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HB 1075

Teachers; making certain provisions applicable to administrators; requiring certain recommendation to be forwarded to the State Board of Education; providing for expungement; effective date; emergency.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Derrick Hildebrant and 1 co-sponsor

ND DES may require statewide and FBI criminal history checks for final job applicants and current employees working with the department.

Approved by Governor 05/22/2025
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Bill Summary · HB 1075

Summary — HB 1075 (North Dakota)

AN ACT to create and enact a new subdivision to subsection 2 of section 12‑60‑24 and a new section to chapter 37‑17.1 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to criminal history record checks by the Department of Emergency Services

Main purpose / intent

The bill authorizes the North Dakota Department of Emergency Services (DES) to require criminal history background checks — including both statewide and nationwide (FBI) checks — of final employment applicants and certain current employees. It makes corresponding changes to the list of entities authorized to obtain nationwide criminal-history checks under section 12‑60‑24.

Key provisions

  • Adds a new subsection in chapter 37‑17.1 (DES) establishing that DES may require:
    • Final applicants for employment and
    • Current employees who work with DES to submit to statewide and nationwide criminal history record checks.
  • Specifies that any nationwide (FBI) criminal history check required by DES must be conducted in the manner provided by section 12‑60‑24 of the North Dakota Century Code.
  • Amends subdivision nn of subsection 2 of section 12‑60‑24 to explicitly include the Department of Emergency Services alongside other state entities (e.g., the Office of the Adjutant General) that may receive nationwide criminal history records for employment-related screening.

Who is affected

  • Final DES job applicants for positions covered by the authority.
  • Current DES employees whose duties place them “working with the department” as described in chapter 37‑17.1.
  • DES human-resources/staffing operations (procedures, recordkeeping, compliance).
  • Potentially vendors, contractors, or volunteers if their status falls under DES’s definition of employees or covered personnel.

Practical and policy impacts

  • Implementation will likely involve fingerprinting and submission to state and federal criminal record systems; processing may entail time and administrative costs.
  • May create disqualification pathways for applicants with certain criminal histories consistent with existing statute and DES hiring policies.
  • Raises routine privacy and data-handling considerations — records obtained under 12‑60‑24 are subject to the confidentiality, retention, and dissemination rules in that statute.
  • Financial impacts are expected to be modest; any processing fees, system interface needs, or staffing costs would be borne by DES (or allocated in budget/appropriations).

Procedural / timeline notes

  • Introduced: November 12, 2024 (per filing information provided).
  • Legislative progress in the provided documents shows the bill advanced through the Government and Veterans Affairs Committee and was included in engrossed/enrolled versions of the bill text.
  • Status on file: listed as filed with the Secretary of State on March 14, 2025 in the materials supplied. (Readers should check the official North Dakota legislative/journal records or the Secretary of State for final enactment date and any effective date language.)

Where to read the statutory changes

  • New authority added to chapter 37‑17.1 (Criminal history record checks — new section).
  • Conforming amendment added to subsection 2 of section 12‑60‑24 (list of entities authorized to receive nationwide criminal history checks).

If you want, I can:
- Pull the exact statutory language inserted by the bill (quoted text),
- Compare this bill to existing section 12‑60‑24 to show precisely what was added, or
- Draft a brief memo on implementation steps DES would likely need (fingerprinting contracts, privacy controls, cost estimate).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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