Minnesota Session Laws - 1991, Regular Session

  

                         Laws of Minnesota 1991 

                         CHAPTER 38-S.F.No. 713 
           An act relating to human services licensing; repealing 
          certain rule criteria for disqualification of 
          applicants for licensing and their employees; amending 
          Minnesota Statutes 1990, section 245A.04, subdivision 
          3. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1990, section 245A.04, 
subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
    Subd. 3.  [STUDY OF THE APPLICANT.] (a) Before the 
commissioner issues a license, the commissioner shall conduct a 
study of the individuals specified in clauses (1) to (4) 
according to rules of the commissioner.  The applicant, license 
holder, the bureau of criminal apprehension, and county 
agencies, after written notice to the individual who is the 
subject of the study, shall help with the study by giving the 
commissioner criminal conviction data and reports about abuse or 
neglect of adults in licensed programs substantiated under 
section 626.557 and the maltreatment of minors in licensed 
programs substantiated under section 626.556.  The individuals 
to be studied shall include: 
    (1) the applicant; 
    (2) persons over the age of 13 living in the household 
where the licensed program will be provided; 
    (3) current employees or contractors of the applicant who 
will have direct contact with persons served by the program; and 
     (4) volunteers who have direct contact with persons served 
by the program to provide program services, if the contact is 
not directly supervised by the individuals listed in clause (1) 
or (3). 
     The juvenile courts shall also help with the study by 
giving the commissioner existing juvenile court records on 
individuals described in clause (2) relating to delinquency 
proceedings held within either the five years immediately 
preceding the application or the five years immediately 
preceding the individual's 18th birthday, whichever time period 
is longer.  The commissioner shall destroy juvenile records 
obtained pursuant to this subdivision when the subject of the 
records reaches age 23.  
     For purposes of this subdivision, "direct contact" means 
providing face-to-face care, training, supervision, counseling, 
consultation, or medication assistance to persons served by a 
program.  For purposes of this subdivision, "directly supervised"
means an individual listed in clause (1) or (3) is within sight 
or hearing of a volunteer to the extent that the individual 
listed in clause (1) or (3) is capable at all times of 
intervening to protect the health and safety of the persons 
served by the program who have direct contact with the volunteer.
     A study of an individual in clauses (1) to (4) shall be 
conducted on at least an annual basis.  No applicant, license 
holder, or individual who is the subject of the study shall pay 
any fees required to conduct the study.  
     (b) The individual who is the subject of the study must 
provide the applicant or license holder with sufficient 
information to ensure an accurate study including the 
individual's first, middle, and last name; home address, city, 
county, and state of residence; zip code; sex; date of birth; 
and driver's license number.  The applicant or license holder 
shall provide this information about an individual in paragraph 
(a), clauses (1) to (4), on forms prescribed by the 
commissioner.  The commissioner may request additional 
information of the individual, which shall be optional for the 
individual to provide, such as the individual's social security 
number or race. 
     (c) Except for child foster care, adult foster care, and 
family day care homes, a study must include information from the 
county agency's record of substantiated abuse or neglect of 
adults in licensed programs, and the maltreatment of minors in 
licensed programs, information from juvenile courts as required 
in paragraph (a) for persons listed in paragraph (a), clause 
(2), and information from the bureau of criminal 
apprehension.  For child foster care, adult foster care, and 
family day care homes, the study must include information from 
the county agency's record of substantiated abuse or neglect of 
adults, and the maltreatment of minors, information from 
juvenile courts as required in paragraph (a) for persons listed 
in paragraph (a), clause (2), and information from the bureau of 
criminal apprehension.  The commissioner may also review arrest 
and investigative information from the bureau of criminal 
apprehension, a county attorney, county sheriff, county agency, 
local chief of police, other states, the courts, or a national 
criminal record repository if the commissioner has reasonable 
cause to believe the information is pertinent to the 
disqualification of an individual listed in paragraph (a), 
clauses (1) to (4). 
      (d) An applicant's or license holder's failure or refusal 
to cooperate with the commissioner is reasonable cause to deny 
an application or immediately suspend, suspend, or revoke a 
license.  Failure or refusal of an individual to cooperate with 
the study is just cause for denying or terminating employment of 
the individual if the individual's failure or refusal to 
cooperate could cause the applicant's application to be denied 
or the license holder's license to be immediately suspended, 
suspended, or revoked. 
    (e) The commissioner shall not consider an application to 
be complete until all of the information required to be provided 
under this subdivision has been received.  
    (f) No person in paragraph (a), clause (1), (2), (3), or 
(4) who is disqualified as a result of this act may be retained 
by the agency in a position involving direct contact with 
persons served by the program. 
    (g) The commissioner shall not implement the procedures 
contained in this subdivision until appropriate rules have been 
adopted, except for the applicants and license holders for child 
foster care, adult foster care, and family day care homes. 
    (h) Termination of persons in paragraph (a), clause (1), 
(2), (3), or (4) made in good faith reliance on a notice of 
disqualification provided by the commissioner shall not subject 
the applicant or license holder to civil liability. 
    (i) The commissioner may establish records to fulfill the 
requirements of this section.  The information contained in the 
records is only available to the commissioner for the purpose 
authorized in this section.  
    (j) The commissioner may not disqualify an individual 
subject to a study under this section because that person has, 
or has had, a mental illness as defined in section 245.462, 
subdivision 20. 
    Sec. 2.  [RULE REPEALER.] 
    In order to eliminate mental illness as a disqualification 
factor for persons subject to background studies under section 
245A.04, subdivision 3, the following rule provisions are 
repealed:  Minnesota Rules, parts 9502.0335, subpart 6, item B; 
9503.0030, subpart 3, item D; 9525.0235, subpart 6, item C; 
9525.2020, subpart 3, item C; and 9555.6125, subpart 4, item H, 
as these provisions were in effect on January 1, 1991. 
    Sec. 3.  [RULE AMENDMENT.] 
    The commissioner shall amend Minnesota Rules, part 
9555.6125, subpart 5, as that provision was in effect on January 
1, 1991, to delete the commissioner's authority to require a 
mental health evaluation of operators, caregivers, and household 
members. 
    Sec. 4.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
    Sections 1 to 3 are effective the day following final 
enactment. 
    Presented to the governor April 22, 1991 
    Signed by the governor April 24, 1991, 9:55 a.m.