Summary — SB 2073 (North Dakota)
Act to amend NDCC §§ 12‑60‑24 and 54‑11‑16 — criminal history checks for anyone with access to federal tax information
Status and sponsorship
- Introduced: March 7, 2025, by the State and Local Government Committee (at the request of the State Treasurer).
- Final status (per provided record): filed with the Secretary of State 03/18/2025; listed as effective 9/1/2025. (Legislative history shows passage in both chambers with unanimous or near‑unanimous votes and enrollment.)
Purpose and intent
- To strengthen and clarify criminal‑history screening requirements for persons who will have access to federal tax information (FTI) through the Office of the State Treasurer, and to ensure those checks are performed as statewide and nationwide criminal history record checks in conformity with existing state procedures.
Key provisions
1. Adds the Office of the State Treasurer to the list of entities covered by the statewide/nationwide criminal history check authority (amendment to subsection 2, section 12‑60‑24).
- Specifically identifies “an applicant or employee who has access to federal tax information under chapter 54‑11‑16.”
- Amends NDCC § 54‑11‑16 (Criminal history record checks):
- Requires the State Treasurer to require any applicant, employee, or independent contractor who has access to federal tax information to submit to a statewide and nationwide criminal history record check.
- Requires a subsequent recheck within five years from the date of the previous criminal history record check (the bill replaces the prior ten‑year recheck interval with five years).
- States the nationwide check must be conducted in the manner provided by § 12‑60‑24 (i.e., the existing procedure for fingerprint‑based national checks).
Who is affected
- Applicants, employees, and independent contractors who will have access to federal tax information through the State Treasurer’s office.
- The State Treasurer’s office and any contractors it engages will be responsible for implementing and enforcing the screening requirement.
- Indirectly, law‑enforcement and fingerprinting vendors and the FBI/state criminal record repositories may see increased screening volume.
Practical impact and considerations
- Increases the frequency of mandatory rechecks (to every five years), expanding the ongoing screening burden compared with a ten‑year interval.
- Extends explicit coverage to independent contractors as well as employees and applicants.
- Likely increases administrative coordination (fingerprinting, submission to state/FBI channels) and may generate additional costs (fees for fingerprinting/FBI checks), though the bill does not specify funding or feebearer.
- Strengthens compliance with federal safeguards for handling FTI (IRS/state agreements typically require criminal background checks).
Effective date and timeline
- Record indicates an effective date of September 1, 2025. Implementation requires the Treasurer’s office to adopt procedures consistent with § 12‑60‑24 for conducting statewide and nationwide checks and to schedule five‑year rechecks for affected individuals.
