Substitute Bill No. 5641 Summary

• Establishes provisional pardons as a distinct form of pardon separate from absolute pardons, with records sealed rather than erased and subject to revocation if the person commits another crime.

• Allows Board of Pardons and Paroles to accept pardon applications three years after misdemeanor conviction or five years after felony conviction, with authority to accept earlier applications upon finding of extraordinary circumstances.

• Permits persons granted provisional pardons to apply for conversion to absolute pardons after at least five years have elapsed without revocation, at which point records are erased rather than sealed.

• Requires sealed records from provisional pardons to be unsealed if the person is later convicted of a crime, and prohibits disclosure of sealed records except to the person subject to the record and in limited circumstances involving new prosecutions or perjury investigations.

• Updates employment and licensing provisions to prohibit discrimination based on sealed records or provisional pardons, and requires consumer reporting agencies to maintain updated criminal history information excluding sealed or erased records, all effective October 1, 2016.