Senate Committee Kills Ban the Box Legislation

On Thursday, Assembly Bill 1831 by Assemblymember Roger Dickinson was killed in the in the Senate Governance and Finance Committee. The bill would have prohibited requesting criminal background information on the initial employment application for local employees, with the goal of reducing unnecessary barriers to employment for the one in four adult Californians who have an arrest or conviction record and are struggling to find work.

This would “delay the consideration of an applicant’s criminal history until after the agency has determined the applicant’s qualifications meet the requirements for the job position.”

“I am extremely disappointed that the Governance and Finance Committee failed to consider the groundbreaking impacts of this legislation. By simply delaying the criminal background check inquiry, applicants could be given the opportunity to demonstrate their job qualifications without the stigma of a past record,” said Assemblymember Dickinson. “Instead, California local governments will be able to continue to unreasonably deny employment at the outset based on past criminal convictions.”

According to the bill analysis, “An estimated one in four adult Californians has an arrest or conviction record on file with the state, creating major, unnecessary employment barriers. Otherwise qualified individuals are often discouraged from applying for work in the public and private sectors because of a conviction history inquiry on the application.”

” ‘Realignment’ (AB 109) of California’s criminal justice system seeks to produce budgetary savings by reducing recidivism and promoting rehabilitation,” the analysis argues.  “Employment of eligible people with a conviction history is key to the success of realignment at the local level, as studies have shown that stable employment significantly lowers recidivism and promotes public safety.”

One study found that only 8% of those who were employed for a year within three years after release committed another crime, compared to an overall 54% recidivism rate. Not only would this bill increase public safety, but also help fuel a strong economic recovery.

Bill Sponsor Assemblymember Roger Dickinson told the Vanguard on Monday that the legislation would prohibit a city or county from asking about criminal history on a job application unless the position itself is in law enforcement or otherwise requires a state background check – such as positions that require working with kids.

However, the legislation would only impact the information on the initial application.  Nothing would prevent the hiring agency from conducting a background check at a later point.

“They could not ask initially, but then if the person got through the initial review of the application, they could subsequently ask about criminal history,” Assemblymember Dickinson said.  “They could always do a background check if they wanted to do that.”

One of the questions that arises is how big an advantage it would be to an applicant to have that aspect of the law changed.

“What seems to happen a lot is that people who apply for jobs don’t even get any consideration if they indicate they’ve got some criminal history, they just automatically get discarded as potential applicants,” the Assemblymember said.  “The advantage here is that at least people would be able to get a foot in the door.  They would be evaluated on their qualifications separate and apart from any criminal history.  That way they have at least a chance to be looked at as someone who would be worthy of the job for which their applying rather than just summarily dismissed as a possibility.”

Unfortunately, while the scope of the law was relatively limited, the bill ran into significant opposition.

Cities and counties have opposed this on the basis that they do not want the state to dictate how they conduct their job application process.

One of those opposing the bill is Senator Lois Wolk, who Chairs the Senate Government and Finance Committee which will hear this bill on Wednesday.

The Vanguard attempted to speak with the senator to understand her concerns about this bill, but unfortunately her spokesperson informed the Vanguard that the senator’s schedule was impacted with committee hearings and critical votes.

The Bill’s sponsor Roger Dickinson, however, argued, “I think the state has a compelling interest because we are trying through criminal justice realignment to reduce the reliance on incarceration as a method of addressing offenders.”

Realignment hopes to move those convicted of relatively minor crimes back to the counties in hopes that the better availability of services will enable them to break the cycle and reduce the rate at which they re-offend.

“Since we know that the best way to prevent an offender form re-offending is for that person to have a job, this is a step in the direction of trying to give people some assistance in having a real shot at getting work,” he said.

He argued that employment, therefore, increases public safety and reduces recidivism and reduces cost.

Assemblymember Dickinson said, “Hopefully what we’ll be able to do if we can get this bill signed into law, is set an example that people that have offended nevertheless can be very useful and valuable employees.”

“We will lead the way in encouraging other employers to adopt the same practice,” he added.

Now the legislation will have to wait for another day.

“I plan to reintroduce this bill next year in the hopes that my colleagues will join me in an effort to open doors, not shut them, for qualified job applicants who have turned their lives around,” Assemblymember Dickinson said in a release on Thursday.

—David M. Greenwald reporting

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