DES MOINES – State officials said Thursday they will quickly impose tough new background check requirements for legislative workers who have access to children.

The move is in response to the arrest Wednesday of a part-time Capitol tour guide charged with child stealing.

“We will probably begin doing criminal background checks on people who have regular contact with children,” said Senate Democratic Leader Michael Gronstal, of Council Bluffs.

Currently, no Statehouse workers undergo pre-employment checks.

Legislative leaders said they have ordered a thorough review of state employment policies after the arrest of Stephen Craig Lueder, 54, of Des Moines, who had worked as a Capitol tour guide for four years.

The incident unfolded Feb. 4 after a parent reported their 4-year-old child was missing. State troopers found the child 20 minutes later with Lueder in a part of the building that is off-limits to the public. There was no sign the child had been harmed, officials said.

The incident was not made public until Lueder’s arrest on Wednesday.

Dennis Prouty, director of the Legislative Service Agency, said the group was conducting a review to determine what policies and procedures needed changing. The agency provides a variety of legislative services, including overseeing the tour guides.

Prouty said officials with the Iowa State Patrol told him not to discuss details of the incident.

He said his agency does not have a policy that requires background checks for legislative employees, but House Speaker Christopher Rants, R-Sioux City, said one would be put in place quickly.

“Ninety-five percent of legislative employees have virtually no contact with the public,” Rants said. “This small group does.”

Gronstal said Prouty was first notified of the incident on Feb. 7, but wasn’t told it was a criminal investigation until Tuesday. Prouty said Lueder was immediately placed on administrative leave.

Gronstal said legislative leaders will meet Monday with Prouty to review recommended changes in employment and screening policies, including which workers will be subjected to pre-employment background checks.

He said Lueder was subjected to a background check, but Senate Republican President Jeff Lamberti, of Ankeny, said the check came only after the Feb. 4 incident as part of the police investigation.

He complained that legislative leaders weren’t told of the incident until charges were filed.

“We believe that at the point the person was put on administrative leave, the leadership should have been notified,” Lamberti said.

House Democratic Leader Pat Murphy, of Dubuque, said the screening issue is important because the Statehouse is a popular visiting place for schoolchildren, with long lines of school buses a common sight outside the building.

“These are people who have a lot of frequent and regular contact with children,” Murphy said. “Our tour guides deal with children from all over the state.”