Supporting material

34 U.S.C. § 40102(c)(2) reads: “The Attorney General shall, to the maximum extent possible, encourage the use of the best technology available in conducting background checks.” (formerly 42 U.S.C. § 5119a).

The Attorney General shall, to the maximum extent possible, encourage the use of the best technology available in conducting background checks.

Wording confirmed character-for-character on both uscode.house.gov and law.cornell.edu. Formerly codified at 42 U.S.C. § 5119a(c)(2); transferred to Title 34 by the 2017 editorial reclassification. Source credit: Pub. L. 103-209 § 3 (1993); amended Pub. L. 103-322 § 320928 (1994), Pub. L. 105-251 § 222 (1998), Pub.…

34 U.S.C. § 40102(a)(2): authorized agencies must make reasonable efforts to respond to a qualified-entity inquiry within 15 business days.

The authorized agency shall access and review State and Federal criminal history records through the national criminal history background check system and shall make reasonable efforts to respond to the inquiry within 15 business days.

The Act itself requires no one to be checked: section 3(a)(1) lets a state adopt procedures that require qualified entities to request checks (T11). The same 15-day language is in the original Act, Pub. L. 103-209 § 3(a)(2), 107 Stat. 2490 to 2491, and on Cornell LII.

The National Child Protection Act of 1993 (P.L. 103-209) § 4 authorized $20,000,000 in TOTAL (not per year) for FY1994–FY1997 for states to computerize criminal history records; later re-authorized for FY1999–FY2002 (34 U.S.C. § 40103(b)(2)).

There are authorized to be appropriated for grants under paragraph (1) a total of $20,000,000 for fiscal years 1994, 1995, 1996, and 1997.

TOTAL confirmed: the statute says “a total of $20,000,000” across the four fiscal years, not $20M per year. Current 34 U.S.C. § 40103(b)(2) reads: “There are authorized to be appropriated for grants under paragraph (1) a total of $20,000,000 for fiscal years 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002.” The 1998 change was made by…

GAO report GGD-97-32 (1997) on the National Child Protection Act found the Act “does not provide a specific list of disqualifying offenses; rather, each state must make these determinations.”

However, the act does not provide a specific list of disqualifying offenses; rather, each state must make these determinations.

Full PDF: gao.gov (text extracted locally with pdftotext). The claim’s wording matches verbatim. Same page also corroborates L6: “When enacted in 1993, NCPA specified that fees… could not exceed the actual cost. The provision was amended in 1994 to specify that the fee for these volunteers could not exceed $18 or…

The NCPA/VCA contains a liability shield: a qualified entity is not liable in damages solely for failing to conduct a check, and states are not liable in damages for a qualified entity’s failure to take adverse action against a person who was checked (34 U.S.C. § 40102(d)).

A qualified entity shall not be liable in an action for damages solely for failure to conduct a criminal background check on a covered individual, nor shall a State or political subdivision thereof … be liable in an action for damages for the failure of a qualified entity (other than itself) to take action adverse to a covered individual

CITATION CORRECTION: the liability shield is subsection (d), not (f). Subsection (f), added in 2018 by the Child Protection Improvements Act (P.L. 115-141, div. S, title I, § 101(a)(1)(G)), sets up the national check program’s designated entities; the same Act extended the (d) shield to designated entities (§…

The limit of $18 each on state and FBI fees (or the actual cost, if less) for fingerprint checks of volunteers was added in 1994 (P.L. 103-322, § 320928(e)), not by the Volunteers for Children Act of 1998. In 2018 the Child Protection Improvements Act (P.L. 115-141) removed the $18 limit: for fingerprint checks under a state requirement, state and FBI fees may not exceed the actual cost, and the fee system must still not discourage volunteers (34 U.S.C. § 40102(e)(1), (e)(3)).

1994—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 103–322, §320928(e), substituted “eighteen dollars, respectively, or the actual cost, whichever is less,” for “the actual cost”.

The $18-or-actual-cost cap was NOT created by the Volunteers for Children Act of 1998. It was added by the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, Pub. L. 103-322 § 320928(e) (the original 1993 Act said only “the actual cost”). The 1998 Volunteers for Children Act (Pub. L. 105-251, title II, subtitle…

A 1995 national survey by the American Bar Association’s Center on Children and the Law, funded by OJJDP and reported in OJJDP’s 1998 screening guidelines, found that 35% of youth-serving organizations conducted at least one type of criminal record check on volunteer applicants.

More than one-third (35 percent) conducted at least one type of criminal record check on volunteer applicants; State and local checks were used more often than FBI checks.

Attribution nuance: the 1998 OJJDP publication reports the results of an OJJDP-funded study, “Effective Screening of Child Care and Youth Service Workers” (ABA Center on Children and the Law, Washington, DC, 1995; OJJDP grant 92-MC-CX-0013), which surveyed approximately 3,800 child- and youth-serving organizations…

CCDBG Act of 2014 (P.L. 113-186) requires an FBI fingerprint check, a National Sex Offender Registry search, and state criminal, sex offender and child abuse and neglect registry searches (in the state of residence and each state lived in during the past five years), with a new check at least once every five years, for staff of licensed, regulated or registered child care providers and of providers eligible for CCDF assistance, except people related to all the children in their care (42 U.S.C. § 9858f; 45 CFR 98.43).

(ii) Not less than once during each 5-year period for any existing staff member.

Scope confirmed: § 98.43(a)(1)(i) requires checks for child care staff members “of all licensed, regulated, or registered child care providers and all child care providers eligible to deliver services for which assistance is provided under this part”; (a)(2)(i)(B) defines a covered provider as one that “Is…

FBI Rap Back: subscriptions may be set up only by a government agency or a nongovernmental entity that the FBI’s CJIS Division has assigned an ORI, and noncriminal justice subscriptions are limited to entities authorized by federal statute, federal executive order or state statute; subscribers often use a state identification bureau, an authorized federal agency or an authorized contractor as submitter. A private or non-profit employer can take part only where such an authority covers it.

Therefore, Noncriminal Justice Rap Back subscriptions allow only government agencies or nongovernmental entities that have been authorized by federal statute, federal executive order, or state statute to have access to Rap Back information.

Corrected September 27, 2026: the row had said private non-profit employers “generally cannot enroll directly”; the FBI’s own test is legal authority and an ORI, not the kind of employer. The PIA also states: “The Rap Back Service provides automated, accurate, and timely responses to authorized agencies that submit…

HHS OIG, “National Background Check Program for Long-Term Care Providers: A Final Assessment” (Nov. 2024): 29 jurisdictions (27 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) took part at various times from 2010 to 2024; OIG credits the program with helping 27 of them develop background check programs. Maryland and Wisconsin withdrew early, and the last two participants ended participation on May 31, 2024.

Twenty-nine States participated in the program at various times from 2010 to 2024. The last two States ended participation on May 31, 2024. … The National Background Check Program was successful in assisting 27 States to develop programs to identify efficient, effective, and economical procedures for conducting background checks

Full report PDF: oig.hhs.gov. WORDING FIX: the last two States “ended”/”finished participation” on May 31, 2024 — they completed the program; they did not withdraw. The two States that “withdrew from the program early” were Maryland and Wisconsin, “because of a lack of support for efforts to obtain legislative…

BJS National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP): BJS says spending from 1995 through 2024 was “almost $1.1 billion” (its award tables total about $1.02 billion); annual NCHIP awards ran about $48 million to $64 million in FY2020 to FY2024, plus about $18 million to $25 million a year under NARIP.

Total expenditures since the inception in 1995 through 2024 were almost $1.1 billion.

Annual awards in the claim are from BJS’s award tables (see G18); the $70 million and $25 million figures below are solicitation ceilings, not awards. Cumulative figure verified. Annual figure partially verified: BJS FY24 NCHIP solicitation lists “Anticipated Total Amount To Be Awarded Under This Solicitation:…

CMS National Background Check Program (ACA § 6201): grants of up to $3 million per state at a 3:1 federal match.

The payment amount to each State that the Secretary enters into an agreement with under paragraph (1)(A) shall be 3 times the amount that the State guarantees to make available under clause (i), except that in no case may the payment amount exceed $3,000,000

Both figures verified in statute. Nuance: the $3,000,000 cap applies to newly participating States; States that had participated in the earlier MMA § 307 pilot are capped at $1,500,000 under (a)(5)(B)(ii), also at 3:1. CMS’s program page (cms.gov, surfaced in search, not opened) describes the “three-to-one match.”

HR.com’s HR Research Institute, in a 2021 survey sponsored by the Professional Background Screening Association: 19% of responding organizations worldwide run background checks at times beyond hiring and onboarding. The 19% does not measure continuous monitoring as such.

Among the 19% of organizations that conduct background checks at times in addition to the initial hiring/onboarding process worldwide, criminal background screening is the most common type of recurring background check (67%).

Primary survey report located on PBSA’s own publication server (the WebFetch summarizer could not parse it; text extracted locally with pdftotext). Nuances for site copy: (1) the 19% is of “organizations… worldwide” responding to the HR.com/PBSA survey, not U.S. employers only; (2) the report is authored by…

Virginia State Crime Commission staff (October 2018): the Virginia State Police “Hold File” held at least 751,154 offenses not applied to criminal history records, 90% (675,081) because they lacked fingerprints. PBSA later cited the finding.

VSP maintains a “CCRE Hold File” with at least 751,154 offenses not applied to criminal history records due to errors: 90% lack fingerprints (675,081) 10% are due to other errors (76,073)

The state is Virginia; the repository is the Virginia State Police Central Criminal Records Exchange (CCRE). PBSA’s own document (pubs.thepbsa.org, p. 2) states: “In Virginia, more than 750,000 criminal records were missing, including murder convictions, drunk driving arrests, family abuse and drug charges, among…

Congressional Research Service: as of 2022, slightly less than half of states, territories and tribes were in full compliance with CCDBG background-check requirements.

HHS reported that as of 2022, slightly less than half of states, territories, and tribes were in full compliance with all requirements except the requirement for checks to be completed within 45 days.

Correct CRS report is R47312 (not R43707). The canonical congress.gov URL (listed in search results under the report’s title) sits behind a bot-verification page and crsreports.congress.gov returned HTTP 403, so the page could not be opened from this environment; the report text (Dec. 3, 2024 version) was read from…

A 2019 Boston Globe and ProPublica survey of 49 states, D.C. and Puerto Rico on five areas of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act found no state agency fully compliant; the reporters wrote that no state upholds all 27 provisions.

In fact, not a single state upholds all 27 provisions of the anti-child-abuse law.

A newsroom survey of five CAPTA areas (49 states, D.C., Puerto Rico), not a government audit. See M1.

HHS OIG audit of Louisiana nursing homes (A-06-21-02000, November 2023): at one nursing home a non-licensed employee provided patient care for almost 14 months before officials learned the employee’s background check was incomplete.

At another nursing home, a non-licensed direct-hired employee provided patient care for almost 14 months before nursing home officials became aware that the employee’s background check was incomplete—a fact that was discovered during a routine internal audit of employee records.

ATTRIBUTION ERROR: the 14-month case comes from a federal HHS-OIG audit of Louisiana (A-06-21-02000; audit period Oct. 1, 2019-June 30, 2021; 209 non-licensed employees at 9 nursing homes), not from the Louisiana Legislative Auditor. Full report PDF: oig.hhs.gov. The Louisiana Department of Health’s memo to…

HHS OIG, OEI-07-09-00110 (March 2011), from its 2009 review of state requirements: 43 states, counting the District of Columbia, required nursing facilities to run an FBI or statewide criminal background check on covered prospective employees (10 required both; some others required an FBI check for people new to the state), and 8 states had no criminal background check requirement. Federal law separately requires a nurse aide registry inquiry for nurse aides (T9).

Ten States require an FBI criminal background check as well as a statewide check. Thirty-three States require a criminal background check in the State where the nursing facility is located. The remaining eight States do not have a background check requirement.

The report counts the District of Columbia as a state (footnote 8; Table 1 totals 51). Which employees must be checked varies by state. The figures are OIG’s own 2009 research, not a news report. Executive Summary: “Forty-three States required nursing facilities to conduct either an FBI or a statewide criminal…

The Child Protection Improvements Act (P.L. 115-141, division S, title I, March 23, 2018) requires the Attorney General to establish a program giving qualified organizations that care for children, older adults or people with disabilities access to national fingerprint checks, fully implemented within one year (by March 23, 2019). Use is voluntary. The fitness-criteria rule was proposed on August 25, 2023 (88 FR 58167) and, as checked on September 27, 2026, is not final: DOJ’s 2026 agenda lists the final action as “To Be Determined.”

The Attorney General shall establish a program, in accordance with this section, to provide qualified entities

Deadline: sec. 101(b), 132 Stat. 1126. Agenda: reginfo.gov RIN 1110-AA33, “Final Action To Be Determined”, legal deadline 03/23/2019. Time-sensitive: recheck before each rebuild. Separate from the National Background Check Program for long-term care workers (42 U.S.C. 1320a-7l).

34 U.S.C. § 40102(f)(2)(A): the Attorney General “shall designate, and enter into an agreement with, one or more entities” to make the fitness determination from the FBI’s check results, and may not designate a federal agency.

The Attorney General shall designate, and enter into an agreement with, one or more entities to make determinations described in subparagraph (B).

Added by P.L. 115-141, sec. 101(a)(1)(G). The designated entity decides whether the person “has been convicted of, or is under pending indictment for, a crime that bears upon” fitness (40102(b)(4)), using criteria the Attorney General sets by rule ((f)(2)(C)); the requesting organization still makes its own decision.

When a child in foster care goes missing, the state agency must report it “immediately, and in no case later than 24 hours after receiving” the information, to law enforcement for entry into NCIC and to NCMEC (42 U.S.C. § 671(a)(35)(B)); required no later than September 29, 2016. Twenty-four hours is the outer limit, not a waiting period.

the State agency shall report immediately, and in no case later than 24 hours after receiving, information on missing or abducted children or youth to the law enforcement authorities … and to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

Enacted by P.L. 113-183, sec. 104 (September 29, 2014); effective no later than September 29, 2016 (ACYF-CB-PI-15-07). A Title IV-E state plan requirement. The 2023 additions are S12.

The 28 laws in T1 to T28 are FComply’s catalog of federal laws since 1965 on the care and protection of children, older adults and people with disabilities, and on background checks. It is a selection, not an official count. Several federal laws that do require checks are not in it, among them the Crime Control Act of 1990 (34 U.S.C. 20351), the Head Start staff check (42 U.S.C. 9843a(g)) and the national service check (42 U.S.C. 12645g).

shall assure that all existing and newly-hired employees undergo a criminal history background check.

No government body publishes a count of federal laws protecting these groups; 28 is FComply’s own selection. The Head Start check and the national service check were read in the same review (42 U.S.C. 9843a(g)(3)(A); 42 U.S.C. 12645g(a)).

Most of the 28 laws (T1 to T28) in FComply’s catalog require no background check. Many of them are civil rights, education, services and trafficking laws that do not address screening at all. Where a law in the catalog does require checks, it does so as a condition States must meet to receive federal funds. Read law by law, seven set such conditions: 1997 (a State could opt out until 2008), 2003, 2006, 2008 (only where a State offers kinship guardianship payments), the 2010 CAPTA law, 2014, and 2018 (a State may report alternative checks). Two require checks only inside voluntary long-term care programs (2003 and 2010), and the 1987 nursing home law requires a nurse aide registry inquiry before an aide starts work.

subparagraph (A) shall not apply to a State plan if the Governor of the State has notified the Secretary in writing that the State has elected to make subparagraph (A) inapplicable to the State

Each law’s own text is in its row, T1 to T28: 1997 (T13), 2003 (T17), 2006 (T19), 2008 (T20), 2010 CAPTA (T22), 2014 (T24), 2018 (T27); voluntary programs 2003 (T18) and 2010 (T21); the 1987 registry inquiry (T9).

No law in FComply’s catalog makes continuous monitoring the rule. The closest is section 6201 of the 2010 Affordable Care Act: States that joined its voluntary long-term care program had to develop and test Rap Back, so that the State and then the employer learn when a checked employee is later convicted. Federal grant participation ended on May 31, 2024. Federal child care rules require a new check at least once every five years, and HHS encourages, but does not require, Rap Back.

require States to describe and test methods that reduce duplicative fingerprinting, including providing for the development of “rap back” capability by the State

The federal child care rule is 42 U.S.C. 9858f(d)(3)(B); HHS: “Although not a requirement, we encourage Lead Agencies to enroll child care staff members in rap back programs” (81 FR 67500). CMS let states keep running the program after the grants ended.

Federal law requires checks before unsupervised work for some caregiving jobs: child care staff in licensed or federally funded care and Head Start staff, who may not be left alone with children until every check is back, and foster and adoptive parents, who are checked before approval. Nursing homes must search the nurse aide registry before an aide starts. For most school, nursing home and home health jobs, criminal checks come from state law, and the rules differ, including whether a new worker can start before the results arrive. In the most recent federal surveys, 46 states required checks for public school applicants (GAO, 2014), 43 for nursing facility staff (HHS OIG, 2011) and 41 for home health staff, 26 of which let new workers start while results were pending (HHS OIG, 2014).

Pending completion of all background check components in paragraph (b) of this section, the staff member must be supervised at all times

Other sources: 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A); 42 U.S.C. 1396r(b)(5)(C); GAO-14-42, printed p. 16; HHS OIG OEI-07-09-00110, p. ii; HHS OIG OEI-07-14-00131, p. 5; 42 CFR 483.12(a)(3).

HHS OIG reported in November 2012 that there were no federal requirements specifying qualifications for Medicaid personal care services attendants; states were required to set their own qualifications or requirements, the most common being background checks.

Although there are no Federal requirements for PCS attendants, States are required to develop qualifications or requirements for attendants to ensure quality of care.

A 2012 report; state requirements vary. The page also says: “The most common requirements were background checks; training; supervision; minimum age; health status…; and education.”

No federal law requires every volunteer, or every youth sports coach, to be background checked. Federal law does mention volunteers. It lets states and qualified organizations request national checks on volunteers (34 U.S.C. 40102 and 40104) and lets CASA programs request FBI checks of prospective volunteers, whom federal CASA grants require programs to screen (34 U.S.C. 20323). It encourages federal child care facilities to check volunteers (34 U.S.C. 20351(e)). It requires amateur sports organizations in interstate competition to report abuse, limit one-on-one contact with minors, train adults and bar retaliation, but not to check them (36 U.S.C. 220530). Federal rules do require checks of volunteers in specific programs: child care covered by the Child Care and Development Block Grant, for volunteers with unsupervised access to children (42 U.S.C. 9858f; 45 CFR 98.43); Defense Department child and youth programs, where coaches are “specified volunteers” (32 CFR 86.3 and 86.6); Bureau of Indian Affairs and Indian Health Service programs and the tribal programs they fund, for positions with regular contact with Indian children (25 CFR 63.14; 42 CFR 136.403 and 136.406); Medicare hospices, for volunteers with direct patient contact or access to patient records (42 CFR 418.3 and 418.114(d)); federally funded runaway and homeless youth programs, for volunteers with regular and unsupervised private contact with youth (45 CFR 1351.23(j)); care providers for unaccompanied children in federal custody (45 CFR 411.16); and State Department high school exchange sponsors and host families (22 CFR 62.25). AmeriCorps members and stipended senior volunteers are checked under the national service law (42 U.S.C. 12645g; 45 CFR 2540.201). The list is of the laws and rules read, not a certified complete search. As of December 19, 2025, Little League counted 13 states with background check laws for volunteers in youth sports and other non-school activities; the laws differ in whom they cover.

A State may have in effect procedures (established by State statute or regulation) that require qualified entities designated by the State to contact an authorized agency of the State to request a nationwide background check…

Little League’s count is its own compilation of state laws, not a statute.

A background check begins with the identity the applicant presents. For fingerprint checks, the ID step is what ties the prints to the named applicant: the FBI Compact Council wrote its voluntary identity verification guide after fingerprinting agencies raised concern that someone could pose as the applicant at the appointment, and the guide suggests accepting only current, valid photo ID. Some rules and agency instructions require an ID at that step (TSA’s rule for airport workers, 49 CFR 1542.209(e)(3); California’s and Texas’s instructions for the fingerprint appointment), and the federal child care and volunteer check law requires the applicant’s signed statement to carry the name, address and date of birth on a valid ID document (34 U.S.C. 40102(b)(1)(A)). No single federal rule requires an ID document to be checked for every employment or licensing check; in 2006 the Attorney General recommended national standards for verifying the identity of people being checked.

unless the covered individual first provides a set of fingerprints and completes and signs a statement that … contains the name, address, and date of birth appearing on a valid identification document

Compact Council, Identity Verification Program Guide (revised 2014), printed pp. 1 and 3; 34 U.S.C. 40316, Article V(a); 49 CFR 1542.209(e)(3); The Attorney General’s Report on Criminal History Background Checks (2006), printed p. 25.

Criminal records are connected: the FBI’s Interstate Identification Index links the criminal history files of the FBI, all 50 states and D.C. into one national system (34 U.S.C. 40316; 28 CFR 20.3(p)). What does not connect is the check itself. Federal rules say records received through that system “shall be used only for the purpose requested” and that a current record should be requested for a later use (28 CFR 20.33(d)). Each employer, agency and state usually runs its own check, and a result usually does not carry over to the next job. Where the FBI’s Rap Back service keeps watching, the watch belongs to the agency that set it up and must be removed when that relationship ends. A child care check does not carry into another state: the provider in the new state must request new searches, including of every state the worker lived in during the past five years. Child care is a partial exception within a state, where a recent result can move with the worker to a new provider, and Texas child care reuses an active Rap Back subscription instead of taking new fingerprints.

The Interstate Identification Index (III) is an index pointer system that ties computerized criminal history record files of the FBI and the centralized files maintained by each III participating state into a national system.

28 CFR 20.3(p) defines the Interstate Identification Index; 45 CFR 98.43(d)(3)(i)(B) covers in-state child care portability; Texas child care: new fingerprints are not required while an active Rap Back subscription exists.

A new job or a new state can mean a new check. Federal rules say FBI records may be used only for the purpose they were requested for, and that ‘a current record should be requested when needed for a subsequent authorized use’ (28 CFR 50.12(b); 28 CFR 20.33(d)); the national Compact tells states to ‘require that subsequent record checks are requested to obtain current information whenever a new need arises’ (34 U.S.C. 40316, Article IV(c)(2)). The child care law lets a worker change jobs without a new check only inside the same state, only if the last check is under five years old, and only after a gap of 180 days or less (42 U.S.C. 9858f(d)(4); 45 CFR 98.43(d)(3)). Maine, Michigan and California tell applicants that fingerprints taken for another job or state cannot be reused. Who pays differs: sometimes the worker, sometimes the employer or the state. Some systems do carry a check over, for example New York for school employees fingerprinted by the State Education Department since 2001.

Records obtained under this authority may be used solely for the purpose requested and cannot be disseminated outside the receiving departments, related agencies, or other authorized entities.

42 U.S.C. 9858f(d)(4); 45 CFR 98.43(d)(3); 34 U.S.C. 40316, Article IV(c)(2); 28 CFR 20.33(d).

Federal law sets disqualifications in some programs: for staff of child care providers that receive Child Care and Development Block Grant funds (42 U.S.C. 9858f(c)(1)), for prospective foster or adoptive parents in placements for which Title IV-E payments are to be made (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A)(i) and (ii)), and for people employed or engaged by Medicare- or Medicaid-participating nursing facilities (42 CFR 483.12(a)(3)). Outside such programs, disqualifying rules come from state law and differ by state; states may also add disqualifications within them.

A child care staff member shall be ineligible for employment by a child care provider that is receiving assistance under this subchapter if such individual-

671(a)(20)(A)(i): a felony conviction for child abuse or neglect, spousal abuse, a crime against children or a crime involving violence (not other physical assault or battery) bars final approval; (ii): a felony conviction for physical assault, battery or a drug-related offense, if the felony was committed within…

Periodic rechecks in federal law: covered child care staff at least once every five years (42 U.S.C. 9858f(d)(3)(B); 45 CFR 98.43(d)(2)(ii)); Head Start employees, consultants and contractors at least once every five years, unless the program shows the responsible HHS official a more stringent system (45 CFR 1302.90(b)(5)); and Bureau of Indian Affairs employees with regular contact with or control over Indian children, reinvestigated every five years (25 CFR 63.18(b)). The federal laws reviewed for this register set no periodic recheck for Title IV-E foster and adoptive parents, nursing home aides or school staff generally.

not less than once during each 5-year period following the first submission date under this paragraph for that staff member

Head Start: “A program must conduct the complete background check for each employee, consultant, or contractor at least once every five years” (45 CFR 1302.90(b)(5)). BIA: “must be reinvestigated every five years” (25 CFR 63.18(b)); tribes may choose to adopt it. States may check more often; some use Rap Back.

FBI Rap Back participation: eleven state agencies, eleven federal agencies and ten other authorized entities were approved to participate in the FBI’s noncriminal justice Rap Back service (FBI, June 13, 2025). SEARCH reported on July 16, 2025 that ten states (Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and Utah) are enrolled in the FBI noncriminal justice Rap Back program, from its discussions with the FBI’s Rap Back team; that figure is not a share of the 32 states that answered SEARCH’s June 2025 survey.

Currently there are eleven state agencies, eleven federal agencies, and ten other authorized entities approved to participate in the NGI Noncriminal Justice Rap Back Service.

SEARCH, States Make Steady Progress Toward FBI Rap Back Implementation (July 16, 2025): Arizona, Oregon and California approved but not yet submitting; Virginia began July 1, 2025. Agencies approved (FBI) and states submitting (SEARCH) are different units.

REAL ID: from May 7, 2025, federal agencies may not accept a driver’s license or identification card for official purposes, such as boarding a plane, unless it is REAL ID compliant; an agency may phase in enforcement, with full enforcement no later than May 5, 2027 (6 CFR 37.5(b) and (d)).

on or after May 7, 2025, Federal agencies shall not accept a driver’s license or identification card for official purposes from any individual unless such license or card is a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license or identification card

REAL ID governs federal acceptance of a card, not whether a state may issue one.

Illinois (Biometric Information Privacy Act, 740 ILCS 14), Texas (Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 503.001) and Washington (RCW 19.375) regulate biometric identifiers by statute. Colorado added biometric duties to its privacy act in 2024 (HB24-1130, effective July 1, 2025).

in the context of employment, a release executed by an employee as a condition of employment

Texas generally requires destruction of a biometric identifier “within a reasonable time, but not later than the first anniversary of the date the purpose for collecting the identifier expires.” Washington’s law excludes photographs and video and is enforced solely by the Attorney General. Colorado: reported in the…

E-Verify (then the Basic Pilot): the Basic Pilot Program Extension and Expansion Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-156, December 3, 2003) required the Secretary of Homeland Security to expand the program, authorized in 1996, “to all 50 States not later than December 1, 2004”. That is availability in every state, not use by every employer.

the Secretary of Homeland Security shall expand the operation of the program to all 50 States not later than December 1, 2004

Behind the E-Verify bar on How it would roll out (1996 law, all states 2004, 8 years).

Electronic Visit Verification: 42 U.S.C. 1396b(l)(1), added by the 21st Century Cures Act (P.L. 114-255, sec. 12006(a), December 13, 2016), reduces the federal Medicaid match for personal care services furnished from January 1, 2020 (moved from 2019 by P.L. 115-222, July 30, 2018) and for home health care services from January 1, 2023, unless the state requires an electronic visit verification system.

furnished in a calendar quarter beginning on or after January 1, 2020 (or, in the case of home health care services, on or after January 1, 2023), unless a State requires the use of an electronic visit verification system

Behind the EVV bar on How it would roll out (Cures Act 2016, home health deadline 2023, 7 years). Good-faith exemptions were available to states.

FBI Rap Back began in September 2014: the FBI announced full operational capability of its Next Generation Identification system on September 15, 2014, introducing the Rap Back service, which gives authorized entities ongoing notice of criminal history reported on people in positions of trust.

As part of NGI’s full operational capability, the NGI team is introducing two new services: Rap Back and the Interstate Photo System (IPS).

Behind the Rap Back bar on How it would roll out (about ten years, 10 states enrolled by July 2025). Who may subscribe is L9.

1965. Older Americans Act of 1965, P.L. 89-73, 79 Stat. 218 (July 14, 1965). A services and grants law for older Americans; FComply’s catalog files it under elder protection. It required no background check, and no check language was found in the Act as amended today (42 U.S.C. chapter 35).

To provide assistance in the development of new or improved programs to help older persons through grants to the States for community planning and services and for training

Catalog band: elder protection.

1973. Rehabilitation Act of 1973, P.L. 93-112, 87 Stat. 355 (Sept. 26, 1973). Section 504 bars disability discrimination in federally funded programs. A civil rights and rehabilitation law, not a screening law; it required no background check, and none was found in the Act as amended (29 U.S.C. chapter 16).

solely by reason of his handicap, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.

Catalog band: disability rights.

1974. Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, P.L. 93-247, 88 Stat. 4 (Jan. 31, 1974). As enacted, it funded programs to prevent and treat child abuse and required states receiving its grants to investigate abuse reports promptly; it required no background check. CAPTA’s check requirement was added in 2003 and strengthened in 2010 (both in this catalog) and is now 42 U.S.C. 5106a(b)(2)(B)(xxii).

To provide financial assistance for a demonstration program for the prevention, identification, and treatment of child abuse and neglect, to establish a National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, and for other purposes.

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

1975. Developmentally Disabled Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, P.L. 94-103, 89 Stat. 486 (Oct. 4, 1975). A disability rights and services law; it required no background check. Its successor law of 2000 (42 U.S.C. chapter 144) contains no check language either.

SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the “Developmentally Disabled Assistance and Bill of Rights Act”.

Catalog band: disability rights.

1975. Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, P.L. 94-142, 89 Stat. 773 (Nov. 29, 1975). The special education law, now the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. chapter 33). It required no background check, and none was found in the law as amended.

To amend the Education of the Handicapped Act to provide educational assistance to all handicapped children, and for other purposes.

Catalog band: disability rights.

1978. Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978, P.L. 95-608, 92 Stat. 3069 (Nov. 8, 1978). Sets federal standards for placing Indian children in foster and adoptive homes; it requires no background check (the homes are licensed or approved by tribes or states under their own rules).

To establish standards for the placement of Indian children in foster or adoptive homes, to prevent the breakup of Indian families, and for other purposes.

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

1980. Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980, P.L. 96-272, 94 Stat. 500 (June 17, 1980). Built the federal foster care and adoption assistance program (Title IV-E). As enacted it required no background check; paid foster homes had to be licensed or approved by the state. The checks now in the Title IV-E state plan, 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20), were added by the 1997, 2006, 2008 and 2018 laws in this catalog.

To establish a program of adoption assistance, to strengthen the program of foster care assistance for needy and dependent children

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

1986. Protection and Advocacy for Mentally Ill Individuals Act of 1986, P.L. 99-319, 100 Stat. 478 (May 23, 1986). Funds state advocacy systems that investigate abuse of people with mental illness; it requires no background check.

mentally ill individuals are vulnerable to abuse and serious injury;

Catalog band: disability rights.

1987. Nursing Home Reform (title IV, subtitle C of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987), P.L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330 (Dec. 22, 1987). It requires a registry check: a Medicare or Medicaid nursing home may not use anyone as a nurse aide until it has checked the state nurse aide registry, which records state findings of resident abuse, neglect and misappropriation of residents’ property. Current law extends the inquiry to every state registry the home believes has information on the person. This enactment did not impose a general criminal records or fingerprint check. Current law: 42 U.S.C. 1395i-3(b)(5)(C) and (e)(2); 42 U.S.C. 1396r(b)(5)(C) and (e)(2); 42 CFR 483.35(d)(4) and (5). Federal rules also bar nursing homes from employing or otherwise engaging anyone found guilty by a court of law of abuse, neglect, exploitation, misappropriation of property or mistreatment (42 CFR 483.12(a)(3)).

must not use such an individual as a nurse aide unless the facility has inquired of the State registry established under subsection (e)(2)(A) as to information in the registry concerning the individual.

Catalog band: elder protection.

1990. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, P.L. 101-336, 104 Stat. 327 (July 26, 1990). The disability civil rights law; it requires no background check.

To establish a clear and comprehensive prohibition of discrimination on the basis of disability.

Catalog band: disability rights.

1993. National Child Protection Act of 1993, P.L. 103-209, 107 Stat. 2490 (Dec. 20, 1993). Lets states set up procedures for national fingerprint-based checks of child care providers, and requires each state’s criminal justice agency to report child abuse crime records to the national system. It permits checks; it does not require anyone to be checked. Now codified at 34 U.S.C. 40101 and following, where the check provision (34 U.S.C. 40102) also covers care of the elderly and people with disabilities.

A State may have in effect procedures (established by State statute or regulation) that require qualified entities designated by the State to contact an authorized agency of the State to request a nationwide background check

Catalog band: background-check authority.

1994. Howard M. Metzenbaum Multiethnic Placement Act of 1994 (title V, part E of the Improving America’s Schools Act of 1994), P.L. 103-382, 108 Stat. 4056 (Oct. 20, 1994). Bars delaying or denying foster and adoptive placements on the basis of race, color or national origin; it requires no background check.

categorically deny to any person the opportunity to become an adoptive or a foster parent, solely on the basis of the race, color, or national origin

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

1997. Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, P.L. 105-89, 111 Stat. 2115 (Nov. 19, 1997). Sec. 106 made criminal records checks of prospective foster and adoptive parents part of the Title IV-E state plan, a condition of federal foster care funds, for placements of children whose care is paid under Title IV-E; a governor or legislature could opt the state out. The 2006 Adam Walsh Act extended the check to every placement and ended the opt-out on October 1, 2008. Current law: 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A).

provides procedures for criminal records checks for any prospective foster or adoptive parent before the foster or adoptive parent may be finally approved for placement of a child

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

1998. Volunteers for Children Act (title II, subtitle B of P.L. 105-251), 112 Stat. 1885 (Oct. 9, 1998). Let qualified care organizations, including volunteer groups, ask a state agency for national fingerprint checks where the state had no procedures of its own. It permits checks; it does not require them. Rewritten in 2018; now 34 U.S.C. 40102(a)(3).

In the absence of State procedures referred to in paragraph (1), a qualified entity designated under paragraph (1) may contact an authorized agency of the State to request national criminal fingerprint background checks.

Catalog band: background-check authority.

1999. Foster Care Independence Act of 1999, P.L. 106-169, 113 Stat. 1822 (Dec. 14, 1999). Funds services for young people leaving foster care. It does not require a background check to become a foster parent or to provide personal care. Separately, its title II requires Social Security, before naming someone to manage a World War II veteran’s special benefit as representative payee, to investigate the person, verify identity and determine whether the person has been convicted under the Social Security Act’s criminal penalty sections 208, 811 and 1632 (113 Stat. 1846 to 1847; now 42 U.S.C. 1007(b)(2), since broadened). FComply’s catalog counts the Act among the laws that require no caregiver check, because that provision concerns benefit payees, not caregivers.

To amend part E of title IV of the Social Security Act to provide States with more funding and greater flexibility in carrying out programs designed to help children make the transition from foster care to self-sufficiency

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

2000. Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (division A of P.L. 106-386), 114 Stat. 1464 (Oct. 28, 2000). The federal anti-trafficking and victim protection law; it requires no background check.

The purposes of this division are to combat trafficking in persons, a contemporary manifestation of slavery whose victims are predominantly women and children, to ensure just and effective punishment of traffickers, and to protect their victims.

Catalog band: human trafficking.

2003. Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003, P.L. 108-36, 117 Stat. 800 (June 25, 2003). Sec. 114 made procedures for criminal background record checks of prospective foster and adoptive parents and other adults in the household a condition of CAPTA state grants, due by June 25, 2005. Current law (as amended in 2010): 42 U.S.C. 5106a(b)(2)(B)(xxii).

provisions and procedures for requiring criminal background record checks for prospective foster and adoptive parents and other adult relatives and non-relatives residing in the household

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

2003. Pilot program for background checks on direct patient access employees of long-term care facilities (sec. 307 of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003), P.L. 108-173, 117 Stat. 2257 (Dec. 8, 2003). Checks were required only in the states that joined the pilot (no more than 10).

The Secretary shall enter into agreements with not more than 10 States to conduct the pilot program under this section in such States.

Catalog band: elder protection.

2006. Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006, P.L. 109-248, 120 Stat. 587 (July 27, 2006). Sec. 152 added to the Title IV-E state plan fingerprint-based national checks of prospective foster and adoptive parents and child abuse registry checks of them and other adults in the home (with requests to states they lived in during the past 5 years), and extended the check to every placement whether or not federally funded, from October 1, 2006. It ended the state opt-out as of October 1, 2008, with a delay allowed where state legislation was needed (120 Stat. 608 to 610). Current law: 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A) and (B).

including fingerprint-based checks of national crime information databases

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

2008. Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008, P.L. 110-351, 122 Stat. 3949 (Oct. 7, 2008). Requires fingerprint-based criminal records checks of relative guardians, and child abuse registry checks of relative guardians and other adults in their homes, before kinship guardianship assistance is paid, but only in states that choose to offer that assistance. Current law: 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(C) and 671(a)(28).

provides procedures for criminal records checks, including fingerprint-based checks of national crime information databases

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

2010. National background check program (sec. 6201) and the Elder Justice Act of 2009 (title VI, subtitle H), both in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L. 111-148, 124 Stat. 119 (Mar. 23, 2010). Sec. 6201 requires checks of long-term care workers only in states that choose to join the program; the Elder Justice Act itself requires no check. Current law: 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7l.

that agrees to conduct background checks under the nationwide program on a Statewide basis; and

Catalog band: elder protection.

2010. CAPTA Reauthorization Act of 2010, P.L. 111-320, 124 Stat. 3459 (Dec. 20, 2010). It kept CAPTA’s requirement, a condition of CAPTA state grants, that states have procedures for criminal background record checks of prospective foster and adoptive parents and other adults in the household, and required those checks to meet the Title IV-E standard in 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20), which calls for fingerprint-based national checks and child abuse registry checks. Current law: 42 U.S.C. 5106a(b)(2)(B)(xxii).

by inserting “that meet the requirements of section 471(a)(20) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20))” after “checks”

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

2014. Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act, P.L. 113-183, 128 Stat. 1919 (Sept. 29, 2014). Anti-trafficking and missing-child duties for foster care agencies; it requires no background check.

To prevent and address sex trafficking of children in foster care, to extend and improve adoption incentives, and to improve international child support recovery.

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

2014. Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014, P.L. 113-186, 128 Stat. 1971 (Nov. 19, 2014). FComply’s catalog files it under child welfare and foster care; by its content it is a child care law. Sec. 7 requires states that take child care block grant funds to require and conduct background checks, including an FBI fingerprint check, of covered child care staff: staff of licensed, regulated or registered providers and of providers eligible for block grant assistance, excluding relatives who care only for related children. Current law: 42 U.S.C. 9858f; 45 CFR 98.43.

requirements, policies, and procedures to require and conduct criminal background checks for child care staff members

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

2015. Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015, P.L. 114-22, 129 Stat. 227 (May 29, 2015). Victim services, enforcement and child welfare trafficking duties; it requires no background check.

To provide justice for the victims of trafficking.

Catalog band: human trafficking.

2017. Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act, P.L. 115-70, 131 Stat. 1208 (Oct. 18, 2017). Elder abuse enforcement and training; it requires no background check. It lets federal grants fund state court programs that may choose to require checks of guardians and conservators.

to implement changes deemed necessary as a result of the assessments such as mandating background checks for all potential guardians and conservators

Catalog band: elder protection.

2018. Family First Prevention Services Act (division E, title VII of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018), P.L. 115-123, 132 Stat. 232 (Feb. 9, 2018). Sec. 50745 added a Title IV-E state plan requirement: procedures for group homes and other child-care institutions to run fingerprint-based national criminal records checks and child abuse registry checks on every adult working there, unless the state reports the alternative checks it runs and why the listed checks are not appropriate for it. Generally effective October 1, 2018, with a delay allowed where state legislation was needed. Current law: 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(D).

to conduct criminal records checks, including fingerprint-based checks of national crime information databases

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

2018. Child Protection Improvements Act (division S, title I of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018), P.L. 115-141, 132 Stat. 1123 (Mar. 23, 2018). FComply’s catalog files it under child welfare and foster care; by its content it is a background-check authority law. Told the Attorney General to build a national fingerprint check program that organizations serving children, older adults and people with disabilities may use. It permits checks; it does not require them. Current law: 34 U.S.C. 40102(a)(3).

The Attorney General shall establish a program, in accordance with this section, to provide qualified entities located in States that do not have in effect procedures described in paragraph (1)

Catalog band: child welfare and foster care.

U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 national population estimates: 73.1 million children under 18.

The U.S. population age 65 and older rose by 3.1% (to 61.2 million) while the population under age 18 decreased by 0.2% (to 73.1 million) from 2023 to 2024

Figures are the July 1, 2024 Vintage 2024 national estimates by age. Same sentence supports P2. Underlying tables: census.gov/data/datasets/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-national-detail.html.

U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024: 61.2 million adults age 65 and over.

The U.S. population age 65 and older rose by 3.1% (to 61.2 million) while the population under age 18 decreased by 0.2% (to 73.1 million) from 2023 to 2024

Same release as P1; 65+ figure is 61.2 million as of July 1, 2024.

CDC: more than 70 million U.S. adults (more than 1 in 4) reported having a disability, BRFSS 2022, published July 16, 2024.

The latest data, from the 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), reveal that more than 1 in 4—over 70 million—adults in the United States reported having a disability in 2022.

Title, date, data year and figure all match the claim exactly.

BLS: educational services (schools, colleges, universities and training centers) employed about 13 million workers in 2023, about 8.3 million of them in elementary and secondary schools; Pew Research Center (Sept. 2024): about 3.8 million public school teachers (federal data for the 2020-21 school year).

BLS: “These establishments employed around 13 million workers, such as teachers, bus drivers, and administrative and cafeteria staff, in 2023.” Pew: “Here are some key facts about the 3.8 million public school teachers who work in America’s classrooms.”

The 13 million figure is for the entire educational services sector (schools, colleges, universities and training centers), not K-12. BLS gives K-12 separately: “In 2023, elementary and secondary schools operated by local governments employed a total of 7,290,432 workers,” plus 934,096 private, 61,816 state and…

BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: about 583,200 preschool teacher jobs in 2025 (555,100 in 2024).

Number of Jobs, 2024: 555,100 … Median Pay: $37,120 per year … Employment of preschool teachers is projected to grow 4 percent from 2024 to 2034, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

Verified against the archived 2024-edition page. The live OOH page has since been updated (last modified Aug 27, 2026) and now shows 583,200 jobs in 2025 and median pay $38,140 (May 2025). If the site cites the live page, update to 583,200 / 2025; otherwise cite the 2024 edition with the archive link. Note the…

PHI, Key Facts 2025: 5.4 million direct-care workers.

Over the past decade, the direct care workforce added nearly 1.8 million new jobs, growing from nearly 3.5 million workers in 2014 to nearly 5.4 million in 2024.

PHI’s figure is for 2024 (based on BLS OEWS May 2024, PHI analysis June 2025). Note ‘nearly 5.4 million’. PHI is an advocacy/research nonprofit, not a government source, but it is the original publisher of this statistic.

U.S. Census Bureau / AmeriCorps, Volunteering and Civic Life in America (Nov. 2024): an estimated 75.7 million people age 16 and older (28.3%) formally volunteered through an organization between September 2022 and September 2023.

Over 75.7 million or 28.3% of the U.S. population age 16 and up formally volunteered through an organization between September 2022 and September 2023

The reference period is Sept 2022-Sept 2023 (the ‘2023’ data), population age 16+. AmeriCorps’ own page and press release (Nov 19, 2024) state the same figures but americorps.gov returned HTTP 403 to automated fetching; the Census Bureau co-produces the data so this is a primary source.

HHS OIG OEI-07-09-00110 (March 2011): 92% of nursing facilities employed at least one individual with a criminal conviction; 5% of employees had a conviction (35,286 employees at 256 responding facilities, of 260 sampled). A later report, OEI-07-10-00422 (October 2012): 19% (300 of 1,611) of nurse aides with a substantiated abuse, neglect or misappropriation finding in 2010 had at least one conviction before that finding.

92 percent of nursing facilities employed at least one individual with at least one criminal conviction … Overall, 5 percent of nursing facility employees had at least one conviction … 19 percent (300 of 1,611) of nurse aides who received substantiated findings of abuse, neglect, or misappropriation in 2010 had at least one conviction prior to their substantiated findings.

All three 2011 figures confirmed. Precise wording: 260 facilities were sampled, 256 responded, yielding 35,286 employees (as of June 1, 2009). The 19% figure is NOT in the 2011 report; it is in OEI-07-10-00422 (Oct 5, 2012), covering nurse aides with substantiated findings in 2010 (300 of 1,611). Cite that report…

BJS: as of 2021, about 1 in 5 U.S. residents age 16 and older (22%) had experienced identity theft in their lifetime, and 9% (23.9 million) in the past 12 months.

As of 2021, about 1 in 5 persons (22%) had experienced identity theft in their lifetime. … about 23.9 million U.S. residents age 16 or older (9% of the population) had experienced identity theft in the past 12 months

The most defensible primary figure is about 1 in 5 (22%) lifetime prevalence among persons 16+ (2021), and 9% (23.9 million) in the past 12 months. ‘Roughly a third’ is not supported by BJS; it traces to vendor/aggregator surveys. Recommend: “About 1 in 5 Americans age 16+ (22%) have experienced identity theft in…

AARP estimates that adults over age 60 lose $28.3 billion a year to financial exploitation (AARP Public Policy Institute, 2023; cited by the National Council on Aging).

AARP: “victims over age 60 lose $28.3 billion each year”. NCOA: “One common form of elder abuse is financial exploitation, which is estimated to cause $28.3 billion in losses each year.”

The underlying study is AARP PPI (Gunther, June 2023), which NCOA cites. Attribute as “AARP estimates $28.3 billion/year (adults 60+)” rather than to NCOA. AARP breaks it down as $20.3B by known perpetrators and $8B by strangers.

A New York State prevalence study (2011; agency cases from 2008, interviews in 2009) found elder abuse incidence among people age 60 and older living in the community nearly 24 times greater than the number of cases referred to authorities, the source of the “1 in 24” figure.

Overall the study found an elder abuse incidence rate in New York State that was nearly 24 times greater than the number of cases referred to social service, law enforcement or legal authorities who have the capacity as well as the responsibility to assist older adult victims.

The study does not literally say ‘1 in 24’; it says incidence was ‘nearly 24 times greater’ than cases referred, which is the origin of the 1-in-24 phrasing. It is a New York State study (agency cases from calendar 2008, interviews in 2009), so write “a New York State prevalence study found… nearly 24 times”…

The FBI says health care fraud causes “tens of billions of dollars in losses each year”; the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association calls 3% of health spending a conservative estimate and notes that some government and law enforcement agencies put losses as high as 10%.

NHCAA: “A conservative estimate is 3% of total health care expenditures, while some government and law enforcement agencies place the loss as high as 10% of our annual health outlay, which could mean more than $300 billion.” FBI: “causes tens of billions of dollars in losses each year.”

NHCAA’s 3%-10% range is verified verbatim. The FBI does NOT publish an $80-100 billion figure; its page says only ‘tens of billions of dollars in losses each year’. The $80B figure comes from 2010-2012 press attributions to the FBI that no longer appear on fbi.gov. An archived DOJ Criminal Resource Manual page…

DOJ, June 2025 National Health Care Fraud Takedown: 324 defendants charged, more than $14.6 billion in alleged fraudulent claims.

criminal charges against 324 defendants, including 96 doctors, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, and other licensed medical professionals, in 50 federal districts and 12 State Attorneys General’s Offices across the United States, for their alleged participation in various health care fraud schemes involving over $14.6 billion in intended loss.

DOJ’s term is ‘intended loss’ (amount billed/claimed), not ‘fraudulent claims paid’; actual loss was about $2.9 billion per the release. Use ‘over $14.6 billion in intended loss’ or ‘alleged fraudulent claims’.

Stevenson & Studdert, ‘The Rise of Nursing Home Litigation,’ Health Affairs (2003): average settlement/award about $406,000 per case; 88% plaintiff success rate at jury verdict (2001 claims data).

ASPE, summarizing Stevenson & Studdert: “average payment amount of $406,000 per compensated claim”. Health Affairs abstract: “Our respondents and their firms were involved in 4,677 and 8,256 claims, respectively, in 2001; more than half of these claims were in Florida and Texas.”

The $406,000 figure is confirmed only via HHS/ASPE’s summary of the article; the Health Affairs full text is behind a bot-protection wall (Cloudflare) and the abstract does not contain the dollar figure. The 88% figure could NOT be verified anywhere authoritative, and secondary sources describe it inconsistently…

Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy: a court-approved settlement trust funded with approximately $2.48 billion in noncontingent assets (Third Circuit, 2025; the Trust valued its fund at about $2.5 billion when the plan was approved), and 82,209 unique, timely abuse claims.

Third Circuit: “creditors had filed over 100,000 proofs of claim, of which 82,209 were unique and timely abuse claims” and “establishes the Settlement Trust funded with approximately $2.48 billion in noncontingent assets”. Trust: “an estimated 82,000 individuals who filed claims” … “valued at approximately $2.5 billion.”

82,209 unique timely abuse claims is the court’s figure (supports ‘more than 82,000’). The trust value is stated as about $2.48 billion (court, noncontingent assets) or about $2.5 billion (the Trust); ‘$2.46 billion’ is the widely reported press figure (Reuters/AP). Safer wording: ‘a settlement trust of roughly…

Boy Scouts ‘perversion files’ recorded 7,819 alleged perpetrators and 12,254 victims from 1944 to 2016 (expert testimony of Dr. Janet Warren, 2019).

Warren testified there were “7,819 perpetrators who they believe were involved in sexually abusing a child” and that she identified “12,254 victims” in the files covering 1944 through 2016.

The primary document is the transcript of Dr. Janet Warren’s expert testimony (January 2019) in the Hennepin County (Minnesota) District Court trial involving the Children’s Theatre Company, released publicly by Jeff Anderson & Associates on April 23, 2019. No copy of the transcript was found online; only news…

The FBI charges $18 for an Identity History Summary Check, a person’s request for their own FBI record (fbi.gov; 28 CFR 16.33). It is not an employment or licensing check: the FBI’s part of a standard fingerprint check for those purposes is $12 and rises to $15 on October 1, 2026 ($10 to $13 for volunteers). The “$25 to $100” and “up to $200” fee ranges were not found in any official source and are not used.

FBI FAQ: “The cost to request an Identity History Summary Check is $18.” 28 CFR 16.33: “Each written request for production of an identification record must be accompanied by a fee of $18”. Texas HHSC: fingerprint-based check for a paid employee “$37.00” ($15 DPS + $12 FBI + $10 vendor).

The $18 fee is verified on fbi.gov (read via browser; fbi.gov blocks automated fetchers) and in regulation. The ‘$25-$100 bundles; up to $200 multi-state’ range was NOT found in any official source; it appears only in vendor blogs. Official state schedules found: Texas $37-$39.75, Kansas $48, New York $0 (state…

Medicaid HCBS waivers treat provider background checks as an administrative cost in rate-setting rather than a separately reimbursed item (KFF analysis).

MACPAC: HCBS rate components include “administration, program support, and overhead, including all other operational expenses.” KFF (Jan 2026) does not mention background checks at all.

No KFF page found that says background checks are treated as an administrative cost in HCBS rate-setting; none of the KFF payment-rate reports mentions background checks. The statement is a reasonable inference from how HCBS fee-schedule rates are built (MACPAC: wages, employee-related expenses, transportation, and…

159 of the 575 federally recognized tribes take part in, or have been selected for, the Justice Department’s Tribal Access Program, which connects tribal governments directly to the national crime information systems (September 18, 2026). TAP is not the only route: tribal agencies can also reach the FBI’s systems through their state, and each tribe decides what it enters.

With this expansion, TAP now supports 159 Tribes and more than 500 Tribal government agencies.

The cited sources give no count of tribes with no access by any route; do not say the other tribes are “off the systems”. 575 tribes: BIA list, 91 FR 4102 (January 30, 2026), see S10. DOJ TAP FAQ: “Each Tribe should determine what information will be entered into national crime information systems.” 28 U.S.C.…

Forty-eight states and D.C. reported that, on average, 73% of arrests in their criminal history databases had a final disposition recorded as of December 31, 2022, so on average about 27% did not. A missing outcome does not mean the person was convicted, and does not mean the charge was dropped.

Forty-eight states and the District of Columbia report an average of 73% of all arrests in state databases have final case dispositions recorded.

An average of the states’ own percentages, not a national count; the report says its figures are not official BJS statistics. The figure is in Table 1, not Table 1a. The 2020 edition said 69%.

ACF AFCARS dashboard, preliminary FFY2025 estimates (as of Feb. 27, 2026): 331,747 children in foster care on Sept. 30, 2025; 175,008 entered; 169,927 exited; 501,745 served. In-care series FY2020 407,332 / FY2021 391,641 / FY2022 368,530 / FY2023 339,309 (revised from 343,077) / FY2024 327,364; note that Washington first submitted AFCARS 2020 data in FY2025 and Wyoming in FY2024.

NOTE: Washington first submitted AFCARS 2020 data beginning in FY 2025, and Wyoming first submitted AFCARS 2020 data beginning in FY 2024. The increase in population counts reflects the addition of Washington in FY 2025 and Wyoming in FY 2024.

All figures confirmed in the p.1 table: entering 216,450/206,867/186,602/175,060/172,600/175,008; in care on Sept 30: 407,332/391,641/368,530/339,309/327,364/331,747; exiting…169,927; served…501,745 (FFY2020-2025). Header: ‘Preliminary FFY 2025 Estimates as of February 27, 2026 – No. 33’; footnote: ‘These…

ACF/OPRE NSCAW III Child Welfare Workforce Study (2021-2022): 53.3% of supervisors reported turnover had increased over March 2019 to June 2022.

A majority of supervisors (53.3%) reported that caseworker turnover had increased over the period of March 2019 through June 2022, while 39.7% reported that turnover had been relatively stable.

PDF: acf.gov, wording: ‘A majority of supervisors (53.3%) reported that caseworker turnover had increased, whereas 39.7% reported that turnover had been relatively stable.’ The PDF explains the recall window ‘corresponded to the period of March 2019 through June 2022, depending upon the dates that supervisors…

GAO-03-357 (March 2003): child welfare staff turnover estimated at 30% to 40% a year nationwide, with average tenure under two years. GAO-03-809 (July 2003): states reported a median delay of 2.5 years beyond their own timelines in completing SACWIS systems, and “insufficient caseworker training and inaccurate and incomplete data entry” were the most common factors affecting data reliability.

states reported a median delay of 2-1/2 years beyond the timeframes they set for completion … Almost all of the states responding to our survey reported that insufficient caseworker training and inaccurate and incomplete data entry into their information system affect the quality of the data reported to HHS.

ATTRIBUTION FIX: the turnover figure is NOT in GAO-03-809. It is in GAO-03-357, ‘Child Welfare: HHS Could Play a Greater Role in Helping Child Welfare Agencies Recruit and Retain Staff’ (March 31, 2003), Background: ‘turnover of child welfare staff–which affects both recruitment and retention efforts–has been…

Child Welfare League of America recommends 12 to 15 children per foster care caseworker. A 2001 APHSA survey (1999 to 2000 data) reported average caseloads of 24 to 31 children, some above 40; a 2021 to 2022 federal survey of child welfare caseworkers found an average of 22.4 children (see M3).

When the child is defined as a case, CPS workers have an average caseload of 24 children and other direct service workers have an average caseload of 31 children. The range is 10 to 40 children for CPS workers and 12 to 110 children for other direct service workers.

CWLA primary (archived; live cwla.org pages no longer list numbers): web.archive.org – states CWLA recommends ’12-15 children per worker for foster care’ and ’12 active cases per month’ for CPS investigations; the underlying standard is CWLA Standards of Excellence for Family Foster Care Services (rev. 1995), a…

HHS OIG A-07-21-06102 (March 2, 2023): of 74,353 missing-child episodes lasting 2 calendar days or longer in the 46 states that supplied data, July 2018 to December 2020, OIG estimated 51,115 (69%) were not reported to NCMEC as required: an estimated 34,869 never reported (90% confidence interval 26,802 to 42,936) and 16,246 reported late. Sample of 100: 33 on time, 45 never, 22 late; “generally lacked adequate systems…” Companion A-07-21-06104: an estimated 13,983 episodes not properly reported to law enforcement for NCIC entry.

we estimated that the State agencies did not report 51,115 (69 percent) of the 74,353 missing children episodes in accordance with Federal requirements. Specifically, an estimated 34,869 (47 percent) missing children episodes during our audit period were never reported to NCMEC and an additional estimated 16,246 (22 percent) missing children episodes … were not reported within 24 hours

Sample sentence (p. 4): ‘Of the 100 missing children episodes in our stratified random sample, the State agencies reported 33 episodes to NCMEC in a timely manner… However, 45 missing children episodes were never reported to NCMEC, and 22 missing children episodes were not reported in a timely manner’. Systems…

NCMEC: 23,160 reports of children missing from foster or state care in 2024; 23,348 reports in 2025 (the PDF edition of its report says 23,384). Of the children missing from care reported to NCMEC in 2025, 17% were identified as likely victims of child sex trafficking. NCMEC’s “1 in 7” covers all missing children reported to NCMEC, not only children missing from care.

NCMEC assisted with 23,160 reports of children missing from foster or state care. 92% of these children were recovered. [2025 version:] Of the children missing from care who were reported to NCMEC in 2025, 17% were identified as likely victims of child sex trafficking

VERIFIED: 23,160 (2024) – note NCMEC counts ‘reports’, not distinct children; 23,348 reports and 17% (2025) verified on the live page (‘23,348 reports of children missing from foster care in 2025’). CONTRADICTED/UNSUPPORTED: the 2024 ‘1 in 7’ is NOT a missing-from-care statistic. Archived page text: ‘Of the more…

Georgia: NCMEC received more than 2,400 reports of children missing from care 2018-2022 involving 1,790 children, 410 identified as likely trafficking victims (Senate Human Rights Subcommittee testimony of Dr. Samantha Sahl, NCMEC).

Between 2018 and 2022, NCMEC received over 2,400 reports of children missing from care in Georgia, involving 1,790 children … 410 of these children were identified as likely child sex trafficking victims.

Testimony given at the subcommittee’s field hearing in Atlanta on Nov. 6, 2023 (‘Abuse in Foster Care: A Deeper Look’, hearing record S.Hrg. 118-614, congress.gov/event/118th-congress/senate-event/LC74438/text – returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch, so the written testimony itself was not opened). Correct body name…

ACF monthly caseworker visit data: national range of reported compliance 64%-99% and in-residence 0%-100% (FFY2012-2013); New Jersey 96-98%.

NJ Monthly Caseworker Visit Performance FFY 2012: 96% FFY 2013: 98% Federal Standard: 90% National Range: 64% – 99% … NJ Monthly Caseworker Visit Performance in Child’s Residence (Placement Location) FFY 2012: 96% FFY 2013: 96% Federal Standard: 50% National Range: 0% – 100%

History only: the federal standard that at least half of caseworker visits take place in the child’s residence was repealed effective October 1, 2025 (P.L. 118-258, § 112(d)); the 95% monthly visit standard remains. Newer state figures, through FY2024, are on ACF’s Child Welfare Outcomes data site. Live URL now…

Missouri Children’s Division, CFSR statistical and supporting information: in a random sample of 375 children in FFY2008, 47% received a caseworker visit every month they were in care.

In FFY08, the Children’s Division determined that 177 / 375 (47%) children received caseworker visits each and every month the child was in care. 91% of those visits were in the child’s placement.

The live page dss.mo.gov now returns 404; cite the archived copy. The 47% is from a 375-child review sample used for Missouri’s CFSR statewide assessment, not a full-population count; the same page says that from FFY09 compliance was tracked via a web-based SACWIS (FACES) report. Describe as ‘a 2008 Missouri sample…

ACF West Virginia Title IV-E primary eligibility review, 2024: disallowance of $786,971.

A disallowance in the amount of $707,525 in maintenance payments and $43,781 in related administrative costs is disallowed for title IV-E foster care payments claimed for error cases. … The total disallowance as a result of this IV-E Review is $786,971 FFP.

Additional $33,052 maintenance and $2,613 administrative disallowed for non-error cases. Period under review Apr 1-Sep 30, 2023. Landing page: acf.gov (dated May 27, 2025); catalog.data.gov record issued Sept 3, 2025. The PDF itself carries no issue date.

HHS OIG A-03-06-00564 (Philadelphia County, claims Oct 1997-Sept 2002): at least $11,693,989 improperly claimed of $33.28 million federal share reviewed; a further $21.6 million indeterminate.

we estimated that the State agency improperly claimed at least $11,693,989 of the total $33,282,491 (Federal share) claimed for Title IV-E reimbursement on behalf of Philadelphia County contractors that received per diem rates exceeding $300. We were unable to determine the allowability of the remaining $21,588,502 claimed by the State agency

$11,693,989 = $7,140,495 maintenance + $4,553,494 associated administrative costs; 45 of 100 sampled maintenance claims unallowable. Auditee is the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (State agency) for Philadelphia County. OIG landing page: oig.hhs.gov

HHS OIG PIIA compliance reviews: HHS reported no improper-payment estimate for Title IV-E Foster Care in FY2021 (A-17-22-52000), FY2022 and FY2023; for FY2024 (OAS-25-17-042, May 2025) an estimate from six states that ‘does not represent a statistically valid process.’

the FY 2024 error rate calculation is calculated using only the data of the first six states visited as the other nine states in the first-year rotation had performed Title IV-E reviews outside the reporting period … the selection of the states does not represent a statistically valid process.

FY2021 (A-17-22-52000, May 2, 2022, oig.hhs.gov): ‘HHS did not publish an improper payment and unknown payment for the Foster Care program due to the impact of COVID-19. HHS stated that Foster Care is not reporting an error rate for FY 2021’. FY2022 (A-17-23-52000, May 18, 2023, oig.hhs.gov): ‘HHS is not reporting…

GAO-12-312 (March 2012): Foster Care improper payments $73 million for FY2010, 4.9% error rate vs 10.33% FY2004 baseline; estimate ‘is not based on a statistically valid methodology’ and covered ‘only about one-third of the federal expenditures for Foster Care’; recommended ACF strengthen its methodology.

the estimate is not based on a statistically valid methodology … deals with only about one-third of the federal expenditures for Foster Care … from a baseline of 10.33 percent for fiscal year 2004 to a 4.9 percent error rate for fiscal year 2010

Also on the product page: ‘improper payments estimate of $73 million reported for fiscal year 2010’. GAO recommended HHS direct ACF to (1) develop procedures for a statistically valid methodology using complete and accurate payment data, (2) use a statistically valid method to aggregate state-level margins of…

CCWIS final rule, 81 FR 35449 (June 2, 2016): quote ‘support the use of cost-effective, innovative technologies to automate the collection of high-quality case management data.’

More specifically, this final rule supports the use of cost-effective, innovative technologies to automate the collection of high-quality case management data and to promote its analysis, distribution, and use by workers, supervisors, administrators, researchers, and policy makers.

govinfo lists the rule at ‘[Pages 35450-35482]’ with ‘[[Page 35449]]’ as the Part II cover page; ACF and most citations use 81 FR 35449 – either is acceptable, but the quoted sentence is on p. 35450. federalregister.gov copy: federalregister.gov (redirects automated fetchers to an unblock page).

Texas, M.D. v. Abbott (S.D. Tex. No. 2:11-cv-00084): a December 18, 2020 order set a $75,000-a-day fine if the state did not certify compliance with Remedial Order 22 within 15 days; contempt fines of $100,000 a day were imposed in April 2024; the Fifth Circuit (No. 24-40248, Oct. 11, 2024) vacated the contempt order and removed the district judge from the case.

the state defendants challenge a contempt order and $100,000 per day ongoing fines. … We VACATE the contempt order, hold that the state has substantially complied with Remedial Orders 3 and 10, and REMOVE the district judge.

Appeal from USDC No. 2:11-CV-84 (S.D. Tex., Judge Janis Graham Jack). The December 2020 $75,000-a-day fine is in the court’s own order: December 18, 2020 order, ECF No. 1017, p. 251 (and p. 328): ‘If Defendants fail to certify compliance with Remedial Order 22 within 15 days of the date of this Order, Defendants…

Illinois DCFS: ACF withheld $3,815,286 for Oct 2008-March 2013 after a failed CFSR Program Improvement Plan; HHS Departmental Appeals Board Decision No. 2734 (2016).

The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) appealed a July 10, 2015 determination by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) to withhold $3,815,286 of federal funds for the period October 1, 2008 through March 31, 2013.

hhs.gov returned HTTP 403 to every automated fetch; text read from the Wayback capture web.archive.org (the live link should work in a browser). Background: CFSR conducted 2009; DCFS missed two PIP goals; funds withheld under titles IV-B and IV-E. Outcome: ‘we sustain in full ACF’s determination to withhold funds’…

No state was found in substantial conformity with all outcomes in the first round of Child and Family Services Reviews (Children’s Bureau summary).

All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico completed their first review by 2004 and their second review by 2010. After each review cycle, or “round,” no state was found to be in substantial conformity in all of the seven outcome areas and seven systemic factors.

Results summary, p. 5: ‘only a small percentage of States achieved substantial conformity with any of the seven outcomes, and no State achieved substantial conformity with Permanency Outcome 1 or Well Being Outcome 1.’ Table I-1: states in substantial conformity per outcome ranged from 0 (Permanency 1; Well-Being…

Texas paid Gibson Dunn more than $5.23 million for foster care litigation defense from Oct. 16, 2023 to Oct. 24, 2024; Bloomberg Law reported lead counsel’s rate as $1,313 an hour, with a 25% contract discount; a contract amendment signed in August 2023 caps fees at $7 million for work from April 6, 2023 through August 2025 (Bloomberg Law; Dallas Morning News).

Lawyers with international firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher can charge the state up to $7 million for work performed between April 6, when Abbott first hired them, and the end of August 2025, says a contract amendment signed late last month.

VERIFIED (Bloomberg Law, news.bloomberglaw.com): Gibson Dunn received ‘more than $5.23 million’ for Oct. 16, 2023-Oct. 24, 2024 per Texas payment records obtained by public-records request; ‘Allyson Ho serves as lead counsel on the case at a rate of $1,313 per hour.’ DMN also: Abbott ‘hired Ho, at $1,313 an hour’;…

HHS/ASPE, “Administrative Costs Drive Foster Care Claims,” FY2019-FY2023 (Feb. 2026), in 2023 dollars: states and territories reported on average $2,576 a month per child on in-placement administration in FY2023 (range $263 to $10,041); average monthly administrative expenses per child grew 40% from FY2019 to FY2023 while the number of children served declined; in-placement administration was the largest administrative category, more than $1 billion a year larger than any other from FY2020 to FY2023.

Per child in FY2023, states and territories had, on average, monthly reported expenditures of $2,576 on in-placement administration (range of $263 to $10,041) … In-placement administration costs were the largest category of administrative expenses – over $1 billion larger than any other expense category – during this period.

PDF: aspe.hhs.gov. Growth sentence: ‘Average monthly administrative expenses per child have increased 40 percent from FY2019 to FY2023 as the average monthly number of children served through administrative-related Title IV-E foster care activities has declined.’ WORDING CAUTION: the 40% is per-child administrative…

Bipartisan Policy Center: federal Title IV-E spending FY2023 $9.5 billion = $5.1B foster care + $4.3B adoption and guardianship + $172M prevention + $143M Chafee.

In federal fiscal year (FY) 2023, total IV-E spending was $9.5 billion, which included $5.1 billion in reimbursement for states for foster care expenses, $4.3 billion for adoption and guardianship, and $172 million for services to prevent placement. … The Chafee program received $143 million.

All four components match the claim. BPC is the original publisher of this compilation but is itself summarizing ACF Children’s Bureau Title IV-E expenditure data (CB-496 claims); attribute as ‘Bipartisan Policy Center analysis of ACF data’.

Child welfare agency spending survey, state FY2022: $34.3 billion total, federal funds about $16.8 billion (49%) (Child Trends, ‘Child Welfare Financing SFY 2022’).

Child welfare agencies reported spending $34.3 billion in SFY 2022 … In SFY 2022, child welfare agencies expended $16.8 billion in federal funds, representing a 4 percent decrease since SFY 2020 but a 6 percent increase over the past decade.

$34.3B and $16.8B verified. The ‘49%’ is arithmetic (16.8/34.3 = 49.0%), not a Child Trends statement. CAUTION: Child Trends’ Aug. 5, 2025 news release says ‘57% of child welfare agency dollars came from state and local sources in SFY 2022′, which implies a smaller federal share; Child Trends’ May 18, 2026 brief…

Utah State Legislature fiscal note HB0036S01 (2008): allowing kinship placements before background checks projected to cost $49,100 in FY2008 and $147,400 in FY2009 in lost federal Title IV-E funds.

Passage of this legislation will result in a loss in federal Title IVE funding of $49,100 for FY 2008 and $147,400 for FY 2009 to allow kinship placements before completion of the background checks required by the federal Adam Walsh legislation.

Offsetting General Fund appropriation of $49,100 (FY2008 supplemental) and $147,400 (FY2009) for the Division of Child and Family Services. Enrolled bill: le.utah.gov.

Monthly caseworker visits: the state plan must describe standards that ensure children in foster care under the state’s responsibility are visited on a monthly basis (42 U.S.C. 622(b)(17)), and the state must ensure that caseworkers make at least 95 percent of the monthly visits that would occur over the fiscal year if every such child were visited once a month (42 U.S.C. 624(f); 95 percent from FY2015, 90 percent before). P.L. 118-258, section 112(d) (approved January 4, 2025), repealed the rule that at least half of the visits take place in the child’s residence and the cost-share penalties tied to the visit standard, effective October 1, 2025. The 95 percent standard remains.

the total number of visits made by caseworkers on a monthly basis to children in foster care under the responsibility of the State during a fiscal year is not less than 90 percent (or, in the case of fiscal year 2015 or thereafter, 95 percent) of the total number of such visits that would occur during the fiscal year if each such child were so visited once every month

P.L. 118-258, section 112(d), heading: “Elimination of cost-share penalty tied to monthly caseworker visit standard”; it struck 624(f)(1)(B) and (2). Section 117(a): effective October 1, 2025. Before the repeal, the residence rule was 624(f)(2)(A).

Title IV-E eligibility reviews (45 CFR 1356.71, final rule of January 25, 2000, as amended): the child’s case record must contain enough documentation to verify eligibility and substantiate the payments made on the child’s behalf, and a disallowance is assessed for the ineligible cases reviewed for the period they were ineligible.

The case record of the child must contain sufficient documentation to verify a child’s eligibility in accordance with paragraph (d)(1) of this section, in order to substantiate payments made on the child’s behalf.

45 CFR 1356.71(c)(4): “A disallowance will be assessed for the ineligible cases for the period of time the cases are ineligible.” A primary review samples 80 cases, plus an eight-case oversample; a secondary review can bring a larger, extrapolated disallowance.

Texas foster-care class action (M.D. v. Abbott): from September 1, 2019 through November 30, 2023, the court monitors’ fees came to $57,311,577 (DFPS $46,995,493; HHSC $10,316,084) and the agencies’ other costs tied to the litigation to $146,251,453 (DFPS $115,954,898; HHSC $30,296,555); $203,563,029 in all.

The total amount the Court Monitors billed, and all DFPS and HHSC agency cost related to the federal litigation, totaled $203,563,029.

Sums checked: 46,995,493 + 10,316,084 = 57,311,577; 115,954,898 + 30,296,555 = 146,251,453. The site’s earlier “$10.3 million plus $30.3 million” was HHSC’s share only. Used on The return.

Title IV-E foster care improper payments, FY2025: HHS calculated the estimate from completed reviews of 26 states, so it “does not currently encompass the full population of states”; HHS expects all states to be reviewed by FY2027. (FY2024, from six states, is F12.)

In FY 2025, HHS continued Title IV-E reviews and calculated the Foster Care estimate based on completed review data from 26 states, however the reported IP and UP estimate does not currently encompass the full population of states

FY2025 is the fifth year of noncompliance for the Foster Care program under the Act, the report says. Used on The return and Where compliance breaks.

Monthly caseworker visits by state, FY2013 (ACF data tabulated by CRS): 59% (Montana) to 99% (New Mexico) against the 90% standard then in force; visits in the child’s residence 54% (Vermont) to 100% (Utah) against the 50% standard. The number of states meeting the 95% standard peaked at 37 in FY2021 and fell to 31 in FY2022.

The number of states meeting the 95% monthly caseworker visit standard varied (reaching a high of 37 in FY2021 and declining to 31 in FY2022).

Ranges computed from every row of Table G-1. History only for the residence share: that standard was repealed from October 1, 2025 (F23). Used on For foster care agencies.

Monthly caseworker visits by state, FY2012 (ACF data tabulated by CRS): 47% (Mississippi) to 99% (Georgia, New Hampshire) against the 90% standard then in force; visits in the child’s residence 0% (Puerto Rico, which reported no figure and was treated as 0%) to 100% (Utah).

For FY2012, Puerto Rico did not report a number of visits conducted where the child lived. This meant its percentage was treated as 0%

The New Jersey infographic behind F8 gives a national range of 64% to 99% for the same year; the ACF figures CRS tabulates give 47% to 99%, and the site uses these. Used on The adequate system and Where compliance breaks.

HHS reported a national Title IV-E foster care improper-payment rate each year through FY2020: FY2016 6.9%, FY2017 7.1%, FY2018 7.56%, FY2019 4.85%, FY2020 3.36%; none for FY2021 or FY2022. The FY2020 rate rested on new reviews of six states and earlier data for the rest.

The error rate for FY 2020 was, therefore, based on updated review data for six states as well as previous years’ data for other states.

The page no longer loads at hhs.gov (checked September 28, 2026); the archived copy of January 9, 2025 was read. FY2024 (six states) is F12 and FY2025 (26 states) is F26. Used on Where compliance breaks, What the gap costs and The adequate system.

The OIG’s recommendations from its two missing-from-care audits are closed as implemented: A-07-21-06102 (NCMEC reporting) on March 20, 2024, and A-07-21-06104 (reporting for NCIC entry) on August 23, 2024. Closure means ACF acted on the recommendation; it is not a new measurement of state compliance.

23-A-07-049.01 to ACF – Closed Implemented Closed on 03/20/2024 … 23-A-07-070.01 to ACF – Closed Implemented Closed on 08/23/2024

Used on What the OIG found.

45 CFR § 1356.60(c)(2)(vii): Title IV-E administrative costs reimbursed at 50% include “recruitment and licensing of foster homes and institutions.”

Federal financial participation is available at the rate of fifty percent (50%) for administrative expenditures necessary for the proper and efficient administration of the title IV-E plan. … (vii) Recruitment and licensing of foster homes and institutions;

Exact match. The current rule lists allowable administrative activities (c)(2)(i)-(xi) (the May 2024 legal-representation rule added (xi)); item (vii) is unchanged. ecfr.gov redirected fetches to unblock.federalregister.gov, so Cornell’s mirror of the CFR text was used; official eCFR location: ecfr.gov. Quotes…

ACF Child Welfare Policy Manual § 8.1, Question 1: the costs of criminal records checks for prospective foster and adoptive parents are allowable Title IV-E administrative costs when claimed under an approved cost allocation plan or methodology, because the check is a condition of licensure or approval.

Since the criminal records check provision is a condition of licensure or approval, costs associated with criminal records checks for prospective foster and adoptive parents are allowable under title IV-E when claimed pursuant to an approved cost allocation plan or methodology.

ACF-hosted entry confirmed (legacy acf.gov/cwpm and acf.hhs.gov/cwpm URLs now redirect to cwpm.acf.gov). The Q&A sits at the 8.1 parent level, not under 8.1A/8.1B. Answer opens: “The regulations at section 1356.60(c)(2) allow title IV-E agencies to claim costs associated with recruitment and licensing as…

42 U.S.C. § 671(a)(20): fingerprint-based criminal records checks and child-abuse registry checks before a foster or adoptive placement; no state opt-out after October 1, 2008 (Adam Walsh Act, P.L. 109-248 § 152).

provides procedures for criminal records checks, including fingerprint-based checks of national crime information databases (as defined in section 534(f)(3)(A) of title 28), for any prospective foster or adoptive parent before the foster or adoptive parent may be finally approved for placement of a child regardless of whether foster care maintenance payments or adoption assistance payments are to be made

Registry checks: (a)(20)(B) “the State shall— (i) check any child abuse and neglect registry maintained by the State for information on any prospective foster or adoptive parent and on any other adult living in the home of such a prospective parent”. Opt-out elimination confirmed in GovInfo text of P.L. 109-248: §…

The federal foster and adoptive parent check requirement (42 U.S.C. § 671(a)(20), as amended by the Adam Walsh Act) came with no appropriation in Adam Walsh Act § 152; the costs can be claimed as Title IV-E administrative costs at the 50% match when claimed under an approved cost allocation plan.

The regulations at section 1356.60(c)(2) allow title IV-E agencies to claim costs associated with recruitment and licensing as administrative costs under title IV-E.

PARTIAL. The ACF-hosted CWPM confirms the funding mechanism (allowable IV-E administrative cost, matched at 50% under 45 CFR 1356.60(c)). The ‘no dedicated appropriation’ half is supported only by the statute itself: the complete text of § 152 of P.L. 109-248 contains no appropriation or authorization of…

CMS National Background Check Program (ACA § 6201): eligible providers are long-term care facilities and providers paid under Medicare or Medicaid (42 U.S.C. § 1320a-7l(a)(6)(E)); foster homes and foster care agencies are not among the listed categories.

The term ‘long-term care facility or provider’ means the following facilities or providers which receive payment for services under title XVIII or XIX of the Social Security Act … (iii) A home health agency. … (x) Any other facility or provider of long-term care services under such titles as the participating State determines appropriate.

Pinpoint correction: the definition is in ACA § 6201(a)(6) (Definitions), subparagraph (E) — not § 6201(a)(4), which is ‘State requirements’ ((a)(5) is ‘Payments’). Full list: (i) skilled nursing facility; (ii) nursing facility; (iii) home health agency; (iv) provider of hospice care; (v) long-term care hospital;…

Family First Prevention Services Act (P.L. 115-123, § 50745): as a Title IV-E state plan requirement, generally effective October 1, 2018, the state must provide procedures for child-care institutions, including group homes and other congregate care settings, to run fingerprint-based criminal records checks and child abuse registry checks on every adult working there, unless the state reports to HHS the alternative checks it runs and why the specified checks are not appropriate for it (42 U.S.C. § 671(a)(20)(D)).

provides procedures for any child-care institution, including a group home, residential treatment center, shelter, or other congregate care setting, to conduct criminal records checks, including fingerprint-based checks of national crime information databases (as defined in section 534(f)(3)(A) of title 28)

Confirmed. OLRC note also states: “Amendment by section 50745 of Pub. L. 115–123 effective Oct. 1, 2018, subject to transition rule and State waiver provisions, see section 50746 of Pub. L. 115–123”. Subparagraph (D) requires the checks (and registry checks per subparagraph (B)) on any adult working in a child-care…

Washington DCYF pays the Washington State Patrol and FBI fingerprint fees for foster home applicants, its relative and other suitable caregivers, and its adoptive home applicants, but not for caregiver homes it did not propose (WAC 110-04-0090; RCW 43.43.837(5)).

RCW 43.43.837(5): “Fees charged by the Washington state patrol and the federal bureau of investigation for fingerprint-based background checks shall be paid by the department of children, youth, and families for foster care and childcare applicants and service providers.” WAC 110-04-0090: “(1) DCYF pays the DSHS general administrative costs and WSP and FBI fingerprint processing fees for foster home applicants, DCYF relative and other suitable caregivers, DCYF adoptive home applicants … (2) DCYF does not pay WSP and FBI fingerprint processing fees or expenses for: … (b) Adoptive, foster, relative, or other suitable caregiver homes that are not proposed by DCYF.”

RESOLVED September 27, 2026: DCYF’s own rule, WAC 110-04-0090, states both halves of the claim (see the quote); the research notes that follow predate it. PARTIAL on the ‘not proposed by DCYF’ nuance. DCYF kinship page: “We pay the costs related to background checks.” DCYF foster-parent FAQ: “DCYF does not charge…

Maine OCFS runs the required child care background checks at no cost to providers; that page does not cover foster or adoptive applicants (the OCFS Background Check Unit lists a separate $15 fee per child protective history check).

Currently these background checks are conducted at no cost to providers.

PARTIAL — child care only. The no-cost statement applies to child care providers/staff (CCDBG comprehensive checks). NOT confirmed for foster/adoptive applicants: the OCFS Background Check Unit page says only “The cost is $15 per individual child protective history check” and describes the Adam Walsh registry…

Rhode Island: the Attorney General waives comprehensive background check fees for child care staff of DHS-licensed providers from May 5, 2021 through September 30, 2027 (fingerprinting at the Attorney General’s office only). The waiver does not cover foster applicants, whose criminal records check state law makes free (R.I. Gen. Laws § 14-1-34(b)).

Effective May 5, 2021 through September 30, 2027, the RIAG will temporarily waive all fees associated with the comprehensive background check for child care staff and redirect those costs to DHS to reimburse through quarterly invoices.

Correct figure: the waiver has been extended and now runs through September 30, 2027 (not June 30, 2026). Eligibility per the page: “Child care center staff, family child care providers and household members” must present a signed affidavit from their DHS-licensed employer; “The waived fingerprint cost is only…

California DOJ Live Scan fee schedule: Foster Family Home total $64 = $32 DOJ + $17 FBI + $15 Child Abuse Central Index; San Diego County pays clearance fees for Resource Family Approval applicants.

Foster Family Home $32 $17 $15 $64 … Fees are the responsibility of the Live Scan applicant. Please note that a Live Scan fee for fingerprinting will be added at the Live Scan site, and that fee will vary from location to location.

Attribution correction: the $64 breakdown is a CDSS schedule, not a DOJ page. CA DOJ’s own ‘Applicant Fingerprint Processing Fees’ sheet (as of Aug. 17, 2012; oag.ca.gov) shows the underlying $32 state CORI fee, $17 federal CORI fee and $15 CACI fee. Both documents are dated (2012/2015) though still posted; CDSS’s…

Texas DFPS lists a reduced $37.75 fingerprint fee for foster and adoptive applicants, kinship caregivers, household members and others not paid for the role (paid employees: $39.75); DFPS pays the fingerprinting fee when a national criminal history check is required for CPS emergency parental child-safety placements, CPS non-emergency kinship placements and ICPC placements. DFPS’s fee breakdown still lists the FBI fees in force before January 1, 2025 ($13.25, or $11.25 for foster and adoptive applicants and volunteers), and the FBI’s fee rises $3 on October 1, 2026.

DFPS covers the cost of fingerprinting fees when a National Criminal History check is required for CPS emergency parental child safety placements, CPS non-emergency kinship, and Interstate Compact for Placement of Children (ICPC) placements.

Exact match. Also verbatim: “Foster and adoptive parent applicants, kinship caregivers, household members, and any other individuals not receiving financial compensation for the role in which the background check is requested pay a reduced rate of $37.75.” Components: “DPS charges $15 to conduct a fingerprint-based…

Florida: FDLE’s fee chart lists $24 (state) plus $12 (FBI), $36 in all, for a foster care Level 2 check, before the Live Scan vendor’s fee, which FDLE does not set; the FBI part rises to $15 on October 1, 2026.

All other applicant type required checks: (examples include – realtors, insurance agents, school employees, Florida Bar applicants, foster care, doctors, nursing home employees) $24.00 $12.00 $36.00

FDLE’s chart lists the federal (FBI) portion as $12.00, so the government portion of a foster-care Level 2 check is $24 + $12 = $36. Statutory basis, F.S. 943.053(3)(e): “The fee per record for criminal history information provided pursuant to this subsection and s. 943.0542 is $24 per name submitted, except that…

New York City child care: fingerprinting within New York State costs $104.50 as of January 1, 2026, paid at the IdentoGO center (government search fees plus the IDEMIA vendor fee; NYC Health’s school-based child care page still shows $102.50), and OCFS charges $25 for a Statewide Central Register check (Social Services Law § 424-a(1)(f)). These are child care fees, not foster or adoptive applicant fees; the FBI part rises $3 on October 1, 2026.

DOI: “What is the cost to be fingerprinted to work with a DOHMH regulated Childcare provider? As of January 1, 2026, the total cost to be fingerprinted within New York State is $104.50.” NYC Health (older page): “Pay all fees in a single payment at the time of fingerprinting. The total cost is $102.50. The fee may be higher for locations outside of NYS.”

UPDATE September 27, 2026: NYC DOI’s Fingerprint Unit FAQ (updated January 1, 2026) gives $104.50 for fingerprinting within New York State to work with a DOHMH-regulated child care provider; IDEMIA’s fee is in addition to the government search fees and is included in that total. NYC Health’s school-based page still…

Mississippi State Department of Health: $50 per applicant background check for child care facility staff and employees of licensed health care entities (Mississippi foster homes are licensed by the Department of Child Protection Services, not MSDH).

The cost to process a background check is $50.00 per applicant.

SCOPE correction: the $50 MSDH fee applies to child care facility applicants/staff and to employees of licensed health-care entities; foster care and foster parents are not mentioned anywhere on the page (Mississippi foster homes are licensed by the Department of Child Protection Services, not MSDH). Page also…

Missouri: effective July 1, 2026, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education stopped covering fingerprinting for child care staff comprehensive background checks; the Children’s Division manual still provides Division payment for foster, relative and respite applicants.

Effective July 1, 2026, DESE is no longer covering the cost of fingerprinting as part of the Comprehensive Background Check Process.

The July 1, 2026 change is DESE’s and applies to child care staff members under the CCDBG comprehensive background check — not to the Children’s Division or to foster/adoptive applicants. The Children’s Division manual still provides Division payment for foster/relative/respite applicants via authorization letter…

Child Welfare Information Gateway, “Background Checks for Prospective Foster, Adoptive, and Kinship Caregivers” (published 2019, current through September 2018): all states, D.C., Guam and Puerto Rico require background checks of prospective foster and adoptive parents before placement; all adults living in the home are also subject to checks; 35 states and D.C. also require checks of the child abuse and neglect registries of other states where the applicant lived in the previous five years.

In all States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico, State laws require background checks be completed for all prospective foster and adoptive parents prior to the placement of a child in their home.

The publication does not contain the ’45+’ or ’39–40′ figures. Its figures: all States (plus DC, Guam, PR) require checks of prospective foster/adoptive parents; “all adults residing in the home of a prospective foster or adoptive parent or kinship caregiver also are subject to background checks”; “Nearly all…

CMS’s 2016 training on building fee-schedule rates for Medicaid home- and community-based services lists background checks among a provider’s administrative costs.

Non-Payroll Related Personnel Expenses (e.g., background checks, recruitment)

Re-attributed September 27, 2026. The claim had been attributed to KFF; none of the three KFF reports on HCBS payment rates checked (2023 to 2026) mentions background checks.

BJS: NCHIP awards of roughly $48 million to $64 million a year in FY2020 to FY2024 (plus about $18 million to $25 million a year under NARIP); cumulative NCHIP awards of about $1.02 billion from FY1995 to FY2024, which BJS’s program page describes as “almost $1.1 billion” in expenditures.

Total expenditures since the inception in 1995 through 2024 were almost $1.1 billion.

Cumulative: BJS’s award table totals $1,015,753,721 for FY1995-2024 — just over $1.0 billion, which BJS’s program page rounds to ‘almost $1.1 billion’; ‘about $1.0-1.1 billion’ is the safe wording. Annual NCHIP awards: FY2020 $48,491,409; FY2021 $53,467,336; FY2022 $58,779,403; FY2023 $63,657,437; FY2024…

The FBI’s standard fee for a fingerprint check for employment or licensing rises from $12.00 to $15.00 on October 1, 2026; for volunteers who care for children, older adults or people with disabilities, from $10.00 to $13.00.

This revised fee schedule takes effect October 1, 2026. [table] Fingerprint-based Submission: fee currently in effect $12.00; change $3.00; revised fee $15.00. Volunteer submission: 10.00 to 13.00.

Footnotes added at 91 FR 42560 (July 9, 2026). Centralized billing service providers pay $2 less at each rate. The $12.00 fee has applied since January 1, 2025 (89 FR 70206); pages presenting $13.25 as the current FBI fee are out of date.

New York: the State Education Department lists $104.50, as of February 2, 2026, for fingerprinting teachers seeking certification and school employees (state $75.00, FBI $12.00, vendor $17.50). If the FBI’s $3 increase on October 1, 2026 is passed on, the total would be $107.50 (an FComply calculation).

The fingerprint application fee as of February 2, 2026 is: Total Fee $104.50. … ENTITY FEE DCJS $75.00 FBI $12.00 MorphoTrust/IDEMIA $17.50 Total $104.50

New York City Department of Education hires use a separate process; child care staff in New York City are fingerprinted through NYC DOHMH and DOI, at $104.50 as of January 1, 2026 (G13).

Texas: DFPS publishes $39.75 for a fingerprint check for a paid employee; its breakdown still lists an FBI fee of $13.25, so at the FBI’s current $12.00 the same parts add to $38.50. Texas HHSC, which licenses child care, lists $37.00. The FBI’s part rises $3 on October 1, 2026; whether each Texas total rises is up to the state.

The cost for a fingerprint-based check for a paid employee of an organization is $ 39.75. … The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) charges $ 13.25 to conduct a fingerprint-based check

Read September 19 and 27, 2026. The reduced $37.75 rate for unpaid roles is G11.

HHS OIG (November 2024): states in the National Background Check Program spent at least $111 million in combined federal and state funds to build or improve their check systems (about $55 million federal, about $56 million state match), and disqualified at least 106,000 prospective long-term care employees with criminal convictions, 2010 to 2024, under state-based criteria.

States collectively spent at least $111 million in combined Federal and State funds to develop or enhance systems to conduct background checks of long-term care providers

Congress capped federal funding at $160 million (42 U.S.C. 1320a-7l(b)(1)). The 106,000 comes from the 21 jurisdictions with usable data (25 reported; 4 lacked the needed variable). Seventeen states kept reporting after their grants ended; usable data from 14 of them showed another 254,000. Wisconsin received no…

Title IV-E federal financial participation: 75 percent for training title IV-E agency staff and for short-term training of current or prospective foster and adoptive parents (45 CFR 1356.60(b)(1)); 50 percent for administrative expenditures (1356.60(c)); and 50 percent for CCWIS and non-CCWIS information system costs (1356.60(e)).

Federal financial participation is available at the rate of seventy-five percent (75%) in the costs of: (i) Training personnel employed or preparing for employment by the title IV-E agency administering the plan

45 CFR 1356.60(e): “Federal matching funds are available at the rate of fifty percent (50%).” Cost allocation for CCWIS projects is at 45 CFR 1355.57. G1 covers the recruitment and licensing costs under 1356.60(c)(2)(vii).

Federal prior approval of state information-system purchases: a state must obtain prior approval from HHS to acquire automated data processing equipment or services at the regular matching rate with total acquisition costs of $5,000,000 or more in federal and state funds (45 CFR 95.611(a)(1)), and for a sole-source acquisition of $1,000,000 or more (95.611(a)(3)).

A State shall obtain prior approval from the Department which is reflected in a record, as specified in paragraph (b) of this section, when the State plans to acquire ADP equipment or services with proposed FFP at the regular matching rate that it anticipates will have total acquisition costs of $5,000,000 or more in Federal and State funds.

Behind the procurement flip card on How it would roll out and the sources line on The return. The matching rates themselves are G24.

NCMEC received 23,348 reports of children missing from foster care in 2025 (the PDF edition of its report says 23,384); of the children missing from care reported to NCMEC in 2025, 17% were identified as likely victims of child sex trafficking.

Of the children missing from care who were reported to NCMEC in 2025, 17% were identified as likely victims of child sex trafficking.

The 17% is of the children missing from care who were reported to NCMEC, by NCMEC’s own classification. NCMEC is a private nonprofit.

State agencies reported 110,446 missing-from-care episodes, July 2018 to December 2020 (three states’ data were not included, and New York’s covered only Title IV-E-eligible children); for the 46 state agencies that reported the data, 6,619 children were still missing at the period’s end. Forty state agencies reported procedures to keep making maintenance payments to providers after a child went missing, most saying they stopped 3 to 30 days later; one state that said its payments stopped after 30 days had paid almost $650,000 on behalf of children missing longer.

There were 110,446 missing children episodes during our audit period. … the number of children who were still missing as of December 31, 2020, was 6,619 … Forty State agencies reported that their procedures were to continue to make maintenance payments to providers after a child in foster care had gone missing.

Footnote 12: Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and West Virginia did not provide sufficient details; New York gave data only on Title IV-E-eligible children. OIG: policies paying beyond 14 days of a child’s absence “contrast with the ACF guidance” on prorating Title IV-E claims (Child Welfare Policy Manual 8.3B, Question 7).

HHS OIG estimated that 47% of missing-from-care episodes (2 calendar days or longer, 46 states, July 2018 to December 2020) were never reported to NCMEC and 22% were reported late: an estimated 34,869 and 16,246 of 74,353 episodes.

Specifically, an estimated 34,869 (47 percent) missing children episodes during our audit period were never reported to NCMEC and an additional estimated 16,246 (22 percent) missing children episodes during our audit period were not reported within 24 hours after the State agencies were notified that the child was missing.

Estimates projected from a stratified random sample of 100 episodes (45 never reported, 22 late, 33 on time); together an estimated 51,115 episodes (69%) were not reported as required.

HHS OIG estimated that 13,983 episodes (19%) were not reported to law enforcement for NCIC entry as required: 8,324 never reported and 5,659 reported late.

On the basis of our sample results, we estimate that the State agencies did not report 13,983 (19 percent) of the 74,353 missing children episodes in accordance with Federal requirements. Specifically, an estimated 5,659 (8 percent) missing children episodes during our audit period were not reported within 24 hours … and an additional estimated 8,324 (11 percent) missing children episodes during our audit period were never reported to law enforcement for entry into the NCIC database.

The site had printed 18.8%, OIG’s counts divided out; OIG publishes 19 percent. All three numbers are estimates from a sample, for the same 74,353 episodes (46 states, July 2018 to December 2020).

HHS OIG found that in nearly 60 percent of reviewed 2023 incidents in which American Indian and Alaska Native children went missing from Alaska’s state foster care, Alaska had not conducted all required caseworker visits beforehand (in 58 percent, case files lacked documentation of all required visits in the six months before). Case files lacked documentation that Alaska notified NCMEC in 57 percent of 44 applicable incidents and law enforcement in 30 percent of 71.

In nearly 60 percent of incidents, Alaska did not conduct all required caseworker visits before children went missing or ran away from care. … Children’s case files lacked documentation indicating that Alaska made required notifications to law enforcement in 30 percent of incidents and to NCMEC in 57 percent of incidents.

OIG counted incidents, not children: 71 incidents involving 47 children in calendar year 2023, not counting children in Tribal Title IV-E foster care programs; the NCMEC figure covers the 44 incidents in which the child was under 18 and whereabouts were unknown. The percentages measure missing documentation, not…

Federal child-welfare funding is $11.7 billion in FY2026, most of it Title IV-E; state child-welfare agencies spent more than $34.3 billion in SFY2022.

After ten years and roughly $2 billion, fewer than a third of state CCWIS projects are operational.

Only 23 of 75 total projects (30%) are fully operational

$2.28 billion claimed since 2016 against $5.86 billion allocated. The 75 are projects (41 new CCWIS builds and 34 transitional systems). CCWIS is child-welfare case-management software, not background-check infrastructure.

The Professional Background Screening Association has more than 750 member companies.

represents over 750 member companies

The membership of one trade association, not a count of the screening industry; for the industry, see S13.

At least 190,844 licensed child-care centers and family child-care homes: 92,550 licensed child-care centers in the 40 states with complete data and 98,294 licensed family child-care homes in the 39 states with data. A floor, not a count.

92,550 licensed centers … in the 40 states with complete data

Homes: 98,294 “open in 2024, in the 39 states that had available data”. Not every state reports, so the true total is higher.

575 federally recognized tribes (Bureau of Indian Affairs list, 91 FR 4102, January 30, 2026).

This notice publishes the current list of 575 Tribal entities recognized by and eligible for funding and services from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) by virtue of their status as Indian Tribes.

The site had printed 574 (CRS R47414, 2023); the Lumbee Tribe was added after the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act. The BIA Tribal Leaders Directory: “There are 575 Federally Recognized Tribes as of 1/30/2026.”

Georgia: 1,790 children reported missing from care, 2018 to 2022; NCMEC identified 410 of them as likely victims of child sex trafficking.

Between 2018 and 2022, NCMEC received over 2,400 reports of children missing from care in Georgia, involving 1,790 children … 410 of these children were identified as likely child sex trafficking victims.

The same release as F7.

P.L. 117-348 § 137 (January 5, 2023) amended 42 U.S.C. § 671(a)(35)(B): the Title IV-E state agency must maintain regular communication with law enforcement and NCMEC in efforts to recover a missing child safely, and include in its reports, where reasonably possible, a photo, a description of the child’s physical features and endangerment information.

the State agency shall maintain regular communication with law enforcement agencies and NCMEC in efforts to provide a safe recovery of a missing or abducted child or youth

A Title IV-E state plan requirement. The 24-hour reporting duty it amends is L21.

An estimated 1,954 U.S. background screening companies, with $3.2 billion in revenue, in 2019: IBISWorld’s estimate, as reported by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The analysis estimates that for 2019 there are 1,954 background screening companies with revenue of $3.2 billion

A federal agency reporting a private analyst’s estimate. It replaces “750+ screening companies”, which is the membership of one trade association (S8).

A-07-21-06104 drew its own stratified random sample of 100 of the same 74,353 episodes: OIG classified 86 as reported to law enforcement for NCIC entry on time, 8 as late and 6 as never reported.

We selected a stratified random sample of 100 missing children episodes (associated with a total of 36 State agencies).

A different sample from the one in A-07-21-06102 (S3, F5): 36 state agencies here, 38 there. OIG generally lacked exact reporting times and counted a report as late at two calendar days or more. The 19 percent in S4 is OIG’s projection from this sample, not the raw 14 of 100.

NCMEC tells agencies that a report to law enforcement and entry into NCIC does not automatically generate a report to NCMEC; federal law requires both reports (L21).

A report to law enforcement and entry into NCIC does not automatically generate a report to NCMEC.

NCMEC is a private nonprofit.

Nine states can be described as county administered for child welfare: California, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia; Nevada and Wisconsin are hybrids.

Nine States can be described as county administered: California, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.

A 2018 federal count, as the problem page says; administration can change, and no newer federal count was found.

The Boston Globe and ProPublica reported in December 2019 that no state complied with all 27 provisions of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act; their 76-question survey, answered by 49 states, D.C. and Puerto Rico on five CAPTA areas, found no agency fully compliant and six complying with none of the rules asked about.

The 76-question survey, which was answered by 49 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, focused on five key areas of CAPTA … not one agency was found fully compliant with the federal law.

An investigative survey by two newsrooms, not a government audit. The ’27 provisions’ line is the reporters’ own; the survey tested five areas (plans of safe care, differential response, guardians ad litem, tracking abuse deaths, registry appeals). Cite as journalism with its scope stated.

In an 8-hour workday, child-welfare caseworkers spend an average of 4.3 hours on paperwork and documentation (median 3.7 hours; range 1 to 8).

In an 8.0-hour workday, caseworkers reported spending an average of 4.3 hours a day on paperwork and documentation.

Data collected March 2021 to June 2022. The vendor blog that carried this figure was quoting a real federal finding.

Caseworkers report an average caseload of 22.4 children (median 16.9; range 0 to 99), against a Child Welfare League of America standard of 12 to 15.

On average, caseworkers have a caseload that includes 22.4 children (median = 16.9 children) and ranged from 0 to 99 children.

Current federal data; replaces the 2001 APHSA survey (24 to 31) as the site’s caseload figure.

Each Texas CPS caseworker who leaves costs the agency an estimated $54,000; in fiscal year 2013 CPS lost 1,346 caseworkers, a $72.7 million impact.

The agency estimates that each caseworker that leaves has a total cost impact of $54,000 to the agency. In fiscal year 2013, CPS lost 1,346 caseworkers, resulting in an overall $72.7 million impact to the agency.

A state legislative commission’s staff report quoting the agency’s own estimate; one state, fiscal year 2013. Date-stamp it when used.

McKinsey estimates that synthetic identity fraud is the fastest-growing type of financial crime in the United States; ID Analytics estimates that 85 to 95 percent of applicants identified as synthetic identities were not flagged as high risk by traditional fraud models; Auriemma Group estimated that U.S. lenders lost $6 billion to it in 2016. All three are cited in a July 2019 Federal Reserve paper; the Federal Reserve itself calls it “a fast-growing but little-understood problem.”

McKinsey estimates that synthetic identity fraud is the fastest-growing type of financial crime in the United States … ID Analytics estimates that 85 percent to 95 percent of applicants who were identified as synthetic identities were not flagged as high risk by traditional fraud models.

The Federal Reserve paper cites McKinsey (Jan. 2019), ID Analytics and Auriemma Group. Use these sentences rather than a share-of-all-identity-fraud figure. The Federal Reserve’s press release federalreserve.gov of July 9, 2019 calls it “a fast-growing but little-understood problem.”

Withdrawn: the “80 to 85 percent of identity theft” figure attributed to the FTC is not an FTC finding; it appears in a third-party public comment filed with the FTC, which attributes it to an ID Analytics study. Replaced on the site by M5.

Not an FTC finding: the FTC-hosted document is a comment submitted to the FTC. The underlying statistic is a vendor’s 2003 analysis of new-account fraud, not of all identity theft. Removed from the product page; replaced with the Federal Reserve’s sentences (M5).

There are more than 14 million fake IDs in the United States.

No government or academic count of fake IDs in circulation exists. Removed from the product page; replaced with seizure counts from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (M8).

CBP officers at one Chicago mail facility seized 1,513 shipments containing 19,888 counterfeit U.S. driver’s licenses in the first half of 2020; Cincinnati CBP intercepted more than 6,800 fraudulent and counterfeit documents in fiscal year 2023, a 219% increase over the year before.

Since the beginning of the year to June 30, CBP officers at the IMF have seized 1,513 shipments with fraudulent documents- a total of 19,888 counterfeit US drivers’ licenses.

Seizure counts at single ports, not a national total; the majority of shipments came from China and Hong Kong.

Published fees for a caregiver background check vary widely. Two examples: $36 (the state and FBI portions of a Florida foster care fingerprint check, before the vendor’s fee) and $129.50 (a New York City child care check: $104.50 for fingerprinting within New York State, including the vendor’s fee, plus $25 for the State Central Register search). The FBI part of these fees is $12 and rises to $15 on October 1, 2026. Separately, the FBI charges $18 for an Identity History Summary, a person’s request for their own record.

This revised fee schedule takes effect October 1, 2026. [table] Fingerprint-based Submission: fee currently in effect $12.00; change $3.00; revised fee $15.00. Volunteer submission: 10.00 to 13.00.

Replaces the vendor-reported ‘$18 to $200’ range with a range built from official schedules. The New York figure is a child-care fee; Florida’s is the foster-care schedule.

No federal agency publishes a count of child-welfare caseworkers. The closest federal proxy is the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimate for child, family and school social workers: 392,550 jobs nationally in May 2025. It includes school social workers, so it is not a caseworker count.

Child, family, and school social workers … 392,550

Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates count jobs, not people.

In some cases a result takes two weeks or more: when prints are rejected and must be retaken, when a record needs review, or when a case is complicated. Washington’s DSHS background check unit says the State Patrol takes up to two weeks to process resubmitted prints; Ohio’s Attorney General says complicated cases can take up to 30 days; an Illinois State Police guide from 2011 says inquiries that first come back “held” can take 30 to 45 days. Many results come back within hours or days: Washington’s child care unit averaged 6 calendar days in January 2024 and 12 in 2023. For child care, federal law requires states to finish a check as quickly as possible and no later than 45 days after the provider’s request (42 U.S.C. 9858f(e)(1); 45 CFR 98.43(e)(1)).

WSP takes up to two weeks to process resubmitted fingerprints due to poor print quality.

Ohio Attorney General (Bureau of Criminal Investigation), Civilian Services; Illinois State Police, Guide to Understanding Criminal History Record Check Information (ISP 5-727, August 2011), printed p. 68; Washington DCYF webinar Q&A, January 25, 2024.

In a May 27, 2022 recommendation to Washington’s child care agency (DCYF), a subcommittee of the state’s Early Learning Advisory Council printed providers’ own accounts. Two providers wrote that from Yakima the nearest fingerprint site was a three-hour round trip, and one in Kittitas County described three hours of travel. These are providers’ first-hand reports, not a measured statewide travel time. They were written as Washington prepared to end, on July 1, 2022, a pandemic order that had waived the fingerprint requirement and let new staff work under supervision after submitting their background application.

How can Yakima comply with no fingerprint locations available? The closest location to get fingerprinted is a three-hour round-trip drive.

Providers’ first-hand reports, not a measured statewide travel time.

GAO undercover tests of identity documents: the State Department issued passports on 9 of 11 test applications made with counterfeit or fraudulently obtained documents (all 4 in 2008, GAO-09-447; 5 of 7 in 2010, GAO-10-922T), and GAO investigators were issued driver’s licenses on all 5 attempts in three states chosen for known weaknesses (GAO-12-893, September 2012). These were small tests, not fraud rates, and GAO says the license results cannot be generalized.

Although we do not know what checks, if any, State performed when approving our fraudulent applications, it issued a genuine U.S. passport in each case.

The 9 of 11 is the sum of two separate GAO test series; GAO does not print the combined figure. In 2014 GAO matched about 28 million passports against death, prison, warrant and Social Security records and did not identify pervasive fraud in those groups.

Little League requires each local league to run its own background check every year on board members, managers, coaches and other volunteers or hired workers who provide regular service to the league or have repeated access to players or teams.

Each league must conduct its own background check on the appropriate individuals annually.

The same page requires the annual nationwide search on “all Board Members, managers, coaches and other volunteers or hired workers who provide regular service to the league and/or who have repetitive access to players or teams.” Little League is a private organization.

Federal Compliance Systems, Inc. (FComply) is an Oregon domestic business corporation, registry number 222763492, registered on February 23, 2024, with its listed principal place of business in Hillsboro, Oregon.

“registry_number”: “222763492”, “business_name”: “FEDERAL COMPLIANCE SYSTEMS, INC.”, “entity_type”: “DOMESTIC BUSINESS CORPORATION”, “registry_date”: “2024-02-23”, “city”: “HILLSBORO”, “state”: “OR”

FComply is the company’s public-facing name. The registry date is the date of registration; the About pages give the founding year as 2024.