Background screening reports allow employers to make informed decisions on potential or current employees, contractors, volunteers, or candidates for employment or service. Criminal background checks – including the sex offenders’ registry – typically is part of that process. Dating back to 1994, New Jersey was the first state to create a sex offenders registry called “Megan’s Law.” Several other states followed suit and in 1996, an online federal sex offender registry was created by President Bill Clinton. All 50 states and several dozen tribes now have sex offender registries of some form. Prospective employers can run a search of a potential employee against the sex offenders’ registry in some cases, but the process can be complicated and may come with restrictions.
