Imposes restrictions on the use of expunged records.

A5303

ASSEMBLY, No. 5303

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED JUNE 23, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman� VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Assemblywoman� LINDA S. CARTER

District 22 (Somerset and Union)

SYNOPSIS

���� Imposes restrictions on the use of expunged records.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act

concerning expunged criminal records, and
amending various parts of statutory law.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1. Section 1 of P.L.1994, c.54
(C.2B:1-4) is amended to read as follows:

���� 1. Electronic Access to Court
Records. a. The Administrative Office of the Courts is authorized to develop
and operate an automated data processing system that allows the public to
access court information and to file court documents, pursuant to such directives,
rules and regulations as the Supreme Court may adopt.�
Such directives,
rules, and regulations shall include provisions to ensure that the public�s use
of criminal records complies with N.J.S.2C:52-30.

���� �b. Individuals, organizations
or governmental agencies who request automated or electronic access through
common carrier telephone company communications to computerized record
information maintained by the Administrative Office of the Courts and the Judiciary,
or who request the option to file legal court case information using a
computer-to-computer link through common carrier telephone company
communication, in addition to any other applicable fees, shall pay for the cost
of this service according to fee schedules adopted by the Supreme Court.�

���� �c. The proceeds collected by
the Administrative Office of the Courts pursuant to this act shall be deposited
in the �Court Computer Information System Fund� which is hereby established as
a separate fund in the General Fund, to be administered by the Administrative
Office of the Courts and dedicated to the development, establishment, operation
and maintenance of computerized court information systems in the Judiciary.�

���� �d. Subject to the approval of
the Supreme Court, the Administrative Office of the Courts is authorized to
contract with governmental agencies or corporations for their assistance in the
development, establishment, operation and maintenance of the automated system
created in accordance with this act.� Such assistance may include the initial
collection of user fees and other proceeds for the system and may be paid for
from the fees and proceeds collected under this act.� The net fees and proceeds
so collected shall be deposited in the �Court Computer Information Systems
Fund� created by this act.�

(cf: P.L.1994, c.54, s.1)

���� 2.��� N.J.S.2C:52-30 is
amended to read as follows:

���� 2C:52-30.�� Disclosure of
Expungement Order. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter,

����
[
any
]

a. Any
person
or
entity
who reveals to another the existence of an arrest, conviction
,

or related legal proceeding with knowledge that the records and information
pertaining thereto have been expunged or sealed is a disorderly person.�
[
Notwithstanding
the provisions of section 2C:43-3, the maximum fine which can be imposed for
violation of this section is $200.00.
]

����
b.��� Any person or entity
regularly engaged in the business of collecting, assembling, evaluating, or
disseminating criminal records in this State for a fee shall:

����
(1) report on or
disseminate only those criminal records that the person or entity has received
from the State Bureau of Identification or the Judiciary within the previous 30
days;

����
(2) promptly delete a
record that the person or entity knows or should have known to have been
expunged; and

����
(3) provide a means by
which an individual may request at no cost a correction of their record, which
shall include the completion of any necessary verification of records with the State
Bureau of Identification or the Judiciary within 14 business days of receipt of
a request for correction, and the deletion of an expunged record within 30 days
of receipt of a request for correction.

����
c.���� Any person or entity
who disseminates a criminal record that has been expunged and knows or should
have known at the time of dissemination that the record has been expunged is
liable to the individual who is the subject of the criminal record for a
penalty of $5,000 per violation, or actual damages caused by the violation,
whichever is greater, plus costs and attorney fees.

����
d. It shall be an
affirmative defense to the criminal or civil enforcement of this section that
the dissemination of an expunged record occurred due to the failure of a law
enforcement or criminal justice agency to effectuate an order of expungement
pursuant to the requirements of N.J.S.2C:52-15.

����
e. For the purposes of this
section, any person or entity who has been served with a certified copy of an
order of expungement in accordance with the Rules of Court shall be presumed to
have knowledge of the expungement.

(cf: N.J.S.2C:52-30)

���� 3. Section 1 of P.L.2007,
c.307 (C.45:1-21.4) is amended to read as follows:

���� 1.���
a.
Notwithstanding
any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the director or a board
shall not disclose to the public information indicating the place of residence
of any applicant for or holder of a license, registration or certification
without the consent of the applicant or holder, except for such disclosure to a
federal or State regulatory authority or a law enforcement or judicial
authority.

����
b. If a board takes formal
action against an applicant or licensee due to a criminal conviction pursuant
to subsection f. of section 8 of P.L.1978, c.73 (C.45:1-21), and receives
notice from the applicant or licensee that the conviction underlying the board�s
action has been expunged pursuant to chapter 52 of Title 2C of the New Jersey
Statutes, the board shall ensure that all references to the expunged conviction
in the board�s order of formal action, including but not limited to a judgment
of conviction attached to the board�s order, are redacted or sealed in a manner
consistent with N.J.S.2C:52-1 and section 5 of P.L.1997, c.353 (C.2C:52-27.1),
but the fact of the board�s formal action shall not be redacted, sealed, or
expunged.� Pursuant to the �Administrative Procedure Act,� P.L.1968, c.410
(C.52:14B-1 et seq.), the boards and other entities set forth in section 2 of
P.L.1978, c.73 (C.45:1-15), or the Director of the Division of Consumer
Affairs, may adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this
subsection.

(cf: P.L.2007, c.307, s.1)

���� 4. Section 2 of P.L.1985, c.69
(C.53:1-20.6) is amended to read as follows:

���� 2. a. The Superintendent of
State Police, with the approval of the Attorney General, shall, pursuant to the
�Administrative Procedure Act,� P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt
rules and regulations authorizing the dissemination, by the State Bureau of
Identification, of criminal history record background information requested by
State, county and local government agencies, including the Division of State
Police, in noncriminal matters, or requested by individuals, nongovernmental
entities or other governmental entities whose access to such criminal history
record background information is not prohibited by law.�
Such rules and
regulations shall include provisions for the suspension or other restriction of
access by individuals or nongovernmental entities found, following notice and a
hearing pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, to have violated N.J.S.2C:52-30.�
The State Police shall publish on its Internet website a list of such suspended
or restricted individuals or nongovernmental entities.
� A fee not to exceed
$30 shall be imposed for processing fingerprint identification checks; a fee
not to exceed $18 shall be imposed for processing criminal history name search
identification checks.� These fees shall be in addition to any other fees required
by law.� In addition to any fee specified herein, a nonrefundable fee, the
amount of which shall be determined by the Superintendent of State Police, with
the approval of the Attorney General, shall be collected to cover the cost of
securing and processing a federal criminal records check for each applicant.

���� b.��� State, county and local
government agencies, including the Division of State Police, and
nongovernmental entities are authorized to impose and collect the processing
fee established pursuant to subsection a. of this section from the person for
whom the criminal history record background check is being processed or from
the party requesting the criminal history record background check.� The
Superintendent of State Police shall provide this processing service without
the collection of fees from the applicants in processing background checks of
prospective resource family parents or members of their immediate families.� In
such cases, the Department of Children and Families shall be responsible for
paying the fees imposed pursuant to subsection a. of this section.� Nothing in
this section shall prohibit the Superintendent of State Police, with the
approval of the Attorney General, from providing this processing service
without the collection of fees from the applicant in other circumstances which
in his sole discretion he deems appropriate, if the applicants would not
receive a wage or salary for the time and services they provide to an
organization or who are considered volunteers.� In those circumstances where
the Superintendent of State Police, with the approval of the Attorney General,
determines to provide this processing service without the collection of fees to
the individual applicants, the superintendent may assess the fees for providing
this service on behalf of the applicants to any department of State, county or
municipal government which is responsible for operating or overseeing that
volunteer program.� The agencies shall transfer all moneys collected for the
processing fee to the Division of State Police.

(cf: P.L.2006, c.47, s.200)

���� 5.��� This act shall take
effect on the first day of the third month next following enactment, except
that the Attorney General, the Superintendent of the State Police, the Director
of the Division of Consumer Affairs, and the Administrative Director of the Courts
may take such anticipatory action as may be necessary for the timely
implementation of this act.

STATEMENT

���� This bill imposes restrictions
on background check providers, increases penalties for the wrongful
dissemination of expunged records, and imposes duties on professional boards
concerning expunged records.

���� Under current law,
N.J.S.A.2C:52-30, the wrongful disclosure of an expunged record is a disorderly
persons offense.� A disorderly persons offense is ordinarily punishable by a
term of imprisonment of up to six months, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.� However,
N.J.S.A.2C:52-30 currently limits the fine to $200.

���� Under the bill, a private
background check provider is required to ensure that it only reports on
information received from the State Bureau of Investigation of the State
Police, or the Judiciary, within the last 30 days, promptly delete an expunged
record that it knows to be expunged, and provide for a free means by which an
individual may request a correction to their background check, including the
deletion of an expunged record within 30 days of the request.� In addition, the
bill eliminates the $200 limit on fines and further provides individuals who
are the subject of a wrongfully disclosed expunged records with a civil right
of action.

���� The bill also requires the
State Police and the Judiciary to adopt rules or regulations to ensure that
persons or entities who regularly access criminal history records, which
includes but is not limited to private background check providers, comply with
N.J.S.A.2C:52-30 concerning the non-disclosure of expunged records.

���� Finally, the bill provides
that if a professional licensing board in the Division of Consumer Affairs
suspends or revokes a license due to a criminal conviction, and that conviction
is later expunged, the professional licensing board is required to redact or
seal any reference to the expunged conviction in its records of suspension or
revocation; however, the fact of suspension or revocation itself is not
expunged.� This requirement under the bill is intended to mitigate the effects
E.A.
v. Real Estate Comm�n.
, 208
N.J.

Super.
65 (App. Div. 1986),
concerning licensing records that contain references to expunged convictions.