Section 170.948 - Finding of Responsibility and Suitability of Applicants for Accreditation(A) Upon receipt and review of an application for accreditation, the Department shall make a finding concerning the responsibility and suitability of the applicant training institution. Findings may be based upon information concerning persons with a significant financial or management interest in the training institution. A determination of responsibility and suitability shall be based on factors including, but not limited to, the following: (1) The applicant's history, if any, of prior compliance with 105 CMR 170.000, 105 CMR 171.000: Massachusetts First Responder Training, M.G.L. c. 111C, and 105 CMR 700.000: Implementation of M.G.L. c. 94C;(2) The familiarity and experience of the applicant in operating an EMS training program approved under 105 CMR 170.000, or in operating adult vocational training or higher educational programs;(3) The applicant's ability to provide and sustain quality EMS training programs to serve the needs of students;(4) The ability of training institution administrators to operate the program in a manner sufficient to satisfy the requirements of 105 CMR 170.000 and/or 105 CMR 171.000: Massachusetts First Responder Training, as applicable;(5) Adequate financial resources of the applicant to provide training sufficient to meet the requirements of 105 CMR 170.000, as demonstrated by a current financial statement or current budget;(6) The adequacy of the training institution's legal capacity to operate, as demonstrated by articles of incorporation and corporate bylaws;(7) The applicant's history, if any, of any of the following:(a) Any willful or deliberate failure to provide training to a person for reasons of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, ancestry or disability;(b) Any attempt to impede the work of a duly authorized representative of the Department or the lawful enforcement of any provisions of M.G.L. c. 111C or 105 CMR 170.000;(c) Conviction of a criminal offense, such as drug-related offenses, rape, assault or other violent crime against a person, or related to the provision of training subject to the Department's approval; or(d) Any attempt to obtain accreditation or training program approval by fraud, misrepresentation, or the submission of false information.(B) If the Department is unable to make a finding of responsibility and suitability on the basis of any of the factors listed above, the applicant will have the burden of persuasion to prove the applicant's responsibility and suitability.Amended, Mass Register Issue 1257, eff. 3/28/2014.Amended by Mass Register Issue 1321, eff. 9/9/2016.Amended by Mass Register Issue 1486, eff. 1/6/2023.