Tennessee Restricts Reporting of Expunged Records

On April 10, 2014, the Tennessee legislature passed House Bill 2048 and prohibiting the reporting of expunged criminal history. The Governor is expected to approve the bill which goes into effect immediately.

House Bill 2048 amends Tennessee Code Annotated, § 40-32-101 which regulates the destruction and release of documents upon dismissal or acquittal of the charge. The bill adds a new subsection as follows:

• Any private entity that performs criminal background checks shall not report that a person has been convicted of an offense , if the offense has been expunged pursuant to this section.

backgroundchecks.com has reported on other states this year that have passed legislation about expunged records. Employers and educational institutions in North Carolina are prohibited as of December 1, 2013, from requiring an applicant for employment or admission to disclose information about an arrest, criminal charge, or criminal conviction that has been expunged. In Washington state, applicants and employees in assisted living facilities or boarding homes, hospitals, and home care agencies, and other long-term care facilities may be considered for employment if they have one or more convictions for a past offense and the otherwise disqualifying conviction or disposition has been the subject of a pardon, annulment, or other equivalent procedure.

Other states, including Florida, Louisiana, and Minnesota have similar bills pending. We will continue to report whenever a state restricts access to or the reporting of criminal records.

Tennessee House Bill 2048 is available for review here: http://www.capitol.tn.gov/Bills/108/Bill/HB2048.pdf.

Our Compliance Update dated February 3, 2014, about North Carolina: http://www.backgroundbiz.com/compliance/complianceupdate_02032014.html.

Our Compliance Update dated February 3, 2014, about Washington: http://www.backgroundbiz.com/compliance/complianceupdate_04142014.html.