TRENTON – In an effort to enhance fairness in employment and licensing opportunities, the Senate Law and Public Safety Committee advanced legislation sponsored by Senator Brian Stack that would prohibit the dissemination of criminal history background information for individuals with unprocessed expungement orders.

“Individuals who have taken the necessary steps to expunge their records should not be penalized by outdated information that can affect their job prospects and community involvement,” said Senator Stack (D-Hudson). “This bill ensures that only accurate and updated information is shared, allowing deserving individuals a fair chance at employment and participation in society.”

Under the bill, S-2513, the State Bureau of Identification (SBI) would be prohibited from sharing criminal history information for people with unprocessed expungement records. The SBI would be required to check if a person has an unprocessed expungement order before sharing any background information. If a person’s record were eligible for expungement, the SBI would need to update its records to reflect that.

This legislation addresses the significant backlog of expungement orders and aims to prevent the illegal disclosure of sealed records that can hinder individuals from gaining employment or licenses.

“This is about restoring dignity and opportunity back to those who have worked hard to turn their lives around,” said Senator Stack. “We must ensure our systems support rehabilitation and reintegration into society rather than creating unnecessary barriers.”

The committee vote on S-2513 was 5-0.