(a)  Any person seeking employment as a firefighter with any city or town in Rhode Island shall undergo a national and state criminal background check to be initiated prior to, or within one week of, employment after receiving a conditional offer of employment.

Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 45-2-3.4

  • person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6
  • town: may be construed to include city; the words "town council" include city council; the words "town clerk" include city clerk; the words "ward clerk" include clerk of election district; the words "town treasurer" include city treasurer; and the words "town sergeant" include city sergeant. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-9

(b)  The applicant shall apply to the bureau of criminal identification (BCI), department of attorney general, state police, or the local police department where he or she resides, for a national and state criminal records check. Fingerprinting shall be required. The applicant shall be responsible for the cost of conducting the national and state criminal records check.

(c)  At the completion of the criminal background check required by this section, the attorney general, state police, or the local police department shall promptly destroy the fingerprint record of the applicant.

History of Section.
P.L. 2014, ch. 425, § 1; P.L. 2014, ch. 452, § 1.