and other procedures for 
carrying out this Act; and 
(C) notify each State of the determinations made pursuant 
to subparagraphs (A) and (B). 
(2) The Attorney Greneral shall require as a part of each State 
timetable that the State— 
(A) by not later than the date that is 3 years £ift;er the 
date of enactment of this Act, have in a computerized criminal 
history file at least 80 percent of the final dispositions that 
have been rendered in all identifiable child abuse crime cases 
in which there has been an event of activity within the last 
5 years; 
(B) continue to maintain a reporting rate of at least 80 
percent for final dispositions in all identifiable child abuse 
crime cases in which there has been an event of activity within 
the preceding 5 years; and 
PUBLIC LAW 103-209—DEC. 20, 1993 
107 STAT. 2491 
(C) take steps to achieve 100 percent disposition reporting, 
including data quality audits and periodic notices to criminal 
justice agencies identifying records that lack final dispositions 
and requesting those dispositions. 
(c) LIAISON.—An authorized agency of a State shall maintain 
close liaison with the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, 
the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and the 
National Center for the Pirosecution of Child Abuse for the exchange 
of technical assistance in cases of child abuse. 
(d) ANNUAL SUMMARY.—(1) The Attorney General shall publish 
an annual statistical simmiary of child abuse crimes. 
(2) The annual statistical summary described in paragraph 
(1) shall not contain any information that may reveal the identity 
of any particular victim or alleged violator. 
(e) ANNUAL REPORT.—^The Attorney (Jeneral shall, subject to 
the availability of appropriations, publish an annual summary of 
each State's progress in reporting child abuse crime information 
to the national criminal history background check system. 
(f) STUDY OF CHILD ABUSE OFFENDERS.—(1) Not later than 
180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 
of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention shall 
begin a study based on a statistically significant sample of convicted 
child abuse ofiTenders and other relevant information to determine— 
(A) the percentage of convicted child abuse offenders who 
have more than 1 conviction for an offense involving child 
abuse; 
(B) the percentage of convicted child abuse ofiTenders who 
have been convicted of an offense involving child abuse in 
more than 1 State; and 
(C) the extent to which and the manner in which instances 
of child abuse form a basis for convictions for crimes other 
than child abuse crimes. 
(2) Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Reports. 
Act, the Administrator shall submit a report to the Chairman 
of the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Chairman 
of the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives 
containing a description of and a summary of the results of the 
study conducted pursuant to paragraph (1). 
SEC. 3. BACKGROUND CHECKS. 
42 USC 5119a. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) A State may have in efiTect procedures 
(established by State statute or regulation) that require qualified 
entities designated by the State to contact an authorized agency 
of the State to request a nationwide background check for the 
purpose of determining whether a provider has been convicted 
of a crime that bears upon an individual's fitness to have respon-
sibility for the safety and well-being of children. 
(2) The authorized agency shall access and review State and 
Federal criminal history records through the national criminal his-
tory background check system and shall m£^e reasonable efforts 
to respondto the inquiry within 15 business days. 
(b) GUIDELINES.—The procedures establisned under subsection 
(a) shall require— 
(1) that no qualified entity may request a background check 
of a provider imder subsection (a) unless the provider first 
provides a set of fingerprints and completes and signs a state-
ment that— 
107 STAT. 2492 
PUBLIC LAW 103-209—DEC. 20, 1993 
(A) cont£dns the name, address, and date of birth 
appearing on a valid identification document (as defined 
in section 1028 of title 18, United States Code) of the 
provider; 
(B) the provider has not been convicted of a crime 
and, if the provider has been convicted of a crime, contains 
a description of the crime and the particulars of the 
conviction; 
(C) notifies the provider that the entity may request 
a background check under subsection (a); 
(D) notifies the provider of the provider's rights under 
paragraph (2); and 
(E) notifies the provider that prior to the completion 
of the backgroimd check the qualified entity may choose 
to deny the provider imsupervised access to a child to 
whom the qualified entity provides child care; 
(2) that each provider who is the subject of a backgroimd 
check is entitled— 
(A) to obtain a copy of any backgroimd check report; 
and 
(B) to challenge the accuracy and completeness of any 
information contained in any such report and obtain a 
prompt determination as to tne validity of such challenge 
before a final determination is made by the authorized 
agency; 
(3) that an authorized agency, upon receipt of a background 
check report lacking disposition data, shall conduct research 
in whatever State and local recordkeeping systems are available 
in order to obtain complete data; 
(4) that the authorized agency shall make a determination 
whether the provider has been convicted of, or is under pending 
indictment for, a crime that bears upon an individual's fitness 
to have responsibility for the safety and well-being of children 
and shall convey that determination to the qualified entity; 
and 
(5) that any backgroimd check under subsection (a) and 
the results thereof shall be handled in accordance with the 
requirements of Public Law 92-544. 
(c) REGULATIONS.—(1) The Attorney (Jeneral may by regulation 
prescribe such other measures as may be required to carry out 
the purposes of this Act, including measures relating to the security, 
confidentiality, accuracy, use, misuse, and dissemination of informa-
tion, and audits and recordkeeping. 
(2) The Attorney General shall, to the maximum extent possible, 
encourage the use of the best technology available in conducting 
background checks. 
(d) LlABiLiTY.^-A qualified entity shall not be liable in an 
action for damages solely for failure to conduct a criminal back-
ground check on a provider, nor shall a State or political subdivision 
thereof nor £my agency, officer or employee thereof, be liable in 
an action for damages for the failure of a qualified entity to take 
action adverse to a provider who was the subject of a background 
check. 
(e) FEES.—In the case of a bacl^oimd check pursuant to a 
State requirement adopted afi^er the date of the enactment of this 
Act conducted with fingerprints on a person who volunteers with 
a qualified entity, the fees collected by authorized State agencies 
PUBLIC LAW 103-209—DEC. 20, 1993 
107 STAT. 2493 
and the Federal Bureau of Investigation may not exceed the actual 
cost of the background check conducted with fingerprints. The 
States shall establish fee systems that insure that fees to non-
profit entities for background checks do not discourage volunteers 
from participating in child care programs. 
SEC. 4. FUNDING FOR IMPROVEMENT OF CHILD ABUSE CRIME 42 USC 5119b. 
INFORMATION. 
(a) USE OF FORMULA GRANTS FOR IMPROVEMENTS IN STATE 
RECORDS AND SYSTEMS.—Section 509(b) of the Omnibus Crime Con-
trol and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3759(b)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (2) by striking "and" after the semicolon; 
(2) in paragraph (3) by striking the period and inserting 
*
*
; and"; and 
(3) bv adding at the end the following new paragraph: 
"(4) tne improvement of State record systems and the shar-
ing of all of the records described in paragraphs (1), (2), and 
(3) and the child abuse crime records required under the 
National Child Protection Act of 1993 with the Attorney Gen-
eral for the purpose of implementing the National Child Protec-
tion Act of 1993.". 
(b) ADDITIONAL FUNDING GRANTS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OP 
CHILD ABUSE CRIME INFORMATION.—(1) The Attorney General shall, 
subject to appropriations and with preference to States that, as 
of the date of enactment of this Act, have in computerized criminal 
history files the lowest percentages of charges and dispositions 
of identifiable child abuse cases, make a grant to each State to 
be used— 
(A) for the computerization of criminal history files for 
the purposes of this Act; 
(B) for the improvement of existing computerized criminal 
history files for the purposes of this Act; 
(C) to improve accessibility to the national criminal history 
back^ound check system for the purposes of this Act; and 
(D) to assist the State in the transmittal of criminal records 
to, or the indexing of criminal history record in, the national 
criminal history backgroimd check system for the purposes 
of this Act. 
(2) There are authorized to be appropriated for grants under 
paragraph (1) a total of $20,000,000 for fiscal years 1994, 1995, 
1996, and 1997. 
(c) WITHHOLDING STATE FUNDS.—Effective 1 year afl^er the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General may reduce, 
by up to 10 percent, the allocation to a State for a fiscal year 
under title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act 
of 1968 that is not in compliance with the requirements of this 
Act. 
Appropriation 
authorization. 
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 
For the purposes of this Act— 
(1) the term "authorized agency" means a division or office 
of a State designated by a State to report, receive, or dissemi-
nate information under this Act; 
(2) the term "child" means a person who is a child for 
purposes of the criminal child abuse law of a State; 
(3) the term "child abuse crime" means a crime committed 
under any law of a State that involves the physical or mental 
42 USC 5119c. 
107 STAT. 2494 
PUBLIC LAW 103-209—DEC. 20, 1993 
injury, sexual abuse or exploitation, negligent treatment, or 
maltreatment of a child by any person; 
(4) the term "child abuse crime information" means the 
following facts concerning a person who has been arrested 
for, or has been convicted of, a child abuse crime: full name, 
race, sex, date of birth, height, weight, fingerprints, a brief 
description of the child abuse crime or offenses for which the 
person has been arrested or has been convicted, the disposition 
of the charge, and any other information that the Attorney 
General determines may be useful in identifying persons 
arrested for, or convicted of, a child abuse crime; 
(5) the term "child care" means the provision of care, treat-
ment, education, training, instruction, supervision, or recreation 
to children by persons having unsupervised access to a child; 
(6) the term "national criminal history backgroimd check 
system" means the criminal history record system maintained 
by the Federal Bureau of Investigation based on 
fingerprint 
identification or any other method of positive identification; 
(7) the term "provider" means— 
(A) a person who— 
(i) is employed by or voliuiteers with a qualified 
entity; 
(ii) who owns or operates a qualified entity; or 
(iii) who has or may have unsupervised access 
to a child to whom the qualified entity provides child 
care; and 
(B) a person who— 
(i) seeks to be employed by or volunteer with a 
qualified entity; 
i 
(ii) seeks to own or operate a qualified entity; 
or 
(iii) seeks to have or may have unsupervised access 
to a child to whom the qualified entity provides child 
care; 
(8) the term "qualified entity" means a business or 
organization, whether public, private, for-profit, not-for-profit, 
or voluntary, that provides child care or child care placement 
services, including a business or organization that licenses or 
certifies others to provide child care or child care placement 
services; and 
PUBLIC LAW 103-209—DEC. 20, 1993 
107 STAT. 2495 
(9) the term "State" means a State, the District of Colum-
bia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the 
Vii^in Islands, Guam, and the Trust Territories of the Pacific. 
Approved December 20, 1993. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—H.R. 1237: 
HOUSE REPORTS: No. 103-393 (Ck)mm. on the Judiciary). 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 139 (1993): 
Nov. 20, considered and passed House and Senate. 
WEEKLY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS, Vol. 29 (1993): 
Dec. 20, Presidential remarks.