Appendix G – Individual Agency Processing Requirements

The participating Commonwealth Agencies identified below have the following additional requirements with respect to Services provided to their applicants. Services for participating Agencies not identified below shall be performed in accordance with Section IV-3through IV-7 of the RFP. Current and future participating Agencies may specify additional requirements as may be determined necessary.

A.  PA DEPARTMENT OF AGING (PDA). PDA is in the process of making some upgrades to their program. The selected Offeror must meet PDA’s requirements, changes and needs as they convert to a web application.

1.  Website Requirements. The selected Offeror must maintain specific facility information and Facility Types on the website provided by PDA.

  1. A brief description of types of facilities and other specific requirements must be included under the PDA logo.
  1. The selected Offeror must update data, files, website etc. to ensure compliance with OAPSA at all times.
  1. Facilities are required to register with PDA. PDA will electronically send the facility information to the selected Offeror. The selected Offeror is responsible to add the facility information to the website within 24 hours.

2.  Applicant Registration. All Applicant Registration information is applicable to all Commonwealth Agencies with the following exceptions:

  1. A “Verification and Authorization Statement” must be included for applicant acknowledging that they have not been a resident of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the past two consecutive years. The applicant must select the required field stating they have read and accepted these terms.

b.  On the Registration page applicants are required to complete mandatory fields as defined by PDA. Refer the Appendix M - PDA Registration Collected Information.

  1. The selected Offeror is responsible for providing address verification by the US postal service or any other approved vendor to ensure the applicants address is a deliverable and valid at the time of registration and before sending to the FBI and PDA.

3.  System Login. The selected Offerors’ system must provide an extra layer of access security to the website. This extra layer of security must be in the form of a digital certificate that the login screen will require each user to select before accessing the site. The certificate will reside on the users’ desktop; the user must select their certificate before gaining access to the selected Offeror’s website. The system must require the user to login. The selected Offeror must provide PDA a list of individuals whose certificate is to expire two weeks prior to their expiration.

4.  Results.

  1. Transmitting and importing applicant’s demographic data and results via SeGov (secure file transfer protocol) requirements to PDA. For Protocol of data transferring refer to Appendix N-Data Exchange Protocol.
  1. Data element for transferred files can be found in Appendix O-PDA File Transfer Requirements.
  1. Notify both PDA and PSP when experiencing technical difficulties that prevent prints from being submitted.
  1. In the event a name base search is conducted, the results will be emailed to the secure mailbox
  1. The selected Offeror must ensure the final results are sent to PDA within 90 days to ensure applicants receive their CHRI and/or PDA employment determination as defined under OAPSA.

5.  Customer Service

  1. In addition to the contract the customer service representative must refer applicants to 717-265-7887 option #1, when the representative has investigated the issue and it is found to be a PDA issue.

B.  PA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. Department of Agriculture digital fingerprint applicants are currently processed directly through PSP at some of the Casinos located in PA. If changes to policy and/or agency procedures occur in the future, Department of Agriculture may have additional agency requirements including, but not limited to, leasing of fingerprinting equipment, training, and maintenance of equipment to all existing Racetrack Commission offices. Any such additional requirements will be added by negotiated amendment to the contract.

C.  PA DEPARTMENT OF BANKING AND SECURITIES.

1.  Results.

  1. Have option of changing how the CHRI results are displayed online.
  1. A result of “Record” will be available for a period of 90 days for review with the ability to print by the Department. For the life of the Contract, a result of “No Record” will be available online for review with the ability to print by the Department.

D.  PA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.

1.  Online Reporting Tool requirements. The selected Offeror shall:

  1. Provide web-based online access for review of CHRI Reports by all school entities which are identified and approved by PDE;
  1. Provide a seamless transition for school entities using the current online system, including a communication strategy to schools explaining the transition and a system for log-in and passwords for school entities that does not disrupt school entities’ current ability to retrieve CHRI Reports. (By way of example, ideally school entities login\passwords will remain the same);
  1. Provide web-based instructions for all school entities to use the online system and have posted on selected Offeror’s web-site and linked to the PDE website;
  1. Provide online access to CHRI Reports for specific and assigned PDE staff.
  1. Provide web-based instructions for PDE assigned staff to use the online system;
  1. Ensure that the coding of the database of school users is differentiated by “public school”; “private school”; and “higher education;”
  1. For applicants applying for a check as volunteers, code the check as a volunteer check and ensure that applicant is entitled to any reduction in fees provided for volunteers under the Adam Walsh Act, if applicable. The selected Offeror shall provide applicants with a mandatory free text field where the applicant will list the school or volunteer organization. This information will be collected for audit purposes, allowing PSP the ability to audit specific schools and agencies. Volunteers will also be provided with a “check-thru” screen that appears when the applicant selects the Volunteer option. This check-thru screen would “pop up,” explaining that the volunteer check may not be used for employment purposes. All background checks coded as volunteers shall contain a prominent identification appearing on any screen and print of the report that the check was obtained for volunteer purposes and may not be used for employment purposes.
  1. Ensure that all CHRI Reports shall include for each applicant, the applicant’s Registration ID – PAE (thirteen characters), the applicant’s last 4 digits of Social Security Number, together with any other information as PDE shall specify; and
  1. Provide CHRI Reports online to PDE and all approved school entities for sixty (60) months from the issuance of their results. The selected Offeror shall delete the report from the secure database after sixty (60 months).
  1. Subject to State Police approval of this functionality pursuant to the The National Child Protection Act of 1993 (NCPA), Public Law 103-209, as amended by the Volunteers for Children Act (VCA), , provide Web based access to PDE and all approved school entities of CHRI Reports obtained for DHS purposes and shall provide DHS with Web based access to CHRI Reports obtained for PDE purposes. If required by the State Police and PDE, applicants will also be provided with a “check-thru” screen, that appears when the applicant seeks a PDE or DHS background check containing such language as is specified by the State Police and PDE that acknowledges CHRI information may be accessed for both PDE and DHS purposes.

2.  Storage. Storage of electronic rap sheets CHRI must follow the FBI rules and regulations regarding the electronic retention of rap sheet information. Data must be maintained on-line for five (5) years from the issuance of the results.

3.  Electronic Access to Reports for Applicants. The selected Offeror shall provide each PDE applicant with electronic access to a printable unofficial copy of the CHRI report (the CHRI Copy) in accordance with the following guidelines:

  1. The selected Offeror shall make electronic access available to the CHRI copy within one business days of receiving the results from the FBI. Electronic access to the CHRI copy will be made available to the applicant for up to sixty (60) months as may be specified by PDE.
  1. The CHRI Copy will include a cover letter in a form to be approved by PDE.
  1. PDE shall specify the content of the CHRI Copy and cover letter, including without limitation, a watermark as specified by PDE designating the report as an unofficial copy, and if applicable, denoting that the report was obtained for volunteer purposes and cannot be used for employment purposes.
  1. The selected Offeror shall include a statement in a prominent place on selected Offeror’s website which states: applicant will receive electronic access to the report with a cover letter; and the timeframe for an applicant to contact the selected Offeror if the applicant cannot secure electronic access to the report.

4.  Name Checks.

a.  The name check process will be fully managed by the selected Offeror in accordance with the general requirements of this RFP as set forth in Section IV-4, F. Fingerprint Rejection Process.

  1. Results of the name check shall be posted to the CHRI data base to be viewable electronically by PDE and School Entities in the same manner that CHRI Reports are reviewed, together with such additional explanatory information as PDE may specify. Applicants shall be provided with electronic access to results of the name check, together with such additional explanatory information as PDE may specify, in the same manner that access is provided to the CHRI copy.

E.  PA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. Health does not currently use digital fingerprint services under the existing Contract, however Health will be user another under the contract resulting from this RFP. Any unique agency requirements, if any, will be provided to the selected Offeror.

F.  PA DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES – OCYF.

  1. Applicant Registration. All Applicant Registration information is applicable to all Commonwealth Agencies with the following exception:
  1. The applicant must not be required to input their SSN to complete the registration process.
  1. Applicant Registration screen field titled Reason Fingerprinted used to record and capture the applicants’ reason for being fingerprinted must be modified to match DHS’s list of reasons fingerprinted.
  1. System Login. The selected Offerors’ system must provide an extra layer of access security to the website. This extra layer of security must be in the form of a digital certificate that the login screen will require each user to select before accessing the site. The certificate will reside on the users’ desktop; the user must select their certificate before gaining access to the selected Offeror’s website. The system must require the user to login. The selected Offeror must provide the Agency the certificates needed to access the website two weeks prior to their expiration.
  1. At log-in the user should be notified if the system is down.
  1. System should provide an alert notifying the user if the system is shutting down due to system issues.
  1. System should provide an alert that the system is logging out due to lack of user activity.
  1. Online Reporting Tool requirements. The selected Offeror’s system must provide DHS a mechanism for processing, storing and tracking DHS’s review of applicants’ FBI results. FBI results are used by DHS to make determinations. The system must provide:
  1. The ability to view applicants’ sponsoring Agency Information (if applicable), including but not limited to Agency Name, Agency Address, Contact Person, Contact Phone Number, Contact email.
  1. The ability to view the applicants’ FBI Response Information including but not limited to TCN, Type, TCR, FBI Response Date, Error Messages and Rap sheet.
  1. A section titled “Disposition Information” which must contain the following information Disposition Date, Disposition Officer, Letter Print Date, Name Check Date, Disposition Type, and Crime Description.

i.  OCYF staff determinations on the applicants’ FBI returned response titled “Disposition Type” must be contained in this section.

ii.  The crime code(s) titled “Crime Description” associated with the OCYF staff determinations for all applicants whose final determination was “disqualified” must be contained in this section.

  1. The ability to enter comments/narratives recorded during the review process titled “General Comment”.
  1. The ability to print or reprint the result letters locally.
  1. The ability to process, track and automatically purge the applicant’s record once the five (5) year time frame has expired. Applicants’ whose final dispositions are “applicant exceeded year response time” must be purged after 18 months.
  1. An automatic process for processing “No Record” results. The system shall automatically generate a “No Record Exists” certificate letter for all FBI “No Record” result.

iii.  The system must provide a batch file following DHS OCYF’s specifications, which contains all “No Record Exists” certification letters. This file will be sent to the Commonwealth’s print shop electronically on a daily basis.

  1. The user the ability to add a final disposition for all applicants whose results were other than “No Record” by selecting from the pre-determined list of Disposition types listed below.

iv.  No record exists.

v.  Record exists but conviction does not prohibit hire.

vi.  Record exists but no conviction is shown.

vii.  Disqualification.

viii.  Name search initiated.

ix.  Applicant exceeded year response time.

x.  Unable to determine – need additional information – applicant.

xi.  Unable to determine – need additional information – out of state request.

  1. The user the ability to change the disposition as long as the user did not save the information
  1. The user the ability to select multiple Crime code(s) from the Crime Code drop-down list and link it to the applicant. The current crime codes are listed in the Child Protective Services Law §6344 (c) of 23, Pa.C.S., Chapter 63. The system must make “Crime Code” a mandatory field if the user selects “Disqualified” from the disposition type drop-down list.
  1. The ability to auto-populate the Date Shown on Letter defaulting the date to the current date. The system must allow the Date Shown on Letter to be overwritten if the applicant takes longer than 30 days to send the information requested, in that instance the date would be manually overwritten by the user
  1. The user the ability to request additional information if the user is unable to make a determination with the information/results returned from the FBI.

i.  The system must maintain all applicants whose disposition was “unable to determine – need additional information applicant or out of state” in the working queue for 12 months, unless the information is received and the final results are issued.