Employers must be aware of clean slate laws that automatically seal eligible criminal convictions in states that have enacted them.
In these states, background checks don’t show sealed records. Employers also can’t rely on sealed records to make hiring decisions.
Our comprehensive guide explains clean slate laws in each state that has enacted them and how you can maintain compliance.
Key Takeaways
- Clean slate laws provide for the automatic sealing of qualifying offenses after a designated period has elapsed to give individuals a fresh start and increase their opportunities.
- 12 states and the District of Columbia have enacted clean slate laws, and the federal government and several other states are considering them.
- To maintain compliance, understand the laws that apply in the jurisdictions where your company operates, review and update your background check policy, train hiring staff, follow the FCRA’s notice and consent rules, partner with a reliable provider, avoid searching candidates online yourself, don’t base employment decisions on sealed records, individually assess convictions, and follow the adverse action process when necessary.
What is a Clean Slate Law?
An increasing number of states have enacted clean slate laws, which provide for the automatic sealing of qualifying criminal offenses once a specified period has passed.
These laws are designed to give people with certain criminal convictions a fresh start and increase their opportunities for housing and employment.
Who Benefits from Clean Slate Laws?
Clean slate laws benefit non-violent offenders with criminal records who have remained crime-free since their convictions for their state’s required waiting period.
When their records are sealed, individuals with records have reduced obstacles to obtaining housing and employment.
Sealed records can’t be reported on employment background checks, allowing individuals to be considered based on their skills and qualifications rather than their criminal histories.
Society also benefits from clean slate laws because ex-offenders can more fully reintegrate with their communities by obtaining stable housing and employment, helping to reduce recidivism rates.
In a study across 24 states, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) found that 66% of prisoners released from prison were rearrested within three years, and 82% were rearrested within 10 years.
By comparison, states with clean slate laws have three-year recidivism rates much lower than the national average of 66%, as reported by World Population Review, including:
- Delaware – 55.9%
- Utah – 46%
- Connecticut – 43%
- California – 41.9%
- Pennsylvania – 40.6%
- New York – 31.6%
- Colorado – 30.7%
- New Jersey – 29.2%
- Oklahoma – 25%
- Michigan – 22.1%
- Minnesota – 19%
- Virginia – 19%
This indicates that clean slate laws incentivize non-violent offenders to remain crime-free so that they can enjoy better opportunities in the future.
Know Before You Hire
Important Updates in 2025
A bipartisan federal clean slate bill is currently pending in Congress.
If passed and signed into law, this bill would provide for the automatic sealing of certain federal convictions, including nonviolent crimes and drug crimes involving marijuana.
It would also provide a simple path for individuals not eligible for automatic sealing to petition the federal court for relief.
Pending State Clean Slate Bills
Missouri
Despite bipartisan support, 2025 Missouri HB 953 failed in the state House on April 15, 2025.
This bill would have provided for the automatic sealing of eligible offenses in Missouri.
Employers should be aware that while this bill failed, it could be reintroduced in the future.
Hawaii
In Hawaii, the legislature passed 2024 SB 2706, which established a clean slate task force.
The task force is to study and develop a state-initiated record-clearing program and submit reports on its progress before the legislative sessions in 2025 and 2026, with a final report due before the 2027 session.
Massachusetts
The Massachusetts Legislature is currently considering 2025 Bill S.1114, which would provide for the automatic sealing of eligible misdemeanors after three years and eligible felonies after seven years for individuals who have committed no new criminal offenses during the waiting period.
Clean Slate Laws by State
States with current clean slate laws include:
California
On Sept. 29, 2022, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed 2022 SB 731 into law.
This law is known as the California Clean Slate Act and provides for the automatic sealing of felony convictions four years after an individual has been released from probation, parole, or prison, as long as they haven’t committed any new offenses.
California’s law is expansive and allows most convictions to be automatically sealed, except violent crimes, sex offenses, and offenses requiring sex offender registration.
Colorado
In 2022, Gov. Jared Polis signed the Colorado Clean Slate Act into law.
This Colorado law provides for the automatic sealing of criminal records after certain periods have elapsed without new criminal offenses, including:
- Arrests without convictions – No waiting period
- Civil infractions – Four years
- Misdemeanors and petty offenses – Seven years
- Eligible felonies – 10 years
Offenses subject to the Victim Rights Act are ineligible.
Connecticut
In Connecticut, the state’s Clean Slate Act was signed by Gov. Ned Lemont in 2021 with an effective date of Jan. 1, 2023.
However, the law has been beset with technical challenges, resulting in only 13,000 people out of 119,000 individuals believed eligible having their records erased.
The state has announced the erasures will resume in fall 2025.
Under the law, eligible misdemeanors will be erased after
Delaware
Delaware’s Clean Slate Act was enacted in 2021 and became effective on Aug. 1, 2024.
This Delaware law provides for the automatic expungement of records after the following periods post-conviction:
- Misdemeanors – Five years
- Felonies – 10 years
Crimes of domestic violence, crimes against children, crimes against vulnerable adults, sex offenses, and violent crimes are ineligible.
Michigan
Michigan passed its Clean Slate Law in 2020, and it was effective on April 11, 2023.
This law provides for the automatic set-aside of qualifying convictions with the following waiting periods:
- Unlimited misdemeanors with less than 93 days of imprisonment – Seven years
- Four misdemeanors with potential sentences of more than 93 days – Seven years
- Maximum of two eligible felonies – 10 years
Serious misdemeanors, assaults, crimes of dishonesty, offenses punishable by 10 or more years, DUIs, and sex offenses are ineligible.
Minnesota
Minnesota passed its Clean Slate Act in 2023. It was effective on Jan. 1, 2025.
This law provides for the automatic sealing of eligible offenses following a waiting period, including:
- Petty or gross misdemeanors – Two years
- Eligible felonies – Five years
Numerous offenses are ineligible, including DUIs, domestic violence offenses, sex offenses, violent crimes, and others.
New Jersey
Gov. Phil Murphy signed the New Jersey Clean Slate Act into law in Dec. 2019.
This New Jersey law allows individuals to benefit from the “Cunningham Cleanser”, through which they can have entire records of arrests and convictions expunged 10 years after the last conviction.
Unlike other clean slate laws, New Jersey’s law does require individuals to file expungement petitions, however.
Certain offenses are ineligible, including violent crimes, sex offenses, arson, perjury, and others.
New York
The New York Clean Slate Act was effective on Nov. 16, 2024.
From that date, the New York Unified Court System has a three-year deadline to establish a process to automatically seal eligible criminal records.
Beginning in Nov. 2027, individuals will have most misdemeanor and felony convictions automatically sealed after the following waiting periods:
- Misdemeanors – Three years
- Felonies – Eight years post-release or post-completion of sentence, whichever is later
Most class A offenses are ineligible for automatic sealing, including murder, sex offenses, and others.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma’s Clean Slate Act was passed in 2022 and became effective on Jan. 1, 2025.
This law provides for the automatic sealing of non-conviction criminal records and some misdemeanor offenses. For misdemeanors, there’s a five-year waiting period.
Felonies aren’t eligible for automatic sealing. People with ineligible criminal records can petition for expungement.
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s Limited Access Law is the state’s Clean Slate Law.
Under this law, individuals with qualifying misdemeanors older than 10 years will be granted limited access automatically.
When limited access is granted, employers can’t access these records, and they can’t be reported by consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) on background checks.
Utah
Utah’s Clean Slate Act was signed into law in 2019. This Utah law provides for the automatic sealing of eligible convictions after the following periods have passed:
- Class C misdemeanors – Five years
- Class B misdemeanors – Six years
- Class A misdemeanors – Seven years
Felonies aren’t eligible, and sex offenses, DUIs, reckless driving offenses, violent crimes, and domestic violence offenses are also ineligible.
Virginia
Under Va. Code § 19.2-392.6, individuals with deferred and dismissed convictions and those with former marijuana possession convictions are eligible for automatic record sealing in Virginia.
People with eligible offenses have their records sealed once seven years have passed.
Washington, D.C.
In Washington, D.C., the Record Sealing and Expungement Law provides for the automatic expungement of the following records:
- Decriminalized offenses
- Legalized offenses
- Offenses found to be unconstitutional
People who are ineligible for automatic expungement can petition the court for consideration.
How to Stay Compliant
1. Understand the Laws in Your State
Review the laws in every state you operate in to understand whether a clean slate law applies.
Consult legal counsel to understand the laws and your legal obligations.
2. Review and Update Your Background Check Policy
Review your background check policy to ensure it complies with clean slate laws and other relevant background check laws.
Include information about the responsibilities of your hiring staff during each phase of the hiring and background check process.
3. Train Your Staff
Train your hiring staff about your background check policy and all relevant laws, including clean slate laws.
4. Partner with a Reliable Background Check Provider
Partner with a reliable background check provider like iprospectcheck.
We stay up-to-date with all relevant laws and filter out sealed or expunged records to comply with state clean slate and expungement laws.
This helps ensure your company doesn’t make employment decisions based on disallowed information.
5. Follow Notice and Consent Rules
Under the FCRA, you must disclose that your company performs background checks before you initiate them.
This disclosure must be on a separate form that doesn’t include other information.
You must also obtain your candidate’s signed consent before you start a background check.
6. Avoid Searching Online
Don’t search candidates online for criminal record information.
Sealed and expunged records might still be associated with a candidate and appear online even though you can’t make employment decisions based on them.
7. Don’t Rely on Sealed Records
If you learn that a candidate has a sealed conviction, don’t make employment decisions based on that information.
You can’t rely on or use sealed records for employment decisions.
Similarly, job candidates and others with sealed records can legally deny that they’ve ever been convicted of a crime.
8. Assess Conviction Records Individually
If a candidate’s background check reveals a criminal conviction, you should assess it individually as it relates to the job duties and workplace safety before making a final decision on that information.
This is according to guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
9. Follow the Adverse Action Process
If negative information in a background check makes you want to deny employment to a candidate, you must complete the adverse action process under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) before making a final decision:
- Send a pre-adverse action notice to the candidate and include a copy of the report with the information highlighted.
- Provide the candidate with a reasonable time (typically five business days) to respond with evidence that the information is inaccurate or that they’ve since rehabilitated.
- Send a final adverse action notice with a copy of the applicant’s FCRA rights if you ultimately decide not to hire them.
Trust iprospectcheck as Your Compliant Background Check Partner
Clean slate laws automatically seal certain criminal record information in states where they’ve been enacted.
Sealed records can’t be reported on background checks, and employers can’t base employment decisions on them.
Working with a reliable provider like iprospectcheck helps you to maintain compliance with all relevant state and federal laws.
To learn more about our background check services and receive a free quote, call us today: (888) 509-1979.
DISCLAIMER: The resources provided here are for educational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Consult your counsel if you have legal questions related to your specific practices and compliance with applicable laws.
FAQs
Do sealed records still appear on background checks?
No, sealed records do not appear on background checks.
You also can’t rely on sealed records when making employment decisions.
What’s the difference between expungement and record sealing?
Expungement is a legal process available in a large number of states through which individuals can petition the court to remove criminal records.
By contrast, record sealing doesn’t remove the information but instead prevents the general public, including employers, from accessing it.
CRAs like iprospectcheck don’t report sealed or expunged records on background checks, and individuals with sealed or expunged records are legally allowed to deny they have criminal convictions.
How do I know if a state’s Clean Slate law applies to my business?
If you operate in one of the 12 states that have passed clean slate laws or in Washington, D.C., you need to be aware of your jurisdiction’s clean slate law.
Otherwise, consult with legal counsel about pending clean slate legislation and how it might impact your business’s hiring and background check processes.
What’s the difference between clean slate and ban-the-box laws?
Clean slate laws provide for the automatic sealing of criminal record information.
A sealed record can’t be reported by consumer reporting agencies or used by employers for employment decisions.
Ban-the-box laws control when employers can inquire about criminal history information during the hiring process, but they don’t prevent employers from seeing or relying on conviction information once they perform background checks.
