"Pathways to Reintegration: Criminal Record Reforms in 2019"

The title of this post is the title of this terrific new report from the Collateral Consequences Resource Center authored by Margaret Love and David Schlussel. (I noted in this post a few weeks ago the series of reviews of new laws in place in 2019 on a range of collateral-consequences-related concerns, and I believe this new report brings all of this important material together.)  Here is part of this report's introduction:  

In 2019, 43 states, the District of Columbia, and the federal government enacted an extraordinary 152 laws aimed at reducing barriers faced by people with criminal records in the workplace, at the ballot box, and in many other areas of daily life.  This prolific legislative track record, augmented by one important executive order, reflects a lively national conversation about how best to limit unwarranted record-based discrimination and to promote reintegration.

Last year, we reported what was then an unprecedented number of new record reform laws: 32 states enacted 57 new laws in 2018. In terms of the number of new laws enacted and their importance, 2019 breaks every record set in 2018.  Lawmakers across the country took major actions to restore voting and other civil rights; authorize expungement and other forms of record relief; expand diversion programs to avoid conviction; limit the use of criminal records in occupational licensing, employment, and housing; alleviate immigration consequences; and curb driver’s license penalties unrelated to driving offenses. Approaches to relief varied widely from state to state, with respect to the type of relief, the specifics of who is eligible for it, the mechanics of delivery, and its effect.

This report on 2019 criminal record reforms continues CCRC’s efforts to document an extraordinarily fruitful period of law reform in the United States, one that began around 2013 and has continued to gather steam into 2020.  The overall purpose of this law reform movement has been to advance a public policy of promoting reintegration for people with a criminal record.  In the seven-year period in which CCRC has been following the trend, every state legislature and the federal government has taken at least some steps to chip away at the negative effects of a criminal record on an individual’s ability to earn a living, access housing, education and public benefits, and otherwise fully participate in society.

This introduction highlights key developments from this past year.  A Report Card, new this year, grades the progess of the most (and least) productive state legislatures in 2019. The body of the report provides topical discussions of reform measures, and is followed by an appendix that organizes the laws enacted by jurisdiction.  A link to the text of each law is included, as well as a statutory citation where available.  More detailed information about each state’s laws is available in the CCRC Restoration of Rights Project.