OFFICE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES – Amends existing law to provide for certain criminal history checks to be performed.

68th Legislature, 1st Regular Session (2025)

House Bill 277 streamlines criminal background checks for IT employees in Idaho, saving the state up to $12,200 annually while ensuring security for critical roles.

Reported Signed by Governor on March 21, 2025 Session Law Chapter 143 Effective: 07/01/2025

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Bill Information

Bill Number: H 277

Title: OFFICE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES – Amends existing law to provide for certain criminal history checks to be performed.

Status: Reported Signed by Governor on March 21, 2025; Session Law Chapter 143

Effective Date: July 1, 2025

Introduced: February 19, 2025

Classification: Bill

Subjects: Criminal Background Checks, Government, Science and Technology

Purpose and Intent

House Bill 277 aims to streamline the process of conducting criminal background checks for prospective employees and contractors of the Idaho Office of Information Technology Services (OITS). The bill seeks to reduce redundancy and costs associated with multiple background checks required by various state and federal regulations.

Key Provisions

Amendment to Idaho Code Section 67-827A: The bill modifies existing law to allow a single criminal background check to satisfy the requirements for multiple state agencies.

Scope of Background Checks:

The checks will apply to individuals providing IT services in twelve disciplines, including:
IT network engineering
IT operations and support
IT software engineering
Geographic information systems
IT information management
IT database administration
IT systems and infrastructure engineering
IT information security engineering
IT architecture
IT management
Remote sensing analysis
Data science

Methodology: Background checks will involve fingerprinting and will include searches of both the Idaho Bureau of Criminal Identification and the FBI criminal databases.

Cost Savings: The bill is projected to save the state approximately $8,800 annually at current staffing levels, with potential savings increasing to $12,200 per year as staffing levels are finalized.

Impact

Affected Parties: The legislation primarily impacts prospective IT employees and contractors working with OITS, as well as state agencies that rely on these services.

Financial Implications: The bill is expected to reduce unnecessary expenses related to conducting multiple background checks, thereby optimizing the use of state resources.

Procedural Timeline

February 19, 2025: Bill introduced and referred to the State Affairs Committee.

March 10, 2025: Reported out of Committee with a Do Pass recommendation.

March 17, 2025: Passed in the House with a unanimous vote (70-0).

March 21, 2025: Signed by the Governor and reported as Session Law Chapter 143.

Effective Date: The provisions of the bill will take effect on July 1, 2025.

Conclusion

House Bill 277 represents a significant step towards improving the efficiency of criminal background checks for IT personnel in Idaho. By consolidating the process, the bill aims to save state resources while ensuring that appropriate security measures are maintained for individuals working in critical IT roles.

Bill