2026 -- H 7508

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LC004746

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO CRIMINAL PROCEDURE -- EXPUNGEMENT OF CRIMINAL RECORDS --

THE RHODE ISLAND CLEAN SLATE ACT

     Introduced By: Representatives Casimiro, Fogarty, McGaw, Tanzi, Boylan, Cortvriend,
Kislak, J. Lombardi, Alzate, and Stewart

     Date Introduced: February 04, 2026

     Referred To: House Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 12-1.3-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 12-1.3 entitled

"Expungement of Criminal Records" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     12-1.3-1. Definitions.

     For purposes of this chapter only, the following definitions apply:

     (1) “Administrative office of state courts” or “AOSC” means the administrative arm of the

Rhode Island unified judicial system designed by the supreme court to manage statewide judicial

administration and court technology.

     (2) “Central repository” means the statewide electronic criminal history repository

maintained under the authority of the department of attorney general.

     (1)(3) “Crime of violence” includes murder, manslaughter, first-degree arson, kidnapping

with intent to extort, robbery, larceny from the person, first-degree sexual assault, second-degree

sexual assault, first- and second-degree child molestation, assault with intent to murder, assault

with intent to rob, assault with intent to commit first-degree sexual assault, burglary, and entering

a dwelling house with intent to commit murder, robbery, sexual assault, or larceny.

     (2)(4) “Expungement of records and records of conviction” means the sealing and retention

of all records of a conviction and/or probation and the removal from active files of all records and

information relating to conviction and/or probation.

     (3)(5) “First offender” means a person who has been convicted of a felony offense or a

misdemeanor offense, and who has not been previously convicted of or placed on probation for a

felony or a misdemeanor and against whom there is no criminal proceeding pending in any court.

     (4)(6) “Law enforcement agency” means a state police organization of this or any other

state; the enforcement division of the department of environmental management; the office of the

state fire marshal; the capitol police; a law enforcement agency of the federal government; and any

agency, department, or bureau of the United States government that has as one of its functions the

gathering of intelligence data.

     (5)(7) “Misdemeanor” includes, but is not limited to, those crimes previously classified as

felonies under law at the time the original sentence was imposed but reclassified by the general

assembly as a misdemeanor in the interim, prior to the time the motion to expunge is brought.

     (6)(8) “Records” and “records of conviction and/or probation” include all court records, all

records in the possession of any state or local police department, the bureau of criminal

identification, and the probation department, including, but not limited to, any fingerprints,

photographs, physical measurements, or other records of identification. The terms “records” and

“records of conviction and/or probation” do not include the records and files of the department of

attorney general which are not kept by the bureau of criminal identification in the ordinary course

of the bureau’s business.

     (9) “Sentence completion date” means the date that, based upon the disposition date and

the sentence specified in the records, the person appears to have completed their sentence including

any probation, mandatory supervision, post release community supervision, and parole.

     SECTION 2. Chapter 12-1.3 of the General Laws entitled "Expungement of Criminal

Records" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

     12-1.3-6. Automated expungement of criminal records.

     (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, and cumulative with any rights to

expungement or sealing of criminal records, this subsection authorizes the automatic expungement

of eligible conviction records by operation of law, initiated and completed by state agencies through

electronic processes without requiring an individual to file a petition, pay a fee, or otherwise take

affirmative action. Nothing in this section precludes an individual from filing a petition for

expungement of records for eligible records not automatically expunged under this section. All

rights and provisions described in § 12-1.3-4 of this section shall apply to records automatically

expunged under this subsection.

     (b) A person is eligible to have their record automatically expunged pursuant to this section

if:

     (1) The person has been convicted of a misdemeanor offense, and has not been previously

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convicted of or placed on probation for a felony or a misdemeanor in the State of Rhode Island.

     (2) The person has been convicted of a misdemeanor offense under chapter 29 of title 12,

§ 31-27-2 and sentenced under § 3l-27-2(d)(1)(i) - (iii); provided that, the person has not been

convicted of or placed on probation for a prior or subsequent conviction under chapter 29 of title

12, or § 31-27-2.

     (3) The person has been convicted of a felony offense, and has not been previously

convicted of or placed on probation for a felony in the State of Rhode Island.

     (4) The person has been convicted of more than one misdemeanor, but fewer than six (6)

misdemeanors, and has not been convicted of a felony in the State of Rhode Island; provided that,

convictions for offenses under chapter 29 of title 12, § 31-27-2 or § 31-27-2.1 are not eligible for

and may not be automatically expunged under this subsection.

     (5) The person has paid all outstanding court-imposed or court-related fees, fines, costs,

assessments, charges, and/or any other monetary obligations associated with the eligible record.

     (6) Subject to subsections (b)(1) and (b)(2) of this section, the person has not been

convicted of any misdemeanor or felony in the State of Rhode Island in the five (5) years following

their sentence completion date and against whom there is no criminal proceeding pending in any

Rhode Island court; provided that, if a charge is pending, and if the AOSC is otherwise unable to

electronically determine disposition status, misdemeanor charges shall not be considered pending

if one year has elapsed since the filing of charges and felony charges shall not be considered

pending if seven (7) years have elapsed since the filing of charges.

     (7) Subject to subsections (b)(3) and (b)(4) of this section, the person has not been

convicted of any misdemeanor or felony offenses in the State of Rhode Island in the ten (10) years

following the sentence completion date of the most recent eligible record and against whom there

is no criminal proceeding pending in any Rhode Island court; provided that, if a charge is pending,

and if the AOSC is otherwise unable to electronically determine disposition status, misdemeanor

charges shall not be considered pending if one year has elapsed since the filing of charges and

felony charges shall not be considered pending if seven (7) years have elapsed since the filing of

charges.

     (c) Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this section, convictions for offenses defined as

violent offenses in this chapter are not eligible for automatic expungement.

     (d) For purposes of this section, if multiple offenses were charged as counts in the same

case, all such offenses shall count as only the highest level offense in that case; provided that, none

of those offenses constitute a violent offense as defined in this section.

     (e) All electronic records in the statewide court case management system that become

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eligible for automated expungement either upon the effective date of this legislation or between the

effective date and August 28, 2029, shall be identified and expunged before January l, 2030, in a

cadence to be determined by the AOSC.

     (f) Commencing two (2) years from the effective date of this section, the AOSC shall, on

at least a monthly basis, use the electronic records in the central court database to:

     (1) Identify all new dispositions that have become eligible for automated expungement

since any prior record identification under this section; and

     (2) Reevaluate records that were previously ineligible but have become eligible due to the

passage of time or other changes in status.

     (g) The AOSC shall compile, in an electronic format, a list of all records determined to be

eligible under subsection (t) of this section, organized by court (superior court or district court) and

by case number. For each monthly determination of eligible records, the AOSC shall transmit, or

otherwise make available by secure electronic means, the relevant portions of that list and any

supporting data necessary to identify the cases and counts to the clerk of the superior court for

superior court cases; and the clerk of the district court for district court cases; provided that,

transmission under this subsection may consist of direct updates to a shared case management

system, the provision of structured data files, or any other secure electronic mechanism agreed upon

by the AOSC and the recipient courts.

     (h) Within one month after receiving the eligible record lists transmitted under subsection

(g) of this section, the superior court and the district court, as applicable, shall create the appropriate

orders necessary to implement automated expungement for the enumerated records; provided that,

the courts may create such orders in omnibus form and may identify covered persons, cases, or

counts by reference to electronic attachments, spreadsheets, lists, or other tabular formats generated

by the AOSC.

     (i) For superior court cases, the presiding judge of the superior court, or a judicial officer

designated by the presiding justice, shall review and enter the omnibus orders created under

subsection (h) of this section, and for district court cases, the chief judge of the district court, or a

judicial officer designated by the chief judge, shall review and enter the omnibus orders created

under subsection (h) of this section within one month of receipt of eligible records under subsection

(h) of this section.

     (j) Entry of omnibus orders under this section shall occur within ten (10) days of the

creation of the orders pursuant to subsection (h) of this section, unless the presiding justice or chief

judge certifies in writing that additional time is necessary due to extraordinary operational

constraints; provided, however, in no event shall entry be delayed beyond thirty (30) days after

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receipt of the eligible record lists transmitted under subsection (t) of this section.

     (k) Upon entry of the omnibus orders under subsection (g) of this section, the superior court

and the district court shall promptly record those orders in the central court database.

     (l) Within ten (10) days of the entry of any omnibus orders, the superior court and the

district court shall transmit, or otherwise make available by secure electronic means, copies of such

omnibus orders, including any electronic attachments or lists, to the AOSC; provided that, the

AOSC may satisfy this requirement by retrieving the orders and associated data directly from the

central court database.

     (m) Upon receipt of any omnibus orders under subsection (i) of this section, the AOSC

shall, within ten (10) days of receipt, make all necessary bulk updates to the electronic records in

the central court database to:

     (1) Reflect that the affected records have been expunged by operation of law; and

     (2) Ensure that the affected records cannot be accessed by the public through any electronic

public-facing access points operated or controlled by the judiciary, including online docket search

portals.

     (n) Neither the courts nor the AOSC shall be required to proactively segregate, redact, or

physically alter paper court files for the sole purpose of complying with automated expungement

obligations under this chapter if doing so would be unduly burdensome, as long as such records are

not made available to the public.

     (o) Upon receipt of the omnibus orders and associated record lists from the AOSC, the

department of attorney general shall, within one month:

     (1) Remove from public inspection all applicable electronic records in the central

repository that correspond to the expunged court records; provided that, nothing in this subsection

shall be construed to require the department to perform a separate eligibility determination and the

department may rely upon the court orders and notifications transmitted pursuant to this subsection;

and

     (2) Implement or update any internal electronic flags or access controls necessary to

prevent public dissemination of those records through background checks or other public-facing

products generated from the central repository.

     (p) The department of attorney general shall adopt rules, regulations, and internal policies

as necessary to prevent public disclosure of any electronic or physical record in the central

repository that has been subjected to automated expungement under this chapter.

     (q) State and local police departments, or other law enforcement agencies, are not required

to alter their records in response to an expungement order under this section; provided that, if any

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state or local police department or other law enforcement agency receives a request to disclose

arrest or conviction records covered by this section, that agency shall first verify with the

department of attorney general whether the records have been subjected to automated

expungement, and, if the department of attorney general confirms that a requested record has been

subjected to automated expungement, the police department or other law enforcement agency shall

not disclose the record to the requesting party, except as otherwise authorized by law for access to

expunged records.

     (r) Any records already expunged or sealed pursuant to §§ 12-1-12, 12-1-12.1, 12-1.3-5,

12-10-12, or any other existing authority shall be treated as expunged or sealed for purposes of this

section and need not be reprocessed under the automated workflow, except to the extent necessary

to ensure consistency of electronic records in the central court database and the central repository.

     (s) The supreme court, through the AOSC, and the department of attorney general shall

adopt such rules and regulations as are necessary to implement this section including, but not

limited to, technical specifications for electronic data exchange, standards for matching records,

and procedures to address incomplete or inconsistent data.

     (t) Upon the entry of an automated expungement order under subsection (m) of this section:

     (1) The person who is the subject of the expunged record may truthfully state, for any

purpose including, but not limited, to applications for employment, housing, credit, or licensure,

that they have never been arrested, charged, or convicted of the crime that was the subject of the

expunged record; and

     (2) No person, agency, or entity shall inquire into or require the disclosure of the existence

of the expunged record, except if federal law, including rules and regulations promulgated by a

self-regulatory organization that has been created under federal law, requires the consideration of

an applicant’s sealed and/or expunged criminal history.

     (u) The AOSC and the department of attorney general shall jointly submit annual public

reports for at least the first five (5) years after the effective date of this section, and thereafter upon

request of the general assembly, including:

     (1) The total number of records identified as eligible in each backlog and monthly run;

     (2) The total number of records expunged in the courts and removed from public inspection

in the central repository; and

     (3) Any significant implementation challenges and steps taken to resolve them; provided

that, reporting under this subsection shall not include personally identifiable information but may

include aggregate demographic information, consistent with applicable law, to evaluate the

equitable impact of automated expungement.

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     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO CRIMINAL PROCEDURE -- EXPUNGEMENT OF CRIMINAL RECORDS --

THE RHODE ISLAND CLEAN SLATE ACT

***

     This act would authorize the automatic expungement of eligible conviction records by

operation of law, initiated and completed by state agencies through electronic processes established

within the judicial system.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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