Volume XV
April 2008

Letter from the President: Lobbying and the Future of our Industry

By Jason B. Morris, President & COO

As many of our readers know I am heavily involved with our industry association, NAPBS. Each year of the past four years we have had a “Washington Fly In” to promote our initiatives and make our congressmen aware of our industry and laws that may have an impact on it. I had the privilege of doing it again in last month. We spent three days in Washington meeting with various offices and members of Congress and the Senate, in addition to a productive meeting with the Department of Homeland Security.

Not much is happening during this session of congress due to the upcoming elections but it gave us an opportunity to focus on a few issues that are still pending: Immigration Reform, Privacy Bills, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the fair use of criminal records.

The current E-Verify program run by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration is due to sunset (expire) this calendar year. All signs point to it being renewed. Currently there is a bill supported by SHRM introduced by Congressman Sam Johnson (3rd Dist. - TX) called H.R. 5515: the New Employee Verification Act. The current program, E-Verify is not perfect but it is a good system and is getting better every day. Based on the feedback I received, the Johnson Bill is unlikely to go anywhere and will likely die in committee. NAPBS fully supports the re-issue of the E-Verify program and is working with the Department of Homeland Security on ways to improve the program through designated agents. Currently there are two issues at the state level that could have a severe negative impact on our industry. The State of Oklahoma is looking to redact Dates of Birth and Social Security Numbers from Public Records. In a recent blog posting we listed information about this bill and what you can do to help get it reversed. NAPBS is working with our membership on a letter writing campaign, so that you too can get involved. {Editor’s Note: Since this article was written the Oklahoma ruling was reversed due to persuasive opposition} Ohio is another area of concern. Similar efforts have surfaced in our home state. The Cleveland Plain Dealer and other area newspapers, along with various organizations who have an interest in open public records, have made great strides on this issue. At press time there has been no “official” word but it appears our efforts have prevailed and the decision will be reversed. These issues are just some of the many reasons we are so excited about our newest endeavor, employeescreen University ™. Bringing issues such as these to the forefront, and getting our clients and partners involved is paramount in maintaining our ability to increase the value of your hiring decisions!

Best regards,
Jason B. Morris, President & COO
employeescreenIQ