A project of
State Reforms Reducing Collateral
Consequences for People with Criminal
Records
Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012
Panelists: Rachel Bloom, ACLU; Nicolette Chambery, CBI; Roberta Meyers, LAC/HIRE; Nicole
Porter, The Sentencing Project; and Michelle Natividad Rodriguez, NELP
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Collateral Consequences of a
Criminal Conviction
 Collateral consequences are the additional penalties tied
to a conviction that greatly impact an individual’s
capacity to engage politically, economically and socially
upon their reentry to society. These consequences
include barriers to housing, education, and employment,
felony disenfranchisement, and ineligibility for public
benefits. Collateral consequences are distinct from direct
consequences of convictions in that they are not factored
in to the calculation of punishment or sentencing, and
are triggered outside the jurisdiction of the courts.
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The Growing Impact of Collateral
Consequences
 As the U.S. prison population grows, so do the
number of individuals impacted by collateral
consequences.
 The American Bar Association has identified
over 38,000 collateral consequences.
 Approximately 19.8 million Americans have a
felony conviction, 8.6% of the adult population.
 An estimated 65 million Americans have a
criminal record.
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Momentum for Reform
 Growing awareness of the negative impact of
collateral consequences.
 Bills to advance a proactive agenda were
introduced in approximately half of all state
legislatures in 2012.
 Strong bipartisan support for reforming collateral
consequences.
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Agenda





Federal Opt Out (Roberta Meyers, LAC/HIRE)
Negligent Hiring (Roberta Meyers, LAC/HIRE)
Ban the Box (Michelle Natividad Rodriguez, NELP)
Expungement (Nicole Porter, The Sentencing Project)
Felony Enfranchisement (Nicole Porter, The Sentencing
Project)
 Universal Collateral Consequences of Conviction Act
(Nicolette Chambery, Crossroad Bible Institute)
 Q&A (Rachel Bloom, ACLU)
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State Reforms Reducing Collateral
Consequences for People with
Criminal Records
National H.I.R.E. Network
Webinar
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Roberta Meyers
Director
rampeeples@lac.org
Restoring Eligibility for Public Benefits
Drug felony ban on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF)
12 States have fully opted out (DE, KS, ME, NH, NJ, NM, NY, OH, OK.
PA, RI, VT)
7 States have full ban (AL, AK, GA, MI, SC, TX, WV)
32 States have a limited (modified) ban on SNAP or TANF
SNAP: 15 States plus DC—No Ban
TANF: 14 States—No Ban
**4 States introduced measures to increase access to benefits (AL, CA, MO, PA)
***5 States adopted measures to reduce access to benefits through drug testing
(GA, OK, TN, UT, and WV)
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Employer Negligent Hiring Protections
Why a policy consideration?
 Negligent
hiring liability is one of the top reasons
employers say they may not hire an individual with a
criminal record.
A
new policy that offers additional and overt
protections to employers may increase employment
opportunities for job seekers with criminal histories.
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State Negligent Hiring Policies
Colorado: C.R.S. § 8-2-201(2)(a)
 restricts information at trial
Florida: FL. Stat. Ann. §768.096
 presumption against negligent hiring with adequate background investigation
Massachusetts: 6 Mass. Gen. Law. 172(e)
 safe harbor attached to CORI (long term care facilities)
New York: N.Y. Exec. Law § 296(15)
 rebuttable presumption
North Carolina: N.C. Stat. § 15A-173.5
 limited liability attached to certificate
Ohio:
 immunity from negligent hiring of employee with certificate
CO, MN, NJ, NY, VT, WV, and WI—new proposals introduced but not passed
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Resources
Advocacy Toolkits to Combat Legal Barriers Facing Individuals with Criminal Records:
http://www.lac.org/toolkits/Introduction.htm
Make Your Voice Heard: Guidelines for Effective Advocacy:
http://www.hirenetwork.org/content/make-your-voice-heard-guidelines-effective-advocacy
ABA National Collateral Consequences Inventory:
http://www.abacollateralconsequences.org/CollateralConsequences/index.html
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“Ban the box”: Fair Hiring and Occupational
Licensing Standards
National Employment Law Project
September 25, 2012
Michelle Natividad Rodriguez
Staff Attorney
mrodriguez@nelp.org
www.nelp.org
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“Ban the Box:”
Restoring Hope and Opportunity to
Workers with Criminal Records
• Benefits to worker: remove chilling effect,
decrease stigma, demonstrate qualifications
• Benefits to employers: maximize applicant
pool and can reduce resource expenditure
www.nelp.org
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State
Coverage & Inquiry
California (2010)
Executive Policy
Public Employment
Colorado (2012)
HB 1263
Public
Employment/Licensing
(checked when finalist or
conditional offer)
Public
Employment/Licensing
Boards (checked when
otherwise qualified)
Must consider nature of offense Cannot consider arrest that did not
& relationship to job, age of
lead to conviction, limits
offense, rehabilitation
consideration of expunged offenses.
Hawaii (1998)
HRS Sections 378-2,
378.2.5
Private and Public
Employment (checked
when conditional offer of
employment)
Criminal record must bear a
“rational relationship” to the
job
Massachusetts
(2010) Ch. 256 of
Acts 2010
Private and Public
Employment (checked when
finalists selected)
Minnesota (2009)
Minn.Stat., Section
364, et seq.
Public Employment
(checked when selected for
interview)
Requires convictions to be “job
related” for public employment
and licensing purposes, and
consider rehabilitation
New Mexico (2010)
N.M. Stat. Section
28-2-3
Public Employment
(checked when finalists
selected)
Conviction must be
“substantially related” to the
job
Connecticut (2010)
HB 5207
Screening Criteria
Other Protections
Must consider nature of offense Written statement of reasons for
& relationship to job,
rejection.
rehabilitation, age of offense
Employers may not consider
felonies over 10 years (excluding
incarceration)
Employers may not consider
felonies over 10 years and
misdemeanors over 5 years
www.nelp.org
Cannot consider arrest that did not
lead to conviction, expunged
offenses and misdemeanors not
involving jail time.
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Success! Colorado HB 1263
Prohibits state agencies and licensing agencies from performing a background
check until finalist or conditional offer.
Must consider: (1) nature of conviction; (2) direct relationship of conviction to
job; (3) rehabilitation and good conduct; and (4) time elapsed.
Prohibits use of arrests not leading to conviction.
No disqualifications based on expunged/dismissed unless agencies first
consider factors.
Exempt: statute bars, certain public safety or correction-related jobs.
Voluntary information can be considered.
Prohibits blanket ban ads.
Supported by Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition.
www.nelp.org
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Introduced Legislation in 2012
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
California AB 1831
Illinois HB 1210, Amd. No. 1
Maryland SB 671/HB 800
Minnesota HF 1448/SF 1122
New Jersey A2300
Rhode Island HB 1160, SB 241
Vermont H717
www.nelp.org
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Highlights of Introduced Legislation
 California: applied to city and county
employment
 Illinois: now an even stronger bill with House
Cmte. Amd. No. 1
 Maryland: significant that garnered support
from powerful state agency
www.nelp.org
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Highlights of Introduced Legislation
 Minnesota: applied to private employment
 New Jersey: penalty for violation is $10,000 for
first offense and $20,000 for second offense
 Rhode Island: must be “direct causal
relationship” between offense and
license/employment
 Vermont: first attempt
www.nelp.org
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Resources
65 Million Need Not Apply: The Case for Reforming Criminal
Background Checks
http://www.nelp.org/page//SCLP/2011/65_Million_Need_Not_Apply.pdf?nocdn=1
State Ban the Box Guide
http://www.nelp.org/page//SCLP/ModelStateHiringInitiatives.pdf?nocdn=1
www.nelp.org
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Changes in State Collateral
Sanctions Policies
The Sentencing Project
Nicole D. Porter
Director of Advocacy
nporter@sentencingproject.org
Expungement and Sealing: Reducing Employment Barriers
• 2012, at least 8 states - Delaware, Georgia, Louisiana, Ohio, Maryland, North
Carolina, Tennessee and Utah—adopted measures that authorize or expand
expungement relief for criminal convictions.
• At least 8 other states, including Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana,
Missouri, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island, introduced expungement
provisions during 2012
• 3 measures -- in New Mexico, South Carolina, and West Virginia—were
adopted by the legislature, but vetoed by the governor
• 2012: Delaware’s House Bill 9
• 1997-2010: 23 states enacted
reforms to disenfranchisement
policy
• 800,000 citizens regained voting
rights
Introduced Legislation to Enact the
Uniform Collateral Consequences of
Conviction Act
Crossroad Bible Institute
Nicolette Chambery
Advocacy Coordinator
nicolette@cbi.fm
UCCA Background
• The Uniform Collateral Consequences of Conviction Act was
written in response to the increasingly high number of men and
women that were unable to find housing, employment, and access
to public benefits, upon their release from prison.
• Recognizing these and other missing opportunities as imperative
to a successful reentry, this act provides information and relief to
attorneys, their clients, and the public that equips them with tools
that mitigate these effects.
• Though no state has enacted UCCA, advocates are confident that
progress made in past years will continue into next year.
2011 Introduced Legislation
• North Carolina
• New Mexico
• Colorado
• Minnesota
• Vermont
• Nevada
• West Virginia
2012 Legislation
• New York Assembly Bill 8546
– The partisan divide between Assembly Members and the
Senate remains to be a barrier in passing this legislation and
concern for adopting a policy too soft on crime.
– Reentry reforms have been adopted on smaller scales and
Assembly Members are hopeful this practice will continue to
enact UCCA.
– This bill is being revised to accommodate existing relief
mechanisms already in place, and will be reintroduced next
session.
2012 Legislation
• Vermont Senate Bill 38
– This measure gained significant ground last session, and
supporters of this bill are confident they have
extinguished concerns surrounding its enactment.
– This bill will be reintroduced next year.
– Advocates are hopeful the ABA study of which collateral
consequences attach to a particular statute will be a great
resource in the passage of this bill. The first 9 states are
available on the National Inventory of Collateral
Consequences of Conviction website.
2012 Legislation
West Virgina House Bill
– This bill was originally recommended by the Joint
Standing Committee on the Judiciary, though no action
was taken and it never received a hearing.
Wisconsin Senate Bill 304
– Senate Bill 304 also did not receive a hearing due to
opposition from the Chair with specific concerns over
public safety.
2012 Legislation
• Minnesota House Bill 489/Senate Bill 1448
– Though great progress continues to be made, some
legislators have yet to embrace criminal justice
reform.
– Advocates for this measure are meeting in late
September to determine new strategies for raising
awareness and support for this bill to accommodate
concerns from lawmakers.
A project of
Contact Information
Rachel Bloom
rbloom@aclu.org
www.aclu.org
Nicole Porter
nporter@sentencingproject.org
www.thesentencingproject.com
Nicolette Chambery
nicolette@cbi.fm
www.cbi.fm
Michelle Natividad Rodriguez
mrodriguez@nelp.org
www.nelp.org
Roberta Meyers
rampeeples@lac.org
www.hirenetwork.org
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