Does Massachusetts require background checks for volunteers?

Where the General Laws say “shall obtain,” yes. Any organization may obtain CORI to evaluate volunteers under M.G.L. c. 6, § 172(a)(3). It is required for organizations primarily engaged in programs for children 18 or younger (§ 172H), camps (§ 172G), public and private schools for volunteers with direct and unmonitored contact (c. 71, § 38R), long-term care and assisted living (§ 172E), home care, municipal and publicly funded elder and disability services (§ 172C), EEC child care for volunteers with unsupervised access, and every family child care volunteer (606 CMR 14.05) and EOHHS agencies and vendors (101 CMR 15.00). Other organizations may choose.

What does “primarily engaged” mean under § 172H?

No statute or DCJIS regulation we found defines it. An organization whose main work is youth programming — a youth sports league, a scout council, a tutoring or mentoring program — fits the words comfortably; a multi-service nonprofit with one youth program is harder to call. If you are unsure, raise it with DCJIS when you register for iCORI and keep its answer with your CORI policy.

What does a Standard CORI show?

Pending charges, including cases continued without a finding until dismissed; misdemeanor convictions for 5 years and felony convictions for 10 after disposition or release; and murder, manslaughter and state-prison sex offense convictions unless sealed. If a conviction falls inside the window, the report also includes all of the person’s adult convictions (803 CMR 2.05(4)(b)). No level shows expunged records.

Do Massachusetts camps need a sex offender registry check on volunteers?

Yes. Under 105 CMR 430.090(D), a recreational camp for children must obtain, for each volunteer each camping season, a five-year work or volunteer history, a sex offender registry information (SORI) check from the Sex Offender Registry Board and a CORI/Juvenile Report from DCJIS — and no one may volunteer until the operator has reviewed it and made a determination.

Can a VolunteerBadge check replace CORI?

No. When a Massachusetts statute says to obtain CORI from DCJIS — §§ 172C, 172E, 172G, 172H or c. 71, § 38R — or a rule calls for SORI or EEC’s background record check, the organization still has to get that record through the state; a commercial check is no substitute. VolunteerBadge can supplement it, for example with a multi-state search, since CORI is a Massachusetts record, and it can be the everyday screen for roles no statute covers. The Massachusetts rules on written CORI policies and record handovers apply to commercial reports too.

Free guide · 2026 edition · CORI where it’s a choice, and where the law says “shall obtain”

Shall Obtain: The Massachusetts guide to screening volunteers: where CORI is a choice, the settings where the law says “shall obtain,” what each access level shows, and the steps before you question or decide

Massachusetts lets any organization check its volunteers’ state criminal records — and in more settings than most states, it goes further. For children’s programs, camps, schools, child care, long-term care and many elder services, the General Laws say an organization “shall obtain all available” CORI before a volunteer starts. This guide maps each mandate, explains what a CORI shows at each access level, and walks through the rules that come with holding one.

By the VolunteerBadge research team · Sources checked September 11, 2026

Written for Massachusetts youth programs, camps, schools, EEC providers and councils on aging
Every setting where the law says “shall obtain” CORI — §§ 172C–172H, § 38R, EEC and EOHHS
What each CORI access level shows, from Open to Required 4, and what SORI adds
A § 171A record-handover note and an 803 CMR 2.20 letter you can adapt

Who Shall Obtain is for

Executive directors, volunteer coordinators, youth-program and league leaders, camp directors, school and parent-group coordinators, child care directors, council on aging and elder-services managers, and church leaders — anyone in Massachusetts who recruits volunteers.

20,196

child victims of abuse or neglect in Massachusetts in 2024 — 14.9 per 1,000 children, about twice the national rate of 7.2.

ACF, Child Maltreatment 2024

33.1%

of Massachusetts residents volunteered through organizations in 2023, up from 23.1% in 2021 — tied for 18th of 51 by our calculation.

AmeriCorps / Census CEV, 2023

$20,000

The most a Massachusetts charity can owe for a tort committed in carrying out its charitable purposes, exclusive of interest and costs.

M.G.L. c. 231, § 85K

Cited to primary sources

Massachusetts at a glance

Any organization may check volunteers: Any requestor may obtain Standard access CORI “to evaluate volunteers for services”: pending charges, misdemeanor convictions for 5 years and felonies for 10. If a conviction falls in that window, the whole adult conviction history comes back.; M.G.L. c. 6, § 172(a)(3); 803 CMR 2.05(4)
Children’s programs must check first: An organization “primarily engaged” in activities or programs for children 18 or younger shall obtain all available CORI before accepting any volunteer. DCJIS lists these programs at Required 2, which adds non-conviction records; the statute doesn’t define “primarily engaged.”; M.G.L. c. 6, § 172H; DCJIS access-levels table
Camps: every volunteer, every season: Camp operators obtain CORI with juvenile data (Required 3), a SORI check and a five-year history for each volunteer each camping season, and decide suitability before service. Documentation is kept three years.; M.G.L. c. 6, § 172G; 105 CMR 430.090(D)–(F)
Schools: at least every three years: Public and private schools shall obtain CORI at least every three years on volunteers who may have direct and unmonitored contact with children. Fingerprint checks are required for employees but optional for volunteers.; M.G.L. c. 71, § 38R; 603 CMR 51.02–51.03
Child care checks run through EEC: In EEC licensed, approved or funded programs, volunteers with unsupervised access — and every family child care volunteer — need EEC’s check: CORI, DCF, SORI, national registry and fingerprints, at least every three years.; 606 CMR 14.05(1)(b), (2)(c), (3)(c); M.G.L. c. 15D, § 8(d)
Elder, disability and long-term care: Long-term care, assisted living and continuing care facilities, and home care, municipal and publicly funded agencies serving people 60+ or with disabilities — meal delivery included — shall obtain CORI on volunteers. EOHHS vendors check roles with potential unsupervised contact.; M.G.L. c. 6, §§ 172C, 172E; 101 CMR 15.03–15.04
Five checks a year means a CORI policy: Five or more criminal background checks a year, from DCJIS or any other source, require a written CORI policy with DCJIS’s model provisions. Every CORI requestor keeps a need-to-know list updated every six months and may keep CORI no more than seven years.; M.G.L. c. 6, § 171A; 803 CMR 2.14(4), 2.18
The record before the questions: Anyone deciding on volunteer opportunities must give the applicant the criminal record they hold before questioning them about it. Before an adverse decision: notice, a copy, the source, the policy, the basis, a chance to dispute and documentation.; M.G.L. c. 6, § 171A; 803 CMR 2.20(1)
SORI shows Levels 2 and 3 only: Sex offender registry information is free to anyone 18+ requesting it to protect themselves, a child or someone in their care, but covers only offenders finally classified at Level 2 or 3. Registrants must register volunteer work lasting more than 14 days.; M.G.L. c. 6, §§ 178C, 178I; 803 CMR 1.26, 1.28

From the Shall Obtain executive summary

Six CORI rules Massachusetts programs live by

1
Any organization may check; some must.
M.G.L. c. 6, § 172(a)(3) lets any requestor obtain CORI “to evaluate volunteers for services.” Sections 172C, 172E, 172G and 172H, and c. 71, § 38R, say “shall obtain all available” CORI in named settings.
2
Children’s programs check before accepting anyone.
An organization “primarily engaged” in activities or programs for children 18 or younger must obtain all available CORI before accepting any volunteer, vendor or contractor. No statute we found defines “primarily engaged.”
3
Camps check every volunteer, every season.
Camp operators obtain CORI with juvenile data, a sex offender registry check and a five-year history for every volunteer each camping season, and make a determination before the volunteer starts, keeping written documentation three years.
4
What comes back depends on who asks.
Standard access shows pending charges, misdemeanor convictions for 5 years and felonies for 10 — and if either hits, the whole adult conviction history. DCJIS lists youth programs at Required 2 and camps at Required 3.
5
Five checks a year means a written CORI policy.
Running five or more criminal background checks a year, from DCJIS or any other source, requires a written CORI policy with DCJIS’s model provisions. Anyone holding CORI also needs a need-to-know list, secure storage and a seven-year cap on keeping it.
6
Hand over the record before you ask about it.
Anyone deciding on “volunteer opportunities” must give the applicant the criminal record they hold before questioning them about it, and 803 CMR 2.20 sets notice, copy, dispute and documentation steps before an adverse decision.

Inside Shall Obtain, chapter by chapter

01
Permission for all, “shall obtain” CORI for many
Permission plus mandates in brief, with a child-victim rate about twice the national one and 2023 volunteering.
02
“May” and “shall”: the Massachusetts screening map
Where CORI is permitted, where it is required, and § 172I’s real subject.
03
“Primarily engaged”: children’s programs under § 172H
The widest mandate, the undefined phrase, Required 2, youth sports and churches.
04
Camps: every volunteer, every season
Section 172G, 105 CMR 430.090, Required 3 and what isn’t a camp.
05
Schools: “direct and unmonitored contact”
Section 38R’s three-year CORI rule, optional fingerprints and DESE’s definitions.
06
Child care: EEC’s background record check
Which volunteers EEC checks, the three-year clock and what EEC sees.
07
§§ 172C and 172E: elder and disability CORI
Sections 172C and 172E, meal delivery, and EOHHS’s 101 CMR 15.00.
08
What a CORI shows — and what SORI adds
Every access level, the Standard catch, sealing, expungement and the registry.
09
Running CORI by the rules
iCORI, acknowledgment and ID, the written policy, storage, retention and fees.
10
Before you question, before you decide
Section 171A, the nine 2.20 steps, the CRA/FCRA overlay and ban-the-box.
11
Reporting abuse: who Massachusetts names
Section 51A, the 2024 rewrite and elder-abuse reporting under c. 19A.
12
Liability, charities and what changed
The CORI safe harbor, the $20,000 cap, volunteer immunity, registration and a dated timeline.
13
Beside CORI, never in its place
Beside CORI, never in its place: a multi-state search for volunteers who’ve lived elsewhere, and the rules that still apply.
A
Appendix A: Youth programs, camps, schools and elders
The baseline, youth programs, camps, schools, child care, elder services and CORI handling.
B
Appendix B: A § 171A note and an adverse-decision letter
Two documents you can adapt for the record handover and 803 CMR 2.20.
C
Appendix C: M.G.L. and CMR sources, some via Cornell
Free guides and a course, the M.G.L. and CMR sources with dates, and why some were read on Cornell’s mirror.

Get the free guide

Shall Obtain: Massachusetts questions answered

Does Massachusetts require background checks for volunteers?: Where the General Laws say “shall obtain,” yes. Any organization may obtain CORI to evaluate volunteers under M.G.L. c. 6, § 172(a)(3). It is required for organizations primarily engaged in programs for children 18 or younger (§ 172H), camps (§ 172G), public and private schools for volunteers with direct and unmonitored contact (c. 71, § 38R), long-term care and assisted living (§ 172E), home care, municipal and publicly funded elder and disability services (§ 172C), EEC child care for volunteers with unsupervised access, and every family child care volunteer (606 CMR 14.05) and EOHHS agencies and vendors (101 CMR 15.00). Other organizations may choose.
What does “primarily engaged” mean under § 172H?: No statute or DCJIS regulation we found defines it. An organization whose main work is youth programming — a youth sports league, a scout council, a tutoring or mentoring program — fits the words comfortably; a multi-service nonprofit with one youth program is harder to call. If you are unsure, raise it with DCJIS when you register for iCORI and keep its answer with your CORI policy.
What does a Standard CORI show?: Pending charges, including cases continued without a finding until dismissed; misdemeanor convictions for 5 years and felony convictions for 10 after disposition or release; and murder, manslaughter and state-prison sex offense convictions unless sealed. If a conviction falls inside the window, the report also includes all of the person’s adult convictions (803 CMR 2.05(4)(b)). No level shows expunged records.
Do Massachusetts camps need a sex offender registry check on volunteers?: Yes. Under 105 CMR 430.090(D), a recreational camp for children must obtain, for each volunteer each camping season, a five-year work or volunteer history, a sex offender registry information (SORI) check from the Sex Offender Registry Board and a CORI/Juvenile Report from DCJIS — and no one may volunteer until the operator has reviewed it and made a determination.
Can a VolunteerBadge check replace CORI?: No. When a Massachusetts statute says to obtain CORI from DCJIS — §§ 172C, 172E, 172G, 172H or c. 71, § 38R — or a rule calls for SORI or EEC’s background record check, the organization still has to get that record through the state; a commercial check is no substitute. VolunteerBadge can supplement it, for example with a multi-state search, since CORI is a Massachusetts record, and it can be the everyday screen for roles no statute covers. The Massachusetts rules on written CORI policies and record handovers apply to commercial reports too.

Beyond Shall Obtain

The Massachusetts sources behind Shall Obtain

Checked September 11, 2026. The guide cites each one where it is used.

General information, not legal advice. Laws and agency practice change. Confirm anything you rely on with the agencies named here, your licensor, your insurer or qualified counsel. Spot an error? Tell us and we will fix it.

VolunteerBadge is owned and operated by ScreenForge Labs, LLC, an FCRA-regulated Consumer Reporting Agency that has obtained its FCRA Certificate from the Consumer Data Industry Association (CDIA). This guide is general educational information and is not legal advice. Laws change; this guide's sources were checked as of September 11, 2026.