STATEMENT: CAP Applauds Senators Casey and Ernst for Introducing the Bipartisan Clean Slate Act
Date: December 17, 2020
Contact: Julia Cusick
Washington, D.C. Today, Sens. Robert Casey (D-PA) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) introduced legislation in the U.S. Senate that would enable people with low-level federal criminal records to get them sealed, including by establishing automatic sealing for low-level drug charges. The bill would create the first broadly available relief for people facing employment and housing barriers due to federal criminal records, which generally require a pardon to clear from one’s criminal history. This legislation is a companion bill to the House version, which was introduced by Reps. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) and Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA) in April 2019 and reintroduced in January 2020.