FIRST REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 19
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR WILLIAMS.
0610S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To amend chapter 610, RSMo, by adding thereto four new sections relating to expungement.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 610, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto 1
four new sections, to be known as sections 610.141, 610.142, 2
610.143, and 610.144, to read as follows:3
610.141. 1. As used in sections 610.140 to 610.146, 1
the following terms mean: 2
(1) "Automated expungement", technology -assisted, 3
state-initiated bulk closing of records in the manner 4
established under section 610.120; 5
(2) "Central repository", the Missouri state highway 6
patrol central repository for compiling and disseminating 7
complete and accurate criminal history records; 8
(3) "Charges pending", charges for which an individual 9
has not yet been sentenced; 10
(4) "Clean slate eligible offense", an infraction, 11
misdemeanor, or felony not listed under subsection 2 of 12
section 610.140 for which an electronic record exists; 13
(5) "Close" or "closed", to make records inaccessible 14
to the general public and to all individuals other than the 15
defendant, except as provided under section 610.120 and 16
chapter 43; 17
(6) "Expunge" or "expunged", to close a record in the 18
manner established under se ction 610.120; 19 SB 19 2
(7) "Final disposition", the date the person has 20
completed his or her incarceration or probation and has 21
satisfied all obligations, including the payment of any 22
restitution, but not including the payment of outstanding 23
fines or fees imposed by the court; 24
(8) "Petitioner", includes a person who has petitioned 25
the court to have his or her conviction or convictions 26
expunged and a person whose conviction or convictions have 27
been automatically expunged under this section; 28
(9) "Traffic violation", a violation of the traffic 29
regulations provided under chapters 301, 302, 303, 304, and 30
307. 31
2. (1) Beginning August 28, 2028, all records and 32
files maintained in any administrative or court proceeding 33
in a municipal, associate, or circuit court pertaining to 34
clean slate eligible offenses shall be closed in the manner 35
established under section 610.120 without the filing of a 36
petition under section 610.140, subject to the limitations 37
contained in subdivisions (2), (3), and (4) of this 38
subsection and subject to the following: 39
(a) For cases in which the imposition of sentence has 40
been suspended, if an individual has successfully completed 41
probation, the record shall be closed so long as one year 42
has passed since final disposition, and the individual has 43
not committed any felony or misdemeanor offense other than a 44
traffic violation during that time; 45
(b) For infractions, municipal offenses, and 46
misdemeanors, the record shall be closed if one year has 47
passed since final disposition and the individual has not 48
committed any felony or misdemeanor offense other than a 49
traffic violation during that time; 50 SB 19 3
(c) For felony offenses, the record shall be closed if 51
three years have passed since final dispositio n and the 52
individual has not committed any felony or misdemeanor 53
offense other than a traffic violation during that time; 54
(d) For all of an individual's offenses if the 55
individual has attained sixty -five years of age and has not 56
been convicted of any misdemeanors or felonies other than a 57
traffic violation or a technical violation of the terms of 58
their probation or parole in the immediate ten preceding 59
years; or 60
(e) All offenses for which the governor of Missouri 61
has granted a full pardon . 62
(2) Records pertaining to juvenile adjudications or 63
offenses involving the operation of a motor vehicle are not 64
eligible for automated expungement. 65
(3) No offense, violation, or infraction shall be 66
eligible for automated expungement if a p erson has charges 67
pending during the period of review for clean slate 68
eligibility as described in subsection 3 of this section. 69
(4) (a) An individual may be granted more than one 70
expungement under this section, provided that during his or 71
her lifetime the total number of offenses, violations, or 72
infractions for which expungement can be granted to the 73
individual under this section or section 610.140 shall not 74
exceed the following limits: 75
a. No more than two felony offenses; and 76
b. No more than four misdemeanor offenses or ordinance 77
violations that have an authorized term of imprisonment. 78
(b) An individual may be granted expungement under 79
this section for any number of infractions. 80
(c) If an individual's record contains more felonies 81
or misdemeanors than can be expunged during the individual's 82 SB 19 4
lifetime under paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the 83
individual shall not be eligible for automated expungement 84
under this section. 85
(d) For purposes of determining lifeti me limits on 86
expungement under this section and section 610.140: 87
a. If the offenses or violations were charged as 88
counts in the same case, all such offenses and violations 89
shall count as only the highest level offense or violation 90
in that case for purposes of determining lifetime limits on 91
expungement under this section and section 610.140. 92
However, if one or more counts in the same indictment or 93
information or conduct committed were a part of the same 94
course of criminal conduct as an offense listed in 95
subsection 2 of section 610.140, the entire record shall not 96
be expunged under this section. 97
b. If the offenses or violations were committed by an 98
individual who has reached sixty -five years of age and has 99
not been convicted of any mis demeanors or felonies other 100
than traffic violations in the immediate ten preceding 101
years, all clean slate eligible offenses shall be expunged. 102
(e) The court shall maintain records to ensure that a 103
person has not exceeded the limitations provided u nder this 104
subsection. Nothing in this section shall be construed to 105
limit or impair the subsequent use of any record maintained 106
by the court for the purpose of any law enforcement or 107
prosecutorial investigation or activity including any arrest 108
or findings of guilt expunged under this section by a law 109
enforcement agency, criminal justice agency, prosecuting 110
attorney, circuit attorney, or municipal prosecuting 111
attorney, including its use as a prior offense, violation, 112
or infraction in a subsequent c riminal or civil 113
investigation or prosecution. 114 SB 19 5
3. (1) Beginning August 28, 2028, on a monthly basis, 115
the office of state courts administrator shall identify and 116
transmit to the central repository and every prosecuting 117
agency in the state all cle an slate eligible offense records 118
within thirty days of the record becoming eligible for 119
automated expungement. 120
(2) Records that are eligible for automated 121
expungement on or before August 28, 2025, shall be 122
identified and expunged by August 28, 2 030. 123
(3) Delinquent court costs, fines, fees, or other sums 124
ordered by a court, except restitution owed to a victim of a 125
crime, shall not be expunged and shall not be considered by 126
the office of state courts administrator when determining 127
expungement of a record without the filing of a petition 128
under subsection 2 of this section. The office of state 129
courts administrator shall seek a setoff of any income tax 130
refund and lottery prize payouts under section 488.5028 for 131
all delinquent court costs , fines, fees, or other sums 132
ordered by a court relating to convictions expunged under 133
subsection 2 of this section. 134
(4) Each prosecuting agency in this state has no later 135
than sixty days from the day on which the notice described 136
in subdivision (1) of this subsection is transmitted to 137
object to an automated expungement and transmit such 138
objection to all parties. The prosecuting agency may object 139
to the automatic expungement for any of the following 140
reasons: 141
(a) After reviewing the pros ecuting agency's record, 142
the agency believes the record does not meet the definition 143
of a clean slate eligible case; 144
(b) The person has not paid court -ordered restitution 145
to the victim; or 146 SB 19 6
(c) The person has charges pending against them in 147
another case. 148
(5) If a prosecuting agency objects for a reason 149
described in subdivision (4) of this subsection, within 150
sixty days of the day on which the notice described in 151
subdivision (1) of this subsection is transmitted, the 152
record shall not be expunged. 153
(6) If sixty days have passed without an objection 154
from a prosecuting agency or the central repository for one 155
of the reasons set forth under this subsection, the office 156
of state courts administrator shall transmit within fifteen 157
days all the records to be expunged, sorted by circuit, to 158
the presiding judges of every circuit court. 159
(7) (a) Within thirty days of receiving a notice to 160
expunge, the circuit court shall issue orders for 161
expungement of all records maintained in th e circuit for 162
which no notification of ineligibility was received by the 163
office of state courts administrator from the central 164
repository or a prosecuting agency unless the circuit court 165
determines the record is not eligible for automated 166
expungement. 167
(b) If the circuit court determines a record is not 168
eligible for automated expungement, the court shall notify 169
the office of state courts administrator in writing of its 170
determination within thirty days and shall specify the 171
reasons the court re lied upon in making the determination. 172
(8) On a monthly basis, each circuit court shall issue 173
orders for expungement of all records of arrest, charge, and 174
conviction for ordinance violations and nonfingerprintable 175
offenses in the circuit that the court determines are 176
eligible for automated expungement. 177 SB 19 7
(9) On a monthly basis, each circuit court shall 178
transmit copies of all orders for expungement that the court 179
issues under this section to the office of state courts 180
administrator. 181
(10) Once the transmitted records are expunged, the 182
office of state courts administrator shall provide notice to 183
all state agencies maintaining official copies of the 184
records including, but not limited to, the appropriate 185
circuit court clerk, the prosecu ting or circuit attorney, 186
the arresting law enforcement agency or agencies, the 187
department of corrections, the central repository, and the 188
department of revenue to expunge the records within thirty 189
days. 190
(11) The Missouri state highway patrol sha ll retain a 191
nonpublic record of the order expunging a conviction or 192
other notification regarding a conviction that was 193
automatically expunged under this section and of the record 194
of the arrest, fingerprints, conviction, and sentence of the 195
person in the case to which the order or other notification 196
applies. The nonpublic record shall be made available only 197
to a court of competent jurisdiction, the office of state 198
courts administrator, the department of corrections, a law 199
enforcement agency, a prose cuting or circuit attorney, the 200
attorney general, or the governor upon request and only for 201
the following purposes: 202
(a) To show that a person who has filed a petition to 203
expunge a conviction has previously had a conviction 204
expunged under this sec tion; 205
(b) The court's consideration in determining the 206
sentence to be imposed upon conviction for a subsequent 207
offense that is punishable as a felony or by imprisonment 208
for more than one year; 209 SB 19 8
(c) Consideration by the governor if a person wh ose 210
conviction has been expunged applies for a pardon for 211
another offense; 212
(d) Consideration by the department of corrections or 213
a law enforcement agency if a person whose conviction has 214
been expunged applies for employment with the department of 215
corrections or a law enforcement agency; 216
(e) Consideration by a court, law enforcement agency, 217
prosecuting or circuit attorney, or the attorney general in 218
determining whether a person required to register under 219
sections 589.400 to 589.425 has co mmitted an offense that 220
requires registration under sections 589.400 to 589.425, or 221
for use in a prosecution for committing an offense requiring 222
registration under sections 589.400 to 589.425; or 223
(f) Consideration by a court, law enforcement agenc y, 224
prosecuting or circuit attorney, or the attorney general for 225
use in making determinations regarding charges, plea offers, 226
and sentencing, as applicable. 227
(12) The office of state courts administrator shall 228
create a digital access portal of all orders of expungement 229
issued under this section. The portal shall allow users to 230
determine if an order for automated expungement has been 231
granted in an individual's name. The portal shall employ 232
measures to prevent disclosure of any order to anyone o ther 233
than the individual for whom the order was issued. 234
4. Any court sentencing an individual for a clean 235
slate eligible offense shall notify the individual at the 236
time of sentencing of the date when the individual's 237
conviction may become eligibl e for automated expungement 238
provided the individual is not convicted of any misdemeanor 239
or felony, not including a violation of a traffic 240 SB 19 9
regulation, during the time period specified for the 241
underlying offense or offenses. 242
5. Any probation or par ole office releasing an 243
individual from supervision for a clean slate eligible 244
offense shall notify the individual at the time supervision 245
is discharged of the date when the individual's record or 246
records may become eligible for automated expungement 247
provided the individual is not convicted of any misdemeanor 248
or felony, not including a violation of a traffic 249
regulation, during the time period specified for the 250
underlying offense or offenses. 251
6. The provisions of this section shall apply 252
retroactively to any arrest, charge, trial, and conviction 253
for which there is a digital record regardless of the date 254
that the arrest was made, the charge or charges were 255
brought, the trial occurred, or the conviction was entered. 256
7. Nothing in this section precludes an individual 257
from filing a petition for expungement of records under 258
section 610.140 if an individual is eligible for an 259
automated expungement under this section if such an 260
automated expungement has not yet occurred or cannot occur 261
pursuant to the provisions of this section. 262
8. Upon the occurrence of one of the circumstances 263
provided under subdivision (1) or (2) of this subsection, a 264
conviction that was expunged under this section shall be 265
reinstated by the court as provided i n this subsection. 266
(1) If it is determined that a conviction was 267
improperly or erroneously expunged because the conviction 268
was not eligible to be expunged under this section, the 269
court shall, on its own motion, reinstate the conviction. 270
(2) Upon a motion by a person owed restitution or on 271
its own motion, the court shall reinstate a conviction that 272 SB 19 10
was expunged under this section for which the person whose 273
conviction was expunged was ordered to pay restitution if 274
the court determines that the person has not made a good - 275
faith effort to pay the ordered restitution. 276
9. Upon the entry of an order under section 610.140, 277
or upon the automated expungement of a conviction under this 278
section, the petitioner, for purposes of the law, shall b e 279
considered not to have been previously convicted, except for 280
purposes of the following: 281
(1) The petitioner shall not be entitled to the 282
remission of any fine, costs, or other moneys paid as a 283
consequence of a conviction that is expunged; 284
(2) This section shall not affect the right of the 285
petitioner to rely upon the conviction to bar subsequent 286
proceedings for the same offense; 287
(3) This section shall not affect the right of a 288
victim of an offense to bring or defend a civil action f or 289
damages; 290
(4) This section shall not create a right to commence 291
an action for damages for incarceration under the sentence 292
that the petitioner served before the conviction is expunged 293
under this section; 294
(5) This section shall not relieve any obligation to 295
pay restitution owed to the victim of an offense nor shall 296
such sections affect the jurisdiction of the convicting 297
court or the authority of any court order with regard to 298
enforcing an order for restitution; 299
(6) A conviction, including any records relating to 300
the conviction and any records concerning a collateral 301
action, that has been expunged under this section shall not 302
be used as evidence in an action for negligent hiring, 303
admission, or licensure against any person; or 304 SB 19 11
(7) A conviction that is expunged under this section 305
or section 610.140 may be considered a prior conviction by a 306
court, law enforcement agency, prosecuting attorney, or the 307
attorney general, as applicable, for purposes of charging a 308
crime as a second or subsequent offense or for sentencing 309
under section 550.016. 310
610.142. Beginning August 28, 2028, the office of 1
state courts administrator shall report to the judiciary 2
committees of the senate and house of representatives, or 3
any successor committees, the following on a yearly basis: 4
(1) The number of records expunged under subsection 2 5
of section 610.141, by judicial circuit, with data 6
aggregated by race, sex, age, circuit, county, and offense 7
type and level; and 8
(2) The number of records transmitted back to the 9
office of state courts administrator from the Missouri state 10
highway patrol, any prosecuting agency, or any circuit court 11
on objection that the record is not eligible for automated 12
expungement or that the record does not match data held in 13
the central repository, by judicial circuit, with data 14
aggregated by race, sex, age, county, and offense type and 15
level. 16
610.143. 1. A credit bureau may report records of 1
arrests, indictments pending trial, and convictions of 2
crimes for no longer than seven years from final 3
disposition. Records of arrests, indictments pending trial, 4
and convictions of crimes shall no longer be reported if at 5
any time after a conviction it is learned that a full pardon 6
or expungement has been granted for that conviction, or at 7
any time after an arrest or indictment it is learned that a 8
conviction did not result. 9 SB 19 12
2. Any credit bureau or user of information that 10
willfully fails to comply with any re quirement of this 11
section with respect to any consumer is liable to that 12
consumer in an amount equal to: 13
(1) Any actual damages sustained by the consumer as a 14
result of the failure; 15
(2) Punitive damages as the court may allow; and 16
(3) In the case of any successful action under this 17
section, costs of the action and reasonable attorney's fees 18
as determined by the court. 19
3. Any credit bureau or user of information that is 20
negligent in failing to comply with any requirement of this 21
section with respect to any consumer is liable to that 22
consumer in an amount equal to: 23
(1) Any actual damages sustained by the consumer as a 24
result of the failure; and 25
(2) In the case of any successful action under this 26
section, costs of the action and reasonable attorney's fees 27
as determined by the court. 28
4. Injunctive relief shall be available to any 29
consumer aggrieved by a violation or a threatened violation 30
of this section regardless of whether the consumer seeks any 31
other remedy under this section. 32
5. An employer who employs or otherwise engages an 33
individual whose criminal history record has been expunged 34
shall be immune from liability for any claim arising out of 35
the misconduct of the individual if the misconduct re lates 36
to the portion of the criminal history record that has been 37
expunged. 38
610.144. 1. (1) There is hereby created in the state 1
treasury the "Missouri Expungement Fund", which shall 2
consist of moneys deposited into the fund from any source 3 SB 19 13
including, but not limited to, gifts, donations, grants, and 4
bequests. The state treasurer shall be custodian of the 5
fund. In accordance with sections 30.170 and 30.180, the 6
state treasurer may approve disbursements. The fund shall 7
be a dedicated fund and, upon appropriation, moneys in this 8
fund shall be used solely as provided in subsection 2 of 9
this section. 10
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 33.080 11
to the contrary, any moneys remaining in the fund at the end 12
of the biennium shall not revert to the credit of the 13
general revenue fund. 14
(3) The state treasurer shall invest moneys in the 15
fund in the same manner as other funds are invested. Any 16
interest and moneys earned on such investments shall be 17
credited to the fund. 18
2. The department of public safety, the information 19
technology services division within the office of 20
administration, and the office of state courts administrator 21
shall expend moneys from the fund, upon appropriation, only 22
for one or more of the following purposes: 23
(1) Implementation costs incurred under sections 24
610.141 to 610.143; 25
(2) System upgrades necessitated under sections 26
610.141 to 610.143; or 27
(3) Staffing needs necessitated under sections 610.141 28
to 610.143. 29