Expungement: Automatic

Maryland Clean Slate Act

What’s the Problem?

In Maryland, the burden of clearing an eligible criminal record falls almost entirely on the individual. As a result, relief that exists in law rarely materializes in practice. Today, 1 in every 4 adults in Maryland—approximately 22% of adults, or 1 million people—has an arrest or conviction record. For many, that record permanently limits access to jobs, housing, education, and economic stability, even long after they have completed their sentence or had their case dismissed. Although over 407,000 Marylanders are currently eligible for full record clearance, and hundreds of thousands more are eligible for partial clearance, most never pursue it.

Maryland’s petition-based system is costly, confusing, and bureaucratic, requiring individuals to:

  • Know they are eligible
  • File legal paperwork
  • Appear in court
  • Often hire an attorney
  • Monitor agencies to ensure compliance

As a result, only 2% of eligible Marylanders receive expungement relief, and under the current system it would take 86 years to clear all eligible convictions. The consequences are profound.

The estimated annual earnings loss from clearable convictions alone is $1.5 billion in taxable income, not including losses from non-conviction records. These barriers affect families, employers, and communities statewide. While Governor Wes Moore’s Juneteenth 2024 pardon of 175,000 low-level marijuana convictions was an important symbolic step, pardons do not remove records. Those convictions still appear in background checks. Marylanders need a reliable, automatic mechanism to recognize when they have met the legal requirements for record clearance.

What’s the solution?

Clean Slate automatic record expungement shifts responsibility from individuals to the state by automating the clearance of eligible records once statutory criteria are met. The Maryland Clean Slate Act would:

  • Automatically shield eligible misdemeanor convictions after 7 years
  • Automatically shield non-conviction and arrest records after 3 years
  • Eliminate costly and burdensome petition requirements
  • Reduce strain on courts and clerks
  • Ensure consistent, statewide access to relief

Under the proposal, the Judiciary would initially shield all currently eligible records by July 1, 2027, then identify newly eligible cases monthly. Records would be shielded from public view within 30 days of notification, preventing access by private background check companies.

Importantly, Clean Slate does not erase accountability. Existing safeguards remain in place:

  • Certain offenses (including some domestic-related charges and misdemeanor assault) would remain excluded from automatic relief
  • Intervening convictions or pending charges would block clearance
  • Individuals could still pursue relief through the petition process where appropriate

Why this works

Clean Slate laws are proven, bipartisan, and effective. Twelve jurisdictions—including Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.—have enacted automatic record clearance laws.

These systems dramatically outperform petition-based models, where nationally less than 10% of eligible individuals obtain relief. Research shows that after 5–7 years without reoffending, individuals with records pose no greater public safety risk than the general population.

Automating clearance for low-level, non-violent records improves employment outcomes, increases earnings, reduces recidivism, and strengthens local economies.

For Maryland, automation would:

  • Save court resources
  • Eliminate wealth-based access to justice
  • Expand the workforce
  • Stabilize families and communities

Allowing over 400,000 Marylanders to fully participate in housing, education, and employment benefits the entire state.

Automatic record expungement ensures that eligible criminal records are cleared proactively by the state once legal criteria are met—without requiring petitions, court filings, or fees from individuals. A fully functioning automatic system:

  • Identifies eligible records using electronic court data
  • Expunges records within clearly defined timeframes
  • Removes cost-based barriers unrelated to public safety
  • Reduces administrative burdens on courts
  • Provides transparency and accountability through reporting

Automatic expungement shifts responsibility from individuals to the system itself, ensuring fairness, consistency, and statewide impact.

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