The Peabody City Legal Affairs Subcommittee voted 5-0 to support revisions to the city’s licensing process that would begin fingerprint-based criminal background checks for selected business licenses and to update ordinance language adopted in February 2017.

Clerk Allison Danforth told the subcommittee the city’s existing civil fingerprinting ordinance (adopted 02/2017) has never been used and that licenses expire at the end of the year, prompting staff to seek council direction before renewals are mailed. "The fingerprints just confirm the information on the printouts, definitively beyond just someone's name and date of birth," said Tom Griffin, Chief of Police.

The proposal keeps several existing requirements and adds or clarifies others. Under the recommendations supported by the subcommittee: junk dealer and limousine driver licenses would require fingerprint-based checks; taxi drivers and limousine drivers would continue to be fingerprinted annually; fortune-teller licenses would remain subject to fingerprinting (as in the current ordinance); auctioneer and several other licenses would receive an initial background "query" (a single background check) rather than an annual fingerprint unless management changed; and in-holder and lodging house licenses were added to the list of license types the subcommittee asked to require fingerprinting.

Danforth described implementation tradeoffs, including workload in the clerk's office and police department and fees. The ordinance currently sets a $100 fee tied to fingerprinting; Danforth and the chief noted that a state portion (about $30) is typically incorporated into that amount and that the council could choose to reduce the local administrative portion. "We had talked about maybe bringing that down to the 30, because with the economy... it's challenging for some of these license holders," Danforth said; another councilor suggested $50 as a compromise.

Councilors debated frequency. Several members expressed concern about requiring annual fingerprinting for long-established managers who rarely change, and recommended a tiered approach. The subcommittee supported language making live-entertainment fingerprints required at licensing and then on a multi-year cycle unless management changes; by unanimous agreement the subcommittee asked that live-entertainment checks be scheduled every three years when there is no management change. The clerk said she would add language to renewal forms so licensees can confirm there has been no change in ownership or management, which would avoid re-running a background check in those cases.

Members also asked for limits on what police may report when a background check prompts an appeal. Danforth said language was changed so the police department would report a determination about an applicant's suitability rather than read aloud full criminal-history details during licensing appeals. The clerk said staff must still complete federal and state paperwork to activate the fingerprinting process before checks can begin.

The subcommittee's motion, offering the clerk and chief's recommended changes plus additions for in-holder and lodging-house licenses and one-day licenses and the three-year schedule for live entertainment when management is unchanged, carried 5 to 0 on a roll-call vote. After the vote the clerk said she would update ordinance language and submit the revised draft to the full council for review and advertisement.

Votes at a glance: Motion to support the clerk and police chief's recommended ordinance changes, with additions including fingerprinting for in-holder and lodging-house licenses, adding one-day licenses, and setting live-entertainment fingerprinting at setup and every three years if management is unchanged — approved 5-0.