Law / United States / 
Delaware
Ban the Box Act: postsecondary admissions and an applicant's criminal history
Del. Code Ann. tit. 14, §§ 9002C, 9003C
In force since .
A sensitive categories rule binding public and private bodies.
- Obligation class
- Prohibition, Disclosure
- Audit expectation
- none
What it requires
- If you are an institution of postsecondary education receiving State funds, or a private institution of postsecondary education with campuses physically located in Delaware, do not inquire about an applicant's criminal history on an initial application form or at any time during the admissions process before your decision on the applicant's admission, except as the next line allows (section 9003C(a)(1)).
- You may ask on an initial application form about a conviction for stalking or a "sexual offense" as defined in section 761 of title 11, or an equivalent offense under the law of another state or under any military, territorial, foreign, tribal or federal law; if you deny admission based on such a conviction, notify the applicant, who may appeal to the entity within your institution that considers its disciplinary matters (section 9003C(a)(2)).
- After an applicant has been accepted, inquire about the applicant's criminal conviction history only to offer supportive counseling and services, or to decide on the student's participation in campus life and whether to limit it; if you ask while obtaining secondary information such as immunizations, financial aid or housing, consider the nature and gravity of the conduct, the time that has passed, the student's age at the time and any evidence of rehabilitation (section 9003C(b)(1) and (2)).
- Do not deny, based solely on criminal conviction history, admission to or continuation in an academic program designed to prepare a student for a career that requires an occupational license or a teaching certificate (section 9003C(c)(1)).
These lines are LexLint's reading of the law's text.
What record it asks for
Logging duty
Section 9003C bars an academic institution from inquiring about an applicant's criminal history before its admission decision, with listed exceptions, limits its later inquiries, and requires it to publish its policy or a compliance statement on its website. None of its provisions requires a log or record, names an audit or gives a party a right to a record.
- Kind
- None
- As of
What this law does
Chapter 90C of title 14 of the Delaware Code, the Ban the Box Act, bars an academic institution from inquiring about an applicant's criminal history on an initial application form or at any time during the admissions process before the institution's decision on admission, with the exceptions section 9003C lists.
The Act defines an academic institution as an institution of postsecondary education receiving state funds or a private institution of postsecondary education with campuses physically located in Delaware.
An academic institution may ask on an initial application form about a conviction for stalking or a sexual offense as defined in section 761 of title 11, or an equivalent offense under the law of another jurisdiction, and must notify an applicant it denies admission on that basis, who may appeal to the entity within the institution that considers its disciplinary matters.
After an applicant has been accepted, an institution may inquire about criminal conviction history to offer supportive counseling and services and to make decisions about the student's participation in campus life. When an institution makes such inquiries while obtaining secondary information, such as immunizations, financial aid or housing, it must consider the nature and gravity of the conduct, the time that has passed, the student's age at the time and any evidence of rehabilitation.
An institution must not deny, based solely on criminal conviction history, admission to or continuation in an academic program designed to prepare a student for a career that requires an occupational license or a teaching certificate, and must offer counseling about the licensing or certification requirement.
An institution may consider criminal conviction history that appears on an application designed by a national application service, tailored for admission to a specific degree program and used by postsecondary education institutions in multiple states. Each academic institution must publish any policy it adopts under the section on its publicly accessible website or, if it has adopted none, a statement describing its compliance.
Section 9004C of title 14 directs the Department of Education to compile an annual report of admissions from each academic institution and to cease reporting by . The Act, Senate Bill 13 of the 151st General Assembly, enacted as chapter 478 of volume 83 of the Laws of Delaware, took effect on .
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app serves colleges and universities.
Back to the example · Lint your app
Page updated .
us-de-del-ann-tit-14-9002c-9003c