H.F. No. 5 Summary

• Adds nondisqualifying background study information as grounds for denying or revoking child foster care licenses, requiring licensing agencies to review 11 specified factors before taking action.

• Establishes a new disqualification framework specific to licensed family child foster care with permanent bars for serious felonies and time-based bars ranging from 5-10 years for other offenses, with limited set-aside and variance options.

• Clarifies privacy notice requirements for background study subjects regarding fingerprint retention, photographic image storage, data destruction timelines, and disclosure of previous set-asides.

• Modifies background study procedures to permit transmission of nondisqualifying results and investigative information to counties, requires use of NETStudy 2.0 electronic system with hardship variance provisions, and restricts sharing of national criminal history data.

• Appropriates $100,000 in fiscal year 2021 (with $115,000 base in subsequent years) to the Commissioner of Human Services for information technology systems to implement family child foster care background study requirements.