Utah — Hiring & Onboarding

Federal law requires every employer who hires an individual for employment in the United States to complete Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. The employee must complete and sign Section 1 no later than the first day of employment, but not before accepting a job offer. The employer must then examine documents establishing identity and employment authorization and complete Section 2 within three business days of the hire date. Employers must retain the completed I-9 for three years after the date of hire or one year after employment ends, whichever is later.

Source: 8 U.S.C. § 1324a | USCIS Form I-9

Utah Code § 34-52-201 prohibits public employers from excluding job applicants from an initial interview because of a past criminal conviction or juvenile adjudication. A "public employer" includes state agencies and their subdivisions, state institutions of higher education, and municipalities, counties, school districts, local districts, special service districts, and other political subdivisions.

Timing restrictions on criminal history inquiries

Under § 34-52-201(2), a public employer excludes an applicant from an initial interview—and violates the statute—if the employer:

• Requires an applicant to disclose a criminal conviction or juvenile adjudication on an employment application;
• Requires such disclosure before an initial interview; or
• If no interview is conducted, requires disclosure before making a conditional offer of employment.

In other words, public employers must wait until the initial interview has occurred (or, if interviews are not part of the hiring process, until after a conditional offer is extended) before asking about criminal history.

Expunged records

Public employers may not make any inquiry related to an applicant's expunged criminal or juvenile delinquency history. Applicants may answer questions about expunged records as though the underlying action never occurred.

Mental health professional applicants

For mental health professional applicants specifically, public employers may not, when making hiring decisions, consider: (1) an arrest for an offense that occurred before the applicant was 18 years old; (2) an arrest not followed by a criminal conviction or juvenile adjudication; (3) a juvenile adjudication; or (4) a past criminal conviction that does not bear a direct relationship to the applicant's ability to safely or competently perform the duties of employment.

What the statute does not prohibit

The restrictions do not prevent public employers from asking about criminal conviction or juvenile delinquency history during or after an initial interview, or from considering such history when making a hiring decision. The prohibition applies only to the timing of the inquiry—not whether the inquiry may be made at all.

Exceptions

The restrictions under § 34-52-201 do not apply to:

• Situations where federal, state, or local law (including administrative rules) requires consideration of an applicant's criminal conviction history;
• Public employers that are law enforcement agencies;
• Public employers that are part of the criminal or juvenile justice system;
• Positions involving nonemployee volunteers;
• Public employers that work with children or vulnerable adults;
• The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control;
• The State Tax Commission;
• Public employers whose primary purpose is performing financial or fiduciary functions; and
• Public transit districts hiring or promoting individuals for safety-sensitive positions.

Private employers

Utah's Ban the Box law does not apply to private employers. Private employers in Utah may ask about criminal history on initial employment applications without violating state law, though they remain subject to federal guidance (EEOC enforcement guidance under Title VII requiring individualized assessment) and the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act if using a consumer reporting agency.

Effective date and amendments

The original Ban the Box law was enacted in 2017 via House Bill 156. The statute has been amended several times, most recently in 2023 (House Bills 60 and 468), which expanded protections to include juvenile adjudications and added specific provisions for mental health professional applicants.

Source: Utah Code § 34-52-201 | H.B. 468 (2023)