SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (Capitol News Illinois) – Criminal justice reform advocates say legislation to seal criminal records for certain nonviolent crimes, which passed Friday in the House, would unlock economic opportunity for thousands of Illinoisans.
The so-called Clean Slate Act has failed twice before, but activists see renewed fiscal messaging as the key to reinvigorating the campaign. This time, the bill’s sponsor points to a “diverse coalition of stakeholders” and backing from business groups as signs Illinois could become the 13th state to enact similar legislation.
“This is something I’ve worked on for six long years, and now we have law enforcement and the business community — folks like the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, the Illinois Manufacturers Association — all on board,” Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth, D-Peoria (pictured), said in an interview. “Not as a neutral party, but they are proponents. They want to see this bill passed.”
Gordon-Booth has sponsored Clean Slate legislation twice before — once in 2021 and again in 2023 — but neither bill progressed past committee.
Like earlier proposals, Senate Bill 1784 would require law enforcement agencies to automatically seal records for nonviolent criminal convictions twice a year — Jan. 1 and July 1. The records would no longer be public, although law enforcement and state’s attorneys would retain access.
Just a few days before the 2025 legislative session concludes, she filed it again. Within two days, it passed the House mostly along partisan lines, and is headed for debate on the Senate floor.
The session ends at midnight Saturday, although the bill could still pass after that deadline.
People convicted of certain violent offenses — including sex crimes against minors, DUI, reckless driving and violent offenses that require sex offender registration — would be ineligible to have their records sealed.
“I want to make this very, very clear: Serious criminal records are not eligible for automated sealing,” Gordon-Booth said during floor debate.
Gordon-Booth argued that conviction records trap formerly incarcerated individuals in a state of perpetual punishment, eclipsing access to employment, housing and educational opportunities. She said Clean Slate would remove these barriers, helping system-impacted people reintegrate into society instead of recidivating.
Paul Rothschild, managing director of operations for the Illinois Coalition to End Permanent Punishment — a group that advocates for the rights of people with criminal records — said he agrees. He said the justice system fails to follow through on its own promise: Once someone has served their time, they are entitled to a second chance.
“We believe that people should be accountable for the crimes that they commit. But we also believe there is an implied covenant that when they finish, they’re supposed to be returned to the world made whole, and that covenant is not being kept by society. They’re being forever subjugated in that lower caste, that lower class,” Rothschild said.
More than 3 million Illinoisans have arrest or conviction records, and an estimated 921,000 people are eligible for “sealing relief” — but only about 10% actually petition to have their records cleared, according to statistics from Live Free Illinois, a grassroots organization aimed at reforming the state criminal justice system and part of the Clean Slate Illinois steering committee, which coordinates the campaign’s messaging and advocacy efforts.
The bill would automate the process for individuals with nonviolent convictions to have their records sealed, once they have served their sentences, completed probation, and remained crime-free.
Many eligible individuals are deterred by steep fines, complex paperwork and long waiting periods, Gordon-Booth said. The “burdensome” process has contributed to massive court backlogs, according to Clean Slate Illinois.
“It’s going to automate the process, so this way we don’t have to go through that whole trying to get the paperwork, trying to go through all the rigmarole,” said Chauncy Stockdale, who was formerly incarcerated and is now a member of the Live Free Illinois Fellowship, a reentry program that supports returning citizens.
The measure passed the House 81-28, with five Republicans joining Democrats in support of the measure. No Democrats voted against the bill.
During debate on the House floor, Minority Floor Leader Rep. Patrick Windhorst, R-Metropolis, voiced concerns about the tentative $18 million price tag, and whether the state is capable of fully funding the policy in the years ahead, leaving counties to cover the cost.
“If this isn’t funded, we’re either going to be sending a large unfunded mandate to our counties, or we’re making a promise to 2.1 million people that will not be fulfilled without any funding,” he said.
Gordon-Booth detailed a three year “implementation ramp,” which would give the state time to identify funding sources for the local circuit clerks. She also said the Illinois State Police would absorb the initial costs and emphasized the state’s commitment to supporting circuit clerks in the rollout phase.
“It is our full intention to provide clerks with all that they need to implement this,” she said. “We are not going to send an unfunded mandate to our local governments.”
‘Workforce and economic policy’
On April 10, nearly 300 members, supporters and advocates from Live Free Illinois chapters gathered in front of the Abraham Lincoln monument in Springfield for Advocacy Day, calling on lawmakers to introduce the Clean Slate Act.
Live Free Illinois — a faith-based nonprofit focused on ending gun violence and mass incarceration — organizes Black congregations to push for systemic change. The organization is involved in the broad-based Clean Slate steering committee, which also includes the Fully Free Campaign, the Illinois Coalition to End Permanent Punishments, and Impact for Equity.
The day before, Muslim leaders also advocated for Clean Slate legislation at Illinois Muslim Action Day.
Beyond criminal justice reform, advocates pushed a new messaging angle this year to usher the legislation across the finish line: Clean Slate could boost Illinois’ economy.
As of April, Illinois has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country, at 4.8% — above the national average of 4.2%, according to the data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Jerika Richardson, senior vice president for equitable justice and strategic initiatives at the National Urban League, said the act would open doors for thousands of people who have been barred from work because of background checks.
“There are so many employers and businesses across this country who are struggling to find the workers that they need, and part of the reason is because these records are barriers,” Richardson said. “If Illinois passes the Clean Slate Act, you won’t have to worry about businesses going to another state or leaving the country.”
An amendment to the Illinois Human Rights Act, signed by Gov. JB Pritzker in 2021, expanded legal protections for state workers by prohibiting discrimination based on criminal convictions, in addition to arrest records. Yet many say they continue to face employment hurdles despite the law.
People with conviction histories earn an average of 25% less than those with clean records — a gap the National Urban League says costs the state billions of dollars in lost wages. According to a news release from the National Urban League, the Clean Slate Act could generate more than $4.7 billion in lost wages for Illinois, easing economic disparities and addressing labor shortages.
Gordon-Booth echoed Richardson’s point, adding that her office frequently hears from constituents who are missing out on life-changing chances.
“I get calls from people saying, ‘I had an opportunity to get my dream job, and it fell through because of something that I did when I was 18 or 19.’ And we’re talking about folks that are in their 30s,” Gordon-Booth said. “They have not gone through the process of hiring a lawyer, going through the court-mandated process, and folks are losing out.”
By REILLY COOK – Medill Illinois News Bureau
Reilly Cook is a graduate student in journalism with Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications, and a fellow in its Medill Illinois News Bureau working in partnership with Capitol News Illinois.
Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
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