Many employers rely on background checks as a safety tool for hiring.
Now, select Ohio Deputy Registrar License Agencies offer WebCheck, an electronic, fingerprint-based background check system that promotes fast and convenient results.
The system is the product of a partnership between the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation, which keeps records of Ohioans with criminal backgrounds.
Background checks are becoming a more popular standard for hiring, said Lindsay Komlanc, spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Public Safety.
Prior to the joint initiative, Ohioans who needed to provide a criminal background check on themselves were able to visit a small number of BCI locations around the state or private companies that offer National WebCheck services, said Holly Hollingsworth, spokeswoman for the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
The partnership “was a good fit because now deputy registrars can offer a new, more convenient service,” Komlanc said. “Anytime we’re able to work with another agency to assist the community, of course we want to do it.”
BCI used about $300,000 in U.S. Department of Justice grant funds to provide WebCheck equipment to deputy registrars, according to a press release from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
Komlanc said there are about 120 deputy registrars participating in the program in varying locations across the state.
“They are in different stages of training and what equipment they have, but within the month all will be offering the service,” she said.
Electronic prints from each index finger and thumb and information from the applicant’s driver’s license are sent over a secured Internet connection to the BCI or the FBI for criminal background searches. In state-level WebChecks, fingerprints are compared to the database at the Ohio BCI to search for matches. Federal WebChecks are similar, but fingerprints are instead compared to a database maintained by the FBI.
Results of WebChecks are mailed to the address specified on the applicant’s form at the time digital fingerprints are captured. Komlanc said applicants are sometimes required to report their results to their employers, and other times employers request the results be sent directly to them.
Fingerprint-based background checks also offer fast results. Inquiring agencies and applicants usually receive the outcome of the check within two business days, which is much faster than the month it can take results for name-based-only checks to be delivered, Komlanc said.
Hollingsworth said a benefit of getting a background check at a deputy registrar location is that the Ohio BMV can ensure that fee structuring is consistent from one location to the next. This makes obtaining a background check more predictable for the applicant, she said.
State-level checks are $32, federal-level checks are $34, and the combination check of federal and state levels is $61.
Columbus has eight deputy registrar locations that offer the WebCheck service, Komlanc said. Because the program is just starting at deputy registrar locations, Komlanc said growth depends on projected costs and public demand.
