As a Little League^® volunteer in California, we want to share an important update regarding a new state law to protect children from sexual abuse in youth organizations, including Little League. California passed a new legislative bill, Assembly Bill No.506, that requires a fingerprint-based background check and child abuse and neglect reporting training for individuals who volunteer more than 16 hours a month or 32 hours a year; which, for Little League, includes coaches, managers, board members, umpires, etc.

The bill requires organizations to have policies to ensure that regular volunteers are reporting suspected incidents of child abuse. It also requires the presence of at least two mandated reporters when interacting with children. This law will go into effect statewide on January 1, 2022. Fortunately, Little League International has the Child Protection Program that must be followed by all Little League programs and volunteers are already considered mandated reporters due to the SafeSport law enacted in 2018 .

What Leagues Need to Know:

The new background check requirement by the state is pursuant to Section 1105.3, which is a California Department of Justice State fingerprint check through Live Scan locations. This background check does not replace the required Little League background check , which is a search of the National Criminal database, National Sex Offender Registry, U.S. Center for SafeSport Centralized Disciplinary Database, and the Little League International Ineligible List. Local Little League volunteers must conduct training for child abuse and neglect reporting training. Leagues can utilize the USA Baseball training, which is free to all volunteers: Abuse Awareness for Adults.

What Leagues Need to Do:

A Little League-appointed board member must oversee the background check process for the league, including the new requirements under California law. Below is a breakdown of the California background check process which includes the application process to acquire an Originating Agency Identifier (ORI) code:

• Complete the California Department of Justice Application for Authorization Pursuant to Penal Code Section 11105.3 (Youth Organizations-Human Resource Agencies).
• For this application, you will need your local Little League's proof of non-profit status. Local Little Leagues that cannot show proof of their non-profit status may incur additional fees.
• Mail the completed application to the California Department of Justice Applicant Information and Certification Program (address is listed on the application).
• Your league will receive an ORI code which will identify your organization when the volunteer completes the fingerprint process.
• The league must provide the ORI code to volunteers to complete the fingerprint process through Live Scan.

Leagues cannot request fingerprints until they receive the ORI code and authorization from the California Department of Justice.

What Volunteers Need to Know:

Volunteers will be required to go through this process for each league and/or other non-profit they volunteer for; therefore, it is strictly prohibited to share the fingerprint background check results with other local Little Leagues or other non-profits.

• Request an ORI number from the local Little League.
• A league volunteer must use the correct ORI code for their local Little League.
• Select a Live Scan location to conduct the fingerprints.
• Complete the included form 8016- Request for Live Scan Services either online or bring the completed form with you to the Live Scan location.

The fingerprint background check can cost from $15 to $70 depending on the Live Scan location. The local Little League volunteer would be responsible for the fingerprint background check cost.

Little League has included supplement documents throughout the email that can assist the local Little League board and volunteers through this new background check process. These links are indicated in red throughout the email.

Sincerely,

Samantha Mahaffey
Security Manager, Little League International