Arizona § 15-1330 - Personnel; fingerprinting; immunity

§ 15-1330. Personnel; fingerprinting; immunity

A. The board of directors shall require the superintendent to have a valid fingerprint clearance card issued pursuant to title 41, chapter 12, article 3.1. Certificated personnel employed by the schools shall have valid fingerprint clearance cards issued pursuant to title 41, chapter 12, article 3.1 or shall apply for a fingerprint clearance card within seven working days after employment.

B. Noncertificated personnel employed by the schools and nonpaid personnel working in the schools shall be fingerprinted as a condition of employment for the purpose of obtaining state and federal criminal records checks.  Noncertificated employees and nonpaid personnel who do not have a valid fingerprint clearance card shall submit fingerprints on the form prescribed by the school to the superintendent within twenty days after the date the person begins work. Employment with the schools is conditioned on the results of the fingerprint check. Fingerprint checks shall be conducted pursuant to section 41-1750 and Public Law 92-544. The department of public safety may exchange this fingerprint data with the federal bureau of investigation.

C. The schools may charge the employee or nonpaid personnel for the costs of the fingerprint checks.

D. Personnel employed by the schools shall certify on forms that are provided by the schools that they are not awaiting trial on and have never been convicted of or admitted in open court or pursuant to a plea agreement of committing any criminal offenses in this state or similar offenses in another state or jurisdiction as specified in section 41-1758.03, subsections B and C.

E. Before employment, the schools shall make documented, good faith efforts to contact previous employers of personnel to obtain information and recommendations that may be relevant to a person's fitness for employment. For certificated personnel, the schools may also contact the department of education to obtain information that is contained in the person's certification record and that may be relevant to the person's fitness for employment. For persons in other positions that require licensing, the schools may also contact the agency that issued the license for information relevant to the person's fitness for employment. Agencies and previous employers that provide information pursuant to this subsection are immune from civil liability unless the information provided is false and is acted on to the detriment of the employment applicant by the schools and the previous employer or agency knows the information is false or acts with reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the information. Employees who rely on information obtained pursuant to this subsection in making employment decisions are immune from civil liability unless the information obtained is false and the employee knows the information is false or acts with reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the information.

F. The superintendent shall notify the department of public safety if the superintendent receives credible evidence that a person who possesses a valid fingerprint clearance card either:

1. Is arrested for or charged with an offense listed in section 41-1758.03, subsection B.

2. Falsified information on the form required by subsection D of this section.