Youth organizations could get access to a federal database to check on the criminal record of new employees and volunteers under a bill Sen. Charles Schumer will introduce.
Schumer said Sunday his legislation would let children’s groups and nonprofits like the Boy Scouts, summer camps and little leagues weed out potential sexual predators by looking through FBI background checks.
The bill follows recent bust of a child pornography ring that led to the arrest of 70 men and a woman mostly from the New York City area. The men arrested included a Brooklyn rabbi who taught in a seminary and a Boy Scout leader who coached Little League.
“With summer around the corner, I am putting on full court press to pass legislation that will allow summer camps, little leagues, Boy Scouts and other children’s organization access to federal background check data,” Schumer said in a statement. “Parents deserve the peace of mind knowing that their children are in good hands when they drop them off at camp or after school programs.”
Currently, most of these groups are limited to New York’s criminal database, but the federal database is more accurate, up-to-date and includes crimes committed out-of-state, according to Schumer.
