Sarah Anderson, associate director of criminal justice and civil liberties policy at the R Street Institute, testified in support of Maryland Senate Bill 483, known as the “Clean Slate Act of 2026,” before the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee on February 17, 2026.
Anderson explained that the bill would automate the expungement process for certain criminal records. “Under this proposed legislation, certain criminal records would be automatically expunged after a designated amount of time has passed, depending on the offense, and provided the individual has satisfied all of the requirements of their case. It is important to note that the bill does not require the physical destruction of the records, rather it shields them from public view. Expunged records remain available to certain government entities when necessary,” she said.
The legislation would direct Maryland’s judiciary to identify and shield from public access both non-conviction or arrest records after three years and eligible misdemeanor convictions after seven years. The judiciary would continue to review cases monthly and notify the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services so new eligible records could be shielded within thirty days.
Research shows that people who remain crime-free for five to seven years are no more likely to reoffend than those without any criminal record (https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/226872.pdf;https://repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3474&context=articles). Anderson stated that individuals with arrest or non-conviction records should not have these follow them indefinitely.
She also discussed ongoing barriers faced by people with criminal histories in Maryland even after they have completed their sentences. Nearly 22 percent of adults in Maryland have a criminal record (https://www.cleanslateinitiative.org/maryland#factsheet), which can make it difficult for them to find employment, housing, or educational opportunities due to more than 40,000 state and federal restrictions (https://nationalreentryresourcecenter.org/multimedia/re-introduction-national-inventory-collateral-consequences-conviction-niccc-and-clean). Background checks are used by most employers when hiring, and having a record can reduce chances for job offers by about half (https://www.nclc.org/resources/report-broken-records-redux/;https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23459367/).
Currently, petition-based record sealing exists in Maryland but is rarely used—although about 40 percent of those with criminal records are eligible for relief through petitions, fewer than two percent have obtained it because of procedural hurdles or lack of awareness (https://paperprisons.org/states/MD.html).
Anderson highlighted similar automated record-sealing laws enacted in thirteen other states since 2018. Data from Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Utah indicate positive outcomes for recipients: improvements were reported in employment prospects (42 percent), housing (24 percent), education (22 percent), personal relationships (35 percent), and health or self-esteem (34 percent) after receiving relief under such policies (https://www.cleanslateinitiative.org/research-data-publications/yougov-survey-report).
“SB 483 offers a chance to bring the benefits of clean slate legislation to the state of Maryland. For these reasons, we strongly support SB 483 and urge the committee to issue a favorable report,” Anderson concluded.
