Section 390-E. Criminal history review; mentoring programs

1.  For the
  purposes of this section, the following words shall have  the  following
  meanings:
    (a)  "Prospective  employee"  shall mean a person being considered for
  employment by a mentoring program.
    (b) "Prospective mentor" shall mean an  individual  who  is  currently
  applying  to  volunteer  to  help  a  child  or a group of children in a
  mentoring program for a period of time. Such help shall include, but not
  be  limited  to,  being  a  positive  role  model  for  youth,  building
  relationships  with  youth, and providing youth with academic assistance
  and exposure to new experiences and examples of opportunity that enhance
  the ability of children to become responsible adults.
    (c) "Mentoring program" shall mean a formalized program, operated by a
  corporation which has been incorporated pursuant to subparagraph five of
  paragraph  (a)  of  section  one  hundred  two  of  the   not-for-profit
  corporation  law  or  pursuant  to subparagraph four of paragraph (a) of
  section one hundred two of the business corporation law, or operated  by
  an  educational  institution or school district, that matches youth with
  adult volunteers with the purpose of providing such youth with  positive
  role models to enhance their development.
    (d) "Office" shall mean the office of children and family services.
    2.  Mentoring  programs may perform a criminal history record check on
  all prospective employees and mentors.
    3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, subject
  to the rules  and  regulations  of  the  division  of  criminal  justice
  services,  mentoring  programs  may  apply for a criminal history record
  check with the division  of  criminal  justice  services  regarding  any
  prospective  employee  or  any  prospective  mentor  who  may  engage in
  unsupervised activities with youth or in  activities  with  youth  in  a
  setting  without  constant  agency or parental oversight. Each mentoring
  program that chooses to complete  such  criminal  background  checks  on
  prospective employees or on prospective mentors shall establish a policy
  for  completing criminal background checks on such prospective employees
  or mentors. Such  policy  shall  apply  one  uniform  standard  for  the
  completion  of  criminal background checks for all prospective employees
  and one uniform standard  for  the  completion  of  criminal  background
  checks  for  all prospective mentors. Any mentoring program that chooses
  to complete criminal background checks on both prospective employees and
  prospective mentors  may  utilize  the  same  uniform  process  for  the
  completion  of  the  criminal background checks on prospective employees
  and prospective mentors or they  may  choose  one  uniform  process  for
  prospective  employees  and  another  uniform  process  for  prospective
  mentors.
    4. Every mentoring program  that  chooses  to  apply  for  a  criminal
  history  background check with the division of criminal justice services
  shall obtain a set of fingerprints  from  each  individual  for  whom  a
  criminal  background check is to be completed and such other information
  as is required by the  office  and  the  division  of  criminal  justice
  services.    For  each  prospective  employee  or  mentor  for  whom the
  mentoring program completes a criminal background check,  the  mentoring
  program  shall  provide the applicant with blank fingerprint cards and a
  description of how the completed fingerprint  card  will  be  used  upon
  submission  to  the  mentoring  program.  The  mentoring  program  shall
  promptly transmit such fingerprint card and the processing  fee  to  the
  office.  The  office  shall promptly submit the fingerprint card and the
  processing fee, imposed pursuant to subdivision eight-a of section eight
  hundred thirty-seven of the executive law, to the division  of  criminal
  justice services for its full search and retain processing.

    5.  Upon  receipt  of  a  criminal history record from the division of
  criminal justice services, the office  shall  promptly  provide  to  the
  mentoring  program  the criminal history record, if any, with respect to
  the prospective employee or mentor, or a statement that  the  individual
  has no criminal history record.
    6. Upon receipt of the results of a criminal background check pursuant
  to  this  section,  the mentoring program shall determine whether or not
  the prospective employee or mentor shall be offered  employment  or  the
  opportunity  to  volunteer with the program. Such determination shall be
  made in accordance  with  the  criteria  established  in  section  seven
  hundred fifty-two of the correction law.
    7.  Upon the request of any person previously convicted of one or more
  criminal offenses who has been denied employment pursuant to subdivision
  six of this section, the mentoring program shall provide, within  thirty
  days  of such request, a written statement setting forth the reasons for
  such denial. Any such person denied employment pursuant  to  subdivision
  six  of this section shall be afforded the opportunities for enforcement
  available pursuant to section seven hundred fifty-five of the correction
  law.
    8. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, with the  exception
  of  a  sex  offense  or  a  crime against a child, a custodial parent or
  guardian may sign a waiver authorizing a mentor to work with his or  her
  child regardless of a criminal charge or crime related to a mentor. Such
  process  shall  only  be  initiated  upon the consent of the prospective
  mentor, and be on a form and of a content to be developed by the office.
  Where applicable, a mentoring program may notify a custodial  parent  or
  guardian  of  his  or  her  waiver  right,  but  a  waiver shall only be
  authorized by a custodial parent or guardian.
    9. Any  criminal  history  record  provided  to  a  mentoring  program
  pursuant   to  this  section  shall  be  confidential  pursuant  to  the
  applicable federal and state laws, rules and regulations, and shall  not
  be  published  or  in any way disclosed to persons other than authorized
  personnel, unless otherwise authorized by law.
    10. Every mentoring program shall provide  each  custodial  parent  or
  guardian  of  every  child participating in its mentoring program with a
  description of the kind of criminal background checks conducted  by  the
  mentoring  program  on  its  prospective  employees  and  mentors.  Such
  description shall include  identification  of  the  source  utilized  to
  obtain  criminal  background  histories  on  prospective  employees  and
  mentors, a list of crimes that would lead the program to deny employment
  or the opportunity to volunteer as a prospective employee or mentor, and
  any other process utilized to determine whether  or  not  a  prospective
  employee  or mentor with a conviction record shall be offered employment
  or the opportunity to volunteer. Such description  shall  clearly  state
  whether  or not prospective employees or mentors may be hired or offered
  the opportunity to volunteer  despite  the  existence  of  a  conviction
  history.