With the start of the new year, Paper Prisons has posted research reports on the “second chance gap” in expungement remedies offered under the laws of Maryland, Massachusetts, Colorado, and Kentucky. We find that in each state, only a fraction of people eligible for relief are getting it. We further estimate the number of people who could stand to benefit by automating expungement through “Clean Slate” relief, and also, the collective earnings losses attributable to the presence of a criminal record and potential impact of such relief on racial gaps in states where data is available. Key findings from our research are highlighted below.

• In Maryland, HB 658, the Maryland Clean Slate Act, would automate the process for clearing records, eliminating the need in some cases for individuals to petition for expungement. Our Maryland reports (short, full) estimate that:
  • 1.5M people have criminal records;
  • 2% of people eligible for records relief have received it;
  • ~ 300K people with convictions are eligible for relief under Clean Slate; 
  • $1.5B in earnings are lost annually due to clearable misdemeanor and felony convictions;
  • Clearing all eligible convictions would reduce the White-Black racial gap among those with conviction records by 29% and among those with felony conviction records by 31%, per below;

Our short report further pinpoints the population eligible for relief under the Clean Slate Act and earnings loss associated with sealable records in 24 Maryland counties. 

• In Massachusetts, H1583 / S979 would automate the process for clearing records. Our Massachusetts reports (short, full) estimate that:
  • 1.7M people have criminal records;
  • 14% of people eligible for records relief have received it;
  • ~ 178K people with convictions are eligible for relief under Clean Slate;
  • $900M in earnings are lost annually due to clearable misdemeanor and felony convictions.

• In Kentucky, SB 218 and HB 569, which make up the Kentucky Clean Slate Act, would automate the process for clearing records. Our Kentucky report (full report) estimates that:
  • 1.65M people have criminal records;
  • 4% of people eligible for records relief have received it;
  • ~ 1.1M people with convictions are eligible for relief under Clean Slate;
  • $5.7B in earnings are lost annually due to clearable misdemeanor and felony convictions;
  • Clearing all eligible convictions would reduce the White-Black racial gap among those with conviction records by 69.4% and among those with felony conviction records by 58%, per below;

• In 2022, the Colorado legislature passed the Clean Slate Act, automating the sealing process for many non-violent conviction records. But a few years later, many Coloradans remain in the second chance gap as Clean Slate Colorado still has yet to be implemented. HB24-1133 makes the necessary technical fixes to ensure that the legislature’s will can be a reality. Our Colorado report (full report) estimates that:
  • 2M people have criminal records;
  • 5.5% of people eligible for records relief have received it;
  • ~ 873K people with convictions are eligible for relief under Clean Slate; 
  • $4.45B in earnings are lost annually due to clearable misdemeanor and felony convictions.

By estimating these metrics and quantifying the costs of each state’s “paper prisons”—the gap between eligibility and delivery of expungement relief—we hope to inform the legal and policy debate about criminal records.