HLS 183ES-5 ENGROSSED
2018 Third Extraordinary Session
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 4
BY REPRESENTATIVES MARINO, DUPLESSIS, HAZEL, MUSCARELLO, PYLANT,
AND STEFANSKI
CRIMINAL/RECORDS: Requests the La. State Law Institute to study and make
recommendations relative to expungement fees
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2To urge and request the Louisiana State Law Institute to study and make recommendations
3 relative to fees for the expungement of arrest and conviction records.
4 WHEREAS, Louisiana law provides for the expungement of certain arrest and
5conviction records under limited circumstances; and
6 WHEREAS, the provisions of law regarding expungement have been revised over
7the years with the goal of simplifying, consolidating, and clarifying expungement
8procedures; and
9 WHEREAS, Louisiana law provides for the mandatory expungement of certain
10records when the defendant was arrested and not convicted, the district attorney declines to
11prosecute, or the time limitations for the institution of prosecution have expired, without cost
12to the defendant; and
13 WHEREAS, expungement of other records of arrest and conviction not falling into
14any of the above categories requires the defendant to pay certain nonrefundable fees to the
15Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information, the sheriff of the parish in
16which the arrest was made, the district attorney of the parish in which the conviction was
17obtained, and the clerk of court; and
18 WHEREAS, while the maximum amounts of these fees are set by law, the actual
19amounts charged by the named entities and the methods of collection can vary from parish
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HCR NO. 4
1to parish, which creates a level of uncertainty in present law for those persons seeking to
2have certain records of arrest or conviction expunged; and
3 WHEREAS, a study of the necessity and fairness of the amounts of the fees that may
4be charged for an expungement should be undertaken, and a uniform and streamlined
5procedure for the payment and collection of these fees should be developed.
6 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
7urge and request the Louisiana State Law Institute to study and make recommendations for
8the revision of laws regarding expungement fees.
9 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Louisiana State Law Institute work in
10conjunction with the Louisiana District Attorneys Association, the Louisiana Public
11Defender Board, the Louisiana Sheriffs' Association, the Louisiana State Police, the
12Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Criminal Justice, the
13Louisiana Clerks of Court Association, and any other agencies or associations deemed
14appropriate by the committee regarding this study.
15 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Louisiana State Law Institute shall report
16its findings and recommendations to the Louisiana Legislature no later than February 1,
172019.
18 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
19Louisiana State Law Institute.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HCR 4 Engrossed 2018 Third Extraordinary Session Marino
Requests the La. State Law Institute to study La. laws relative to expungement fees, and to
make recommendations relative to the amount of expungement fees and the procedure by
which those fees must be paid and collected. Requires the La. State Law Institute to report
its findings no later than Feb. 1, 2019.
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