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Criminal Background Checks in Delaware

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WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) - Gov. Jack Markell has established a task force to study criminal background check requirements for people who work with Delaware's children.

Markell's issued an executive order Monday calling for a thorough review of state laws and regulations determining when background checks are necessary, saying they are sometimes inconsistent.

The order establishes a task force that will make recommendations on how to best protect children in schools and other settings.

Among the issues the task force will look at are whether background checks should be required for workers and volunteers at school camps, and at private and non-state operated schools.

The panel also will look at consolidating criminal, child protection, sex offender and adult abuse registry checks.

The task force is to report its findings by the end of the year.

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Ban  The Box Bill

DOVER, Del. (AP) - State lawmakers are poised to consider legislation to prohibit state and local government agencies from considering job applicants criminal histories or credit histories during the initial application process.

Under the legislation, prospective government workers would no longer have to check a box on a job application asking whether they have a criminal record.

The so-called "ban the box" bill would allow consideration of an applicant's criminal background only after a conditional job offer has been made.

The bill also allows consideration of felonies only for 10 years from the completion of sentence, and misdemeanors for 5 years.

The bill, which would not apply to police departments, the court and prison systems and positions that require criminal background checks, is scheduled for a House committee hearing Wednesday.

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.