Agencies with access to federal tax information must run criminal history checks on current and prospective employees, contractors, and subcontractors, and there are related fingerprinting, confidentiality, timing, and cost rules.
§587.5. Agencies with access to federal tax information; criminal history information A. For purposes of this Section, "agency" means any agency that has an agreement with the Internal Revenue Service to access federal tax information or is authorized by law to audit the records of an agency that has access to federal tax information. "Agency" shall include all of the following: (1) Department of Revenue. (2) Department of Justice, collections section and information technology section. (3) Division of Administration, office of technology services. NOTE: Paragraph (4) eff. until October 1, 2027. See Acts 2025, No. 477. (4) Department of Children and Family Services, child support enforcement and family support. NOTE: Paragraph (4) as amended by Acts 2025, No. 477, eff. October 1, 2027. (4) Department of Children and Family Services, office of child support. (5) Louisiana Department of Health, medicaid eligibility section. (6) Louisiana Works, office of unemployment insurance administration. (7) The legislative auditor and employees designated by the legislative auditor to audit the records of an agency that has access to federal tax information. B.(1) An agency with access to federal tax information shall require any current or prospective employee, contractor, or subcontractor to submit to a criminal history records check to be conducted by the Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information. Fingerprints and other identifying information from the current or prospective employee, contractor, or subcontractor shall be submitted to the bureau by the employee, contractor, or subcontractor. (2) When a criminal history records check is requested pursuant to Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, the bureau shall provide the agency with the state criminal history record information of the current or prospective employee, contractor, or subcontractor. In addition, when the agency requests national criminal history records checks, the bureau shall forward the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history records check and shall provide the agency with the national criminal history record information of the current or prospective employee, contractor, or subcontractor. (3) In addition to the requirements of Paragraphs (1) and (2) of this Subsection, for requests made pursuant to R.S. 39:15.1.2, the bureau may submit fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation to be retained in the FBI rap back system for the purpose of being searched in future submissions to the FBI rap back system, including latent fingerprint searches. The bureau shall make available to the division of administration, office of technology services, rap backs for requests made pursuant to R.S. 39:15.1.2. Any recipient of information as provided in this Paragraph shall maintain the confidentiality of the criminal history information in accordance with applicable state or federal law. C. A local criminal history records check shall also be requested by an agency for a current or prospective employee, contractor, or subcontractor. The request shall be sent to any jurisdiction where the current or prospective employee, contractor, or subcontractor has lived, worked, or attended school within the last five years. D.(1) Fingerprinting and national, state, and local criminal history records checks are to be used by the agency to determine the suitability of the current or prospective employee, contractor, or subcontractor to access federal tax information and records. (2) Prospective employees shall be subject to fingerprinting and national, state, and local criminal history records checks only after a conditional offer of employment has been made. (3) Current employees, contractors, and subcontractors with access to federal tax information shall be subject to fingerprinting and national, state, and local criminal history records checks at a minimum of every ten years. E. The costs of providing the information required under this Section shall be charged by the bureau, as specified in R.S. 15:587(B), to the agency for furnishing information contained in the bureau's criminal history and identification files, including any additional costs of providing the national criminal history records check, which pertains to the current or prospective employee, contractor, or subcontractor. Acts 2017, No. 147, §1, eff. June 12, 2017; Acts 2018, No. 363, §1, eff. May 20, 2018; Acts 2022, No. 300, §1; Acts 2025, No. 477, §7, eff. Oct. 1, 2027.