[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1009 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1009

To require Federal law enforcement agencies to expunge voidable arrest 
  records, to provide incentive funds to States that have in effect a 
       system for expunging such records, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 27, 2003

  Mr. Nadler (for himself, Mr. Serrano, and Mr. Towns) introduced the 
  following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require Federal law enforcement agencies to expunge voidable arrest 
  records, to provide incentive funds to States that have in effect a 
       system for expunging such records, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

     This Act may be cited as the ``Clear Your Good Name Act''.

SEC. 2. REFERENCES IN FEDERAL RECORDS TO VOIDABLE ARRESTS.

    (a) In General.--Any reference in any Federal law enforcement 
agency record to an arrest of a person living after the effective date 
of this Act, and any Federal law enforcement agency record (such as 
fingerprint records or photographs) generated pursuant to that arrest, 
shall be expunged--
            (1) not later than 30 days after the date on which that 
        arrest becomes a voidable arrest, if the arrest occurred on or 
        after the effective date of this Act; or
            (2) to the extent provided in a Federal expungement order, 
        if the arrest occurred before the effective date of this Act.
    (b) Federal Expungement Order.--Any person living after the 
effective date of this Act may petition a Federal district court of 
competent jurisdiction for a Federal expungement order referred to in 
subsection (a)(2). If the court finds that the arrest is a voidable 
arrest, the court shall order the custodian of the record to expunge, 
not later than 30 days after the receipt of the order--
            (1) any reference to that arrest; and
            (2) any record generated pursuant to that arrest.
    (c) Regulations.--The Attorney General shall issue regulations to 
ensure compliance with the requirements of subsection (a).
    (d) Class B Misdemeanor.--Whoever knowingly fails to expunge a 
reference or record required to be expunged by this section, or 
releases a reference or record required to be expunged by this section, 
shall be--
            (1) guilty of a class B misdemeanor; and
            (2) punished in accordance with title 18, United States 
        Code.
    (e) Right of Individual With Voidable Arrest.--If an arrest is a 
voidable arrest, the person arrested may respond to any inquiry as 
though the arrest did not occur, unless otherwise provided by law.
    (f) Voidable Arrest.--For purposes of this Act, the term ``voidable 
arrest'' means any arrest resulting in any of the following:
            (1) Release of the person without the filing of formal 
        charges against the person.
            (2) Dismissal of proceedings against the person.
            (3) A determination that the arrest was without probable 
        cause.
    (g) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the first 
day of the fiscal year succeeding the first fiscal year beginning two 
years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. REFERENCES IN STATE RECORDS TO VOIDABLE ARRESTS.

    (a) Grant Incentive.--Section 506 of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3756) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
    ``(g) Incentive Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--The funds available under this subpart 
        for a State shall be increased by 10 percent if a State has in 
        effect throughout the State a law which provides expungement 
        procedures, criminal penalties, and individual rights with 
        respect to voidable arrests that are substantially similar to 
        the Federal procedures, penalties, and rights set forth in 
        section 2 of the Clear Your Good Name Act.
            ``(2) Compliance.--The Attorney General shall issue 
        regulations to ensure compliance with the requirements of 
        paragraph (1).''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Subsection (a) of such section is 
amended by striking ``subsection (f),'' and inserting ``subsections (f) 
and (g),''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on the first day of the fiscal year succeeding the first fiscal 
year beginning two years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 4. REPORTS.

    (a) Federal Arrests and Expungements.--After the end of each fiscal 
year during which section 2 of this Act is in effect, the Attorney 
General shall submit to Congress a report on the implementation of that 
section in that fiscal year. The report shall include the following 
information:
            (1) The number of arrests that, during that fiscal year, 
        became voidable arrests.
            (2) The number of voidable arrests the records of which 
        were, during that fiscal year, expunged under section 2(a)(1) 
        of this Act.
            (3) The number of voidable arrests the records of which 
        were, during that fiscal year, expunged under section 2(a)(2) 
        of this Act.
    (b) State Arrests and Expungements.--After the end of each fiscal 
year during which subsection (g) of section 506 of title I of the 
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3756), as 
added by section 3 of this Act, is in effect, the Attorney General 
shall submit to Congress a report on the implementation of that 
subsection in that fiscal year. The report shall include, for each 
State referred to in that subsection, the following information:
            (1) The number of arrests that, during that fiscal year, 
        became voidable arrests.
            (2) The number of voidable arrests the records of which 
        were, during that fiscal year, expunged under the provision of 
        law of that State that is substantially similar to section 
        2(a)(1) of this Act.
            (3) The number of voidable arrests the records of which 
        were, during that fiscal year, expunged under the provision of 
        law of that State that is substantially similar to section 
        2(a)(2) of this Act.
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