June 19th, 2015 | Sterling

Nevada Removes 7 Year Limit on Criminal Records

Conducting employment background checks in the Nevada just got a little easier. The state has expanded the scope for pre-employment criminal background checks, lifting a 7-year reporting limit on criminal convictions. Nevada Senate Bill 409 was signed by Governor Sandoval last week. The law takes effect immediately. Under the new law, background screening companies are now able to report convictions older than 7 years in Nevada.

Additionally, SB 409 specifically allows gaming operators and employers to conduct more thorough background checks on prospective employees, allowing screening companies to prepare a report at the request of the gaming licensee which may include bankruptcy information older than 10 years and other civil judgments older than 7 years.

The state law is now comparable to the federal law (the Fair Credit Reporting Act) which places no limitation on reporting criminal records that result in a conviction. Employers conducting criminal background checks in Nevada now have the ability to see older conviction records, depending upon availability at the courts.  Employers who are updating their hiring policies are urged to consider EEOC guidance which recommends careful consideration of the age of a criminal offense in relation to the job before disqualifying a candidate based on a conviction.

The full text of Nevada SB 409 is here.

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