St. Augustine Little League: Rule Changes
Little League Begins Background Screening of VolunteersNOTE: Following this article are set of FAQ's and the actual wording of the new regulations that will go into effect with the 2003 season
WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (Oct. 9, 2002) Local Little League programs will be required to conduct background checks on managers, coaches and other volunteers who come into regular contact with players, it was announced today by Stephen D. Keener, president and chief executive officer of Little League Baseball, Incorporated.
The newest phase of the Little League Child Protection Program goes into effect immediately, for the 2003 season. Leagues worldwide are now required to either conduct a check of a sexual offender registry, or a criminal background check, for the state or country in which the volunteer resides.
Little League is the worlds largest organized youth sports program, with about 2.7 million baseball and softball players ages 5-18 in the U.S. and 100,000 in other countries.
First and foremost, this mandate is for the protection of children in Little League, Mr. Keener said. Second, this will help maintain Little League as a environment in which children are safe from those who would seek to gain access to children and ultimately harm them. Third, it will help protect volunteers and leagues from possible loss of personal or league assets because of costly litigation.
New regulations for the 2003 season now require volunteers at the local level to complete and submit a volunteer application, giving consent to a background check. The applicant is also required to list references and prior convictions. Those required to apply include every manager, coach, board of directors member, and any other volunteer or hired worker who provides regular service to the league and/or have repetitive access to, or contact with, players or teams.
The local Little League board of directors must then check to determine if the applicant is listed on the sex offender registry of the state in which he or she lives, or , if no sex offender registry is available, must conduct a criminal background check, unless prohibited by law. More than 40 state governments now provide free access, many via Internet search, to a database of registered sex offenders living in that state.
Since 1996, when it was recommended by the Medical And Safety Advisory Committee of USA Baseball, Little League has recommended use of a volunteer application and the conduct of background checks. In 2001, Little Leagues official web site (www.littleleague.org) began providing local league administrators in the U.S. with recommendations for conducting background checks on volunteers, as well as links to all searchable state sex offender registries. The address for the Little League Background Check Database, which includes information regarding which states offer the service for free, is:
http://www.littleleague.org/childprotect/map.htm
Advances in technology and the wider availability of sex offender registry information make this the right time to expand the Little League Child Protection Program, Mr. Keener said. It is an excellent example of how a government can make a resource available, and allow a private organization to take advantage of it. The only losers in this program will be those who would prey on our most precious resource.
Since 1988, it is estimated that more than 10 million adults have volunteered in some capacity in Little League programs nationwide. During that 15-year period, nine individual Little League volunteers are known to have been involved in the sexual abuse of a Little Leaguer. There are currently more than 1 million adult Little League volunteers in local Little Leagues nationwide.
Thankfully, incidents of sexual abuse of Little Leaguers by adult volunteers have been extremely rare, Mr. Keener said. While we realize that no screening process can ever be 100 percent effective, we believe this will be a useful tool in helping our local league volunteers prevent these criminal types from gaining access to children through their local program.
Mr. Keener added that access to the Little League Background Check Database at www.littleleague.org is not limited to chartered Little League programs.
This program is available to anyone, anywhere, who has access to the Internet, he said. Whether its another baseball or softball program, or any other sport or youth activity, we want to share this information with anyone who has the best interests of children in mind. And we urge all programs to follow Little Leagues lead in making these screenings mandatory.
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All 2003 Little League® rule books and operating manuals now include
in Regulation I the following language dealing with mandatory use of the
Volunteer Application and mandatory background checks.
Regulation I (b)
new language: As a condition of service to the league, all managers, coaches, Board of Directors members and any other persons, volunteers or hired workers, who provide regular service to the league and/or have repetitive access to, or contact with players or teams, must complete and submit an official Little League Volunteer Application to the local league president. Annual background screenings must be completed prior to the applicant assuming his/her duties for the current season. Refusal to annually submit a fully completed Little League Volunteer Application must result in the immediate dismissal of the individual from the local league. (See also Reg. I (c) 8 and 9.)
Regulation I (c) 8 and 9.
I (c) Each league shall:
8. Require that all of the following personnel have annually submitted a fully completed official Little League Volunteer Application to the local league president, prior to the applicant assuming his/her duties for the current season: Managers, Coaches, Board of Directors members and any other persons, volunteers or hired workers, who provide regular service to the league and/or have repetitive access to, or contact with, players or teams.. The Little League Volunteer Application must be maintained by the president of the local league board of directors for all personnel named above, for a minimum of the duration of the applicants service to the league for that year. Failure to comply with this regulation may result in the suspension or revocation of tournament privileges and/or the local leagues charter by action of the Charter or Tournament Committee in Williamsport.
9. Conduct an annual background check on all personnel that are required to complete a Little League Volunteer Application prior to the applicant assuming his/her duties for the current season. No local league shall permit any person to participate in any manner, whose background check reveals a conviction for any crime involving or against a minor. A local league may prohibit any individual from participating as a volunteer or hired worker, if the league deems the individual unfit to work with minors. A local league must conduct a search of the applicable government operated statewide sex offender registry. If no sex offender registry exists in a State /Province, the local league must conduct a statewide/province?wide criminal background check through the appropriate governmental agency unless prohibited by law. Failure to comply with this regulation may result in the suspension or revocation of tournament privileges and/or the local leagues charter by action of the Charter or Tournament Committee in Williamsport.
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Little League® Child Protection Program
Questions and Answers
1. What do we, as a league, have to do to comply so that we can be chartered for the next season?
The local league is required to have all board members, managers, coaches, and other volunteers or hired workers who provide regular service to the league or/and who have repetitive access to or contact with players or teams fill out the new volunteer application. Additionally, the league will be required to conduct a background check on each of these individuals. Little League Baseball will require each league to sign an agreement on the Charter application that they will comply with Regulations I(b) and I(c) 8 & 9. The leagues will also be required to sign a statement on the tournament enrollment form verifying that the process under the regulations has been completed and implemented. Failure to sign the agreement on the charter application will result in the league not being chartered and failure to fulfill the requirements of the regulations will result in the leagues status being referred to the Charter/Tournament committee for action to revoke the leagues charter and all privileges.
2. What type of background check is required by the new regulations?
The new Little League Baseball regulations require each local league to check the Sexual Offender Registry (SOR) in the state where the applicant resides. Where the Sexual Offender Registry is not available, then these leagues must do a criminal background check. However, local leagues may elect to conduct a criminal background check, which exceeds the minimum requirement by the new regulations. For example, a background screening through the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
3. What type of offenses are we screening for when we conduct a background check?
Local leagues are conducting a search of the government state-wide Sexual Offender Registry for anyone who has committed sexual offenses involving minors. An individual who has been convicted or plead guilty to charges involving or against a minor, no matter when the offense occurred, must not be permitted to work with children.
4. Who in the local league should be responsible to process the background check information?
Little League Baseball recommends the board of directors appoint the local league president and two other individuals to handle the background checks. These individuals may be from the board or individuals outside the board. For instance, the board of directors may appoint individuals who have significant professional background in this area, such as law enforcement officers or individuals with a legal background.
5. What if an individual has previously had a background check?
Each league must conduct their own background check on the appropriate individuals annually.
6. If our volunteer base comes from multiple states, in what state do we do the background checks?
Many leagues are located close to the boundaries of other states; these leagues must conduct the background check where the individual resides. The league must attach a copy of a government-issued photo identification to the volunteer application. The residence on the government document will determine where the check must be conducted.
7. What will result in termination of a volunteer under the new regulations?
Any background check that reveals a conviction of any crime involving or against a minor must result in immediate termination from the league. Additionally, volunteers who refuse to submit a fully completed Little League Volunteer Application must be immediately terminated or eliminated from consideration for any position. This includes individuals with many years of service to your league.
8. What if offenses involving or against minors are pending prior to or after appointment to a position in the local league?
We suggest the individual not be appointed or should be suspended from his/her current position pending the outcome of the charges.
9. What if there are convictions or other offenses NOT involving or against minors?
A local league may prohibit any individual from participating as a volunteer or hired worker, if the local league board of directors deems the individual unfit to work with minors.
10. Who is to be made aware of the information found on the background check?
The local league president shall only share personal information contained in the volunteer application, background check or other information obtained through the screening process with other members of the board of directors in order to make personnel decisions. If the information obtained through the background check is public record and causes an individual to not be appointed or to be terminated, Little League Baseball recommends this information be shared with the parents/guardians of the children who have had contact with the individual previously.
11. Where should these records be maintained and for how long?
The local league president shall retain each volunteer application, background check information, and any other documents obtained on file for the current year of service of that individual. After the local league has completed operation for the current season, the league president shall dispose of the records unless the league has taken action or made a decision based upon the information contained in the records.
12. What is the timetable for completing the screening of each individual?
The local league must complete the annual screening process prior to the individual assuming his/her duties for the current season. This would include the individual submitting a completed volunteer application and the league completing an appropriate background check.
13. What resources are available through Little League Baseball to assist in this process?
Leagues can obtain the new volunteer application and background check information for each state through the Little League website at www.littleleague.org. The information on the Little League website contains links directly to state government resources on conducting background checks. Little Leagues are also encouraged to use whatever local resources are available in their communities.
14. What will it cost my league to implement this new initiative ?
Thirty-five states provide a free background online check for sex offenders who have committed violent sex crimes or sex crimes involving children. Eight additional states provide free background checks through an offline process administered by the state. The remaining seven states have a fee requirement that ranges from $5 to $18. For more detailed information on costs, visit the Little League website at www.littleleague.org.
15. Where can I find funding assistance to pay for the background checks if necessary?
In the seven states where a fee is required, Little League suggests that the individual pay for their background check as a condition of service. The league may elect to seek other funding sources from local businesses, sponsors, civic organizations and service clubs.
16. When should local leagues begin the implementation process of this new initiative?
Immediately, so volunteer applications and background checks are completed prior to individuals assuming their duties for the current season.
17. Does this new intitiative also apply to those individuals that assist the manager and coaches at practices or games?
Yes. Any individual who provides regular service to the league or/and who has repetitive access to or contact with players or teams must fill out the Volunteer Application and go through the background check process.
18. Who is going to coach the team if a screened manager or coach is no longer able to fulfill his/her duties?
Any permanent replacement can not assume their duties until the volunteer application and background check has been completed. The league may temporarily assign a board member or another screened individual to fill the vacancy until the proper process and appointment has been made.
19. Should our league wait until the entire screening process has been completed to submit our Charter Application and Insurance Enrollment Form?
No. The appropriate league officers must sign the statement on the form agreeing to adhere to the new regulations requiring the use of the new volunteer application and background screening process as outlined in Regulations I(b) and I(c) 8 & 9. Once this section is completed the balance of the charter application can be completed and submitted to Little League Baseball.
20. As the league president or an official of the local league, how do I explain the need for this new intiative?
These new requirements are being implemented by Little League and your local league to:
* protect our children and maintain Little League as a hostile environment for those who would seek to do them harm.
* protect individuals and leagues from possible loss of personal or league assets because of litigation.
* take advantage of current technology and laws that have made background check information accessible to your local league.