CAL.Regulation
California conforms background-check rules across licensed occupations and adds refingerprinting requirements
Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2796 on September 18, 2026, as an urgency statute. The act conforms criminal-history background-check requirements across firearms permits, education contractors, massage professionals, professional fiduciaries, tax preparers, humane officers, financial-sector workers, escrow agents, care facilities, and certain Medi-Cal providers. It includes an FBI-authorization fallback and requires subsequent-notification refingerprinting under Penal Code Section 11105.2.
Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) →
Key points
- AB 2796 became Chapter 313, Statutes of 2026, approved September 18, 2026; urgency, effective immediately.California Legislative Information
- The omnibus measure conforms background-check statutes across more than ten licensing and permitting categories statewide.California Legislative Information
- Registered nurse applicants must now undergo fingerprint-based state and national criminal history checks through the Board of Registered Nursing.California Legislative Information
- The act adds an FBI-authorization fallback when federal criminal history information cannot otherwise be obtained.California Legislative Information
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RegulationCal.AB 2796 - Criminal history information: background checks (2026)EmploymentRegulatoryFor practitionersFor governance