SENATE BILL No. 622

 

 

June 21, 2005, Introduced by Senators STAMAS, CROPSEY, BIRKHOLZ, GILBERT, PATTERSON, TOY and ALLEN and referred to the Committee on Senior Citizens and Veterans Affairs.

 

 

 

     A bill to amend 1979 PA 218, entitled

 

"Adult foster care facility licensing act,"

 

by amending section 34a (MCL 400.734a), as added by 2004 PA 59.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 34a. (1) In addition to the restrictions prescribed in

 

sections 13, 22, and 31, and except as otherwise provided in

 

subsection (2), an adult foster care facility shall not employ or

 

independently contract with an individual  who regularly provides

 

direct services to residents of the adult foster care facility

 

after the effective date of the amendatory act that added this

 

section  if the individual  has been convicted of  satisfies 1 or

 

more of the following:

 

     (a)  A  Has been convicted of a felony or an attempt or

 

conspiracy to commit a felony within the 15 years immediately

 


preceding the date of application for employment or the date of the

 

execution of the independent contract.

 

     (b)  A  Has been convicted of a misdemeanor involving abuse,

 

neglect, assault, battery,  or  criminal sexual conduct,  or

 

involving  fraud, or theft,  against a vulnerable adult as that

 

term is defined in section 145m of the Michigan penal code, 1931 PA

 

328, MCL 750.145m,  or a state or federal crime that is

 

substantially similar to a misdemeanor described in this

 

subdivision within the 10 years immediately preceding the date of

 

application for employment or the date of the execution of the

 

contract.

 

     (c)  An  Has been convicted of an offense listed under R

 

400.1152 of the Michigan administrative code.

 

     (d) Is the subject of an order or disposition under any of the

 

following:

 

     (i) Section 464a of the mental health code, 1974 PA 258, MCL

 

330.1464a.

 

     (ii) Section 5107 of the estates and protected individuals

 

code, 1998 PA 386, MCL 700.5107.

 

     (iii) Sections 2950 and 2950a of the revised judicature act of

 

1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL 600.2950 and 600.2950a.

 

     (iv) Section 16b of chapter IX of the code of criminal

 

procedure, 1927 PA 175, MCL 769.16b.

 

     (e) Has been found not guilty but mentally ill of any crime

 

and has offered a plea of not guilty of, or been acquitted of, any

 

crime by reason of insanity.

 

     (f) Has been subject to an order of involuntary commitment in

 


an inpatient or outpatient setting due to mental illness.

 

     (g) Has a diagnosed mental illness at the time the application

 

is made regardless of whether he or she is receiving treatment for

 

that illness.

 

     (h) Is under a court order of legal incapacity in this state

 

or elsewhere.

 

     (i) Is participating in a substance abuse rehabilitation

 

program.

 

     (2) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection and

 

subsection (7), an adult foster care facility shall not employ or

 

independently contract with an individual  who regularly provides

 

direct services to residents after the effective date of the

 

amendatory act that added this section  until the adult foster care

 

facility complies with subsection (4), (5), or (6).  This

 

subsection and subsection (1) do not apply to an individual who is

 

employed by or under contract to an adult foster care facility

 

before the effective date of the amendatory act that added this

 

subsection.

 

     (3) An individual who applies for employment either as an

 

employee or as an independent contractor with an adult foster care

 

facility and has received a good faith offer of employment or

 

independent contract from the adult foster care facility shall give

 

written consent at the time of application for the department of

 

state police to conduct  a  annual criminal history  check  checks

 

under this section, along with identification acceptable to the

 

department of state police. If the department of state police or

 

equivalent state agency under subsection (6) has conducted a

 


criminal history check on the individual within the  24  12 months

 

immediately preceding the date of application and the individual

 

provides written consent for release of information for the

 

purposes of this section, the adult foster care facility may use a

 

copy of that criminal history check instead of obtaining written

 

consent and requesting a new criminal history check under this

 

section. If the individual is using a prior criminal history check

 

as described in this subsection, the adult foster care facility

 

shall accept the copy of the results of the criminal history check

 

only from the adult foster care facility or health facility or

 

agency that previously employed or independently contracted with

 

the individual.

 

     (4) Upon receipt of the written consent and identification

 

required under subsection (3), if the individual has resided in

 

this state for 3 or more years preceding the good faith offer of

 

employment or independent contract, the adult foster care facility

 

that has made a good faith offer of employment or independent

 

contract shall make a request to the department of state police to

 

conduct a criminal history check on the individual. The request

 

shall be made in a manner prescribed by the department of state

 

police. The adult foster care facility shall make the written

 

consent and identification available to the department of state

 

police. If there is a charge for conducting the criminal history

 

check, the adult foster care facility requesting the criminal

 

history check shall pay the cost of the charge. The adult foster

 

care facility shall not seek reimbursement for the charge from the

 

individual who is the subject of the criminal history check. The

 


department of state police shall conduct  a  an annual criminal

 

history check on the individual named in the request. The

 

department of state police shall provide the adult foster care

 

facility with a written report of the criminal history check. The

 

report shall contain any criminal history record information on the

 

individual maintained by the department of state police. As a

 

condition of employment, an individual shall sign a written

 

statement that he or she has been a resident of this state for 3 or

 

more years preceding the good faith offer of employment or

 

independent contract.

 

     (5) Upon receipt of the written consent and identification

 

required under subsection (3), if the individual has applied for

 

employment either as an employee or as an independent contractor

 

with an adult foster care facility licensed for more than 6 persons

 

and has resided in this state for less than 3 years preceding the

 

good faith offer of employment or independent contract, the adult

 

foster care facility that has made a good faith offer of employment

 

or independent contract shall comply with subsection (4) and shall

 

make a request to the department of state police to forward the

 

individual's fingerprints to the federal bureau of investigation.

 

The department of state police shall request the federal bureau of

 

investigation to make a determination of the existence of any

 

national criminal history pertaining to the individual. An

 

individual described in this subsection shall provide the

 

department of state police with 2 sets of fingerprints. The

 

department of state police shall complete the criminal history

 

check under subsection (4) and, except as otherwise provided in

 


this subsection, provide the results of its determination under

 

subsection (4) to the adult foster care facility and the results of

 

the federal bureau of investigation determination to the department

 

of  consumer and industry  human services within 30 days after the

 

request is made. If the requesting adult foster care facility is

 

not a state department or agency and if a crime is disclosed on the

 

federal bureau of investigation determination, the department of

 

human services shall notify the adult foster care facility in

 

writing of the type of crime disclosed on the federal bureau of

 

investigation determination without disclosing the details of the

 

crime. The charges for fingerprinting or a federal bureau of

 

investigation determination under this subsection shall be paid in

 

the manner required under subsection (4).

 

     (6) Upon receipt of the written consent and identification

 

required under subsection (3), if the individual has applied for

 

employment either as an employee or as an independent contractor

 

with an adult foster care facility licensed for 6 persons or less

 

and has resided in this state for less than 3 years preceding the

 

good faith offer of employment or independent contract, the adult

 

foster care facility that has made the good faith offer of

 

employment or independent contract shall comply with subsection (4)

 

and shall make a request to the department of state police or state

 

agency responsible for maintaining statewide criminal history

 

information of all the states in which the individual resided

 

during the preceding 5 years to conduct a criminal history check on

 

the individual.

 

     (7) If an adult foster care facility determines it necessary

 


to employ or independently contract with an individual before

 

receiving the results of the individual's criminal history check

 

required under this section, the adult foster care facility may

 

conditionally employ the individual if both of the following apply:

 

     (a) The adult foster care facility requests the criminal

 

history check required under this section, upon conditionally

 

employing the individual.

 

     (b) The individual signs a written statement indicating all of

 

the following:

 

     (i) That he or she has not been convicted of 1 or more of the

 

crimes that are described in subsection (1)(a) and (b) within the

 

applicable time period prescribed by subsection (1)(a) and (b).

 

     (ii) The individual agrees that, if the information in the

 

criminal history check conducted under this section does not

 

confirm the individual's statement under subparagraph (i), his or

 

her employment will be terminated by the adult foster care facility

 

as required under subsection (1) unless and until the individual

 

can prove that the information is incorrect. The adult foster care

 

facility shall provide a copy of the results of the criminal

 

history check conducted under this section, to the individual upon

 

request.

 

     (iii) That he or she understands the conditions described in

 

subparagraphs (i) and (ii) that result in the termination of his or

 

her employment and that those conditions are good cause for

 

termination.

 

     (8)  On the effective date of the amendatory act that added

 

this subsection, the department of consumer and industry services

 


shall develop and distribute a model form for the statement

 

required under subsection (7)(b).  The department of  consumer and

 

industry  human services shall make the model form for the

 

statement required under subsection (7)(b) available to adult

 

foster care facilities upon request at no charge.

 

     (9) If an individual is conditionally employed under

 

subsection (7), and the report described in subsection (4), (5), or

 

(6), if applicable, does not confirm the individual's statement

 

under subsection (7)(b)(i), the adult foster care facility shall

 

terminate the individual's employment as required by subsection

 

(1).

 

     (10) An individual who knowingly provides false information

 

regarding a criminal conviction on a statement described in

 

subsection (7)(b)(i) is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by

 

imprisonment for not more than 90 days or a fine of not more than

 

$500.00, or both.

 

     (11) An adult foster care facility shall use criminal history

 

record information obtained under subsection (4), (5), or (6) only

 

for the purpose of evaluating an individual's qualifications for

 

employment in the position for which he or she has applied and for

 

the purposes of subsections (7) and (9). An adult foster care

 

facility or an employee of the adult foster care facility shall not

 

disclose criminal history record information obtained under this

 

section to a person who is not directly involved in evaluating the

 

individual's qualifications for employment or independent contract.

 

Upon written request from another adult foster care facility or

 

health facility or agency that is considering employing or

 


independently contracting with an individual, an adult foster care

 

facility that has obtained criminal history record information

 

under this section on that individual shall share the information

 

with the requesting adult foster care facility or health facility

 

or agency. Except for a knowing or intentional release of false

 

information, an adult foster care facility has no liability in

 

connection with a background check conducted under this section or

 

the release of criminal history record information under this

 

subsection.

 

     (12) As a condition of continued employment, each employee or

 

independent contractor shall agree in writing to  report  do both

 

of the following:

 

     (a) Report to the adult foster care facility immediately upon

 

being arrested for or convicted of 1 or more of the criminal

 

offenses listed in subsection (1)(a) and (b).

 

     (b) Consent to the performance of an annual criminal history

 

check as provided under subsection (4).

 

     (13) In addition to sanctions set forth in this act, an adult

 

foster care facility that fails to conduct the criminal history

 

checks as required under this section is guilty of a felony

 

punishable by imprisonment for not more than 4 years or a fine of

 

not more than $50,000.00, or both.

 

     (14)  (13)  As used in this section:

 

     (a) "Health facility or agency" means a health facility or

 

agency as defined in section 20106 of the public health code, 1978

 

PA 368, MCL 333.20106.

 

     (b) "Independent contract" means a contract entered into by an

 


adult foster care facility with an individual who provides the

 

contracted services independently or a contract entered into by an

 

adult foster care facility with an organization or agency that

 

employs or contracts with an individual after complying with the

 

requirements of this section to provide the contracted services to

 

the adult foster care facility on behalf of the organization or

 

agency.