The House Government and Veterans Affairs Committee on Friday voted 14-0 to recommend House Bill 1075 as amended, a bill that would authorize the Department of Emergency Services (DES) to perform fingerprint‑based criminal history record checks for certain employees and job applicants.

Darren Hanson, homeland security division director at DES, told the committee that the department currently relies on the Bureau of Criminal Investigation or other workarounds for some checks and that giving DES statutory authority would create consistency across the agency’s Homeland Security and State Radio divisions and allow DES to perform fingerprinting in‑house. Hanson said DES already has equipment and trained personnel and that the change would have no material fiscal cost.

Hanson described a two‑step implementation: first, a state law change authorizing DES to conduct checks; second, DES must obtain FBI approval to operate as an authorized channeler for national fingerprint checks. Hanson said DES had worked with BCI and the Attorney General’s Office and that those stakeholders recommended an amendment to improve alignment with FBI requirements. The committee adopted that amendment.

Lawmakers pressed for procedural details. Representative Rohrer asked who would receive and analyze results; Hanson said the FBI requires an internal policy and a designated official to view results, and DES plans to have human resources handle adjudication while limiting access to one designated reviewer. Representative Steiner and others questioned permissive language in the bill allowing DES to "may require" checks; Hanson and the bill drafter said permissive language is common and leaves agency policy to determine when checks are required. Hanson estimated DES would add roughly three to four fingerprint submissions per year beyond what it already does.

The committee adopted the amendment (moved by Representative Vetter; seconded by Representative McLeod) and then voted 14-0 to recommend the bill as amended (moved by Representative Rohrer; seconded by Representative Bail). Representative Rohrer volunteered to carry the bill to the floor.

Why it matters: Granting DES statutory authority and aligning statutory language with FBI requirements is intended to speed background checks, centralize policy, and allow DES to use digital fingerprinting channels where available, which witnesses said could reduce processing time compared with current paper‑based workflows.

Votes at a glance

- Amendment: moved by Representative Vetter, seconded by Representative McLeod — passed 14-0.
- Final motion: recommend "do pass" as amended (mover: Representative Rohrer; second: Representative Bail) — passed 14-0.