DHS Temporarily Delays Transition Back to Fingerprint-Based Background Studies

Posted on October 7, 2020 by Jonathan Lips

The MN Department of Human Services (DHS) has temporarily delayed the transition back to fingerprint-based background studies.

DHS announced three weeks ago that it would return to fingerprint-based studies beginning at 6:00 am today (October 7^th), and that employers would no longer be able to submit emergency background studies after that date. Today, however, the Department posted a notice in the NETStudy 2.0 system that emergency studies will continue temporarily. We do not know how long DHS will continue with emergency studies, but we expect it will be at least a two-week delay.

This is great news, because it buys time for additional fingerprinting sites to re-open before we transition back to standard background studies. In reviewing the map of available fingerprint locations this morning, we found that it shows significantly more sites as currently open, or as scheduled to open by November 1, than was true last week. Prior to COVID-19, there were approximately 80 fingerprinting locations in Minnesota. According to the map, there will be approximately 60 locations open by November 1. While we would prefer to be at pre-COVID capacity, 60 sites are far more than the 35-40 that we had thought would be available at the time of the transition.

As of the publication deadline for this story, we have not received any details from DHS beyond the fact that emergency studies will temporarily continue, but we will provide more information as soon as we have it, through our daily COVID-19 updates.  Meantime, please contact me (jlips@leadingagemn.org) with any questions.