PDAA Supports Expansion of Clean Slate Legislation

HARRISBURG – Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo and PDAA Executive Director Greg Rowe today testified before the House Judiciary Committee in support of expanding “Clean Slate” legislation.

“The rationale in support of Clean Slate remains strong: Recidivism rates are lower among those who are employed after they are released,” Chardo said. “Record sealing helps lead to better opportunities for employment, and, therefore, helps to improve public safety.”

In 2018, Pennsylvania was the first state to enact a Clean Slate Law. The hallmark of the law was the automatic sealing of records for certain eligible offenses, mostly lower to mid-level misdemeanors. Since then, more than 1 million individuals have benefitted from the Clean Slate.

Chardo, who is chair of PDAA’s Legislative Committee, said the association supports expanding automatic record sealing for certain non-violent drug offenses, where the minimum sentence is less than 30 months. Individuals would need to remain conviction-free for 10 years to have their record sealed. While the sealed record would be unavailable to the public, law enforcement agencies would continue to have access to the information.

PDAA supports House Bill 1826, which is sponsored by Rep. Sheryl Delozier (R-88) and Rep. Jordan Harris (D-186).

Read the full PDAA testimony on the PDAA website.

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