House Oversight and Reform Committee ranking member Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio (left), and Chairman Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md. Cummings has introduced legislation to codify banning the box.

House Oversight and Reform Committee ranking member Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio (left), and Chairman Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md. Cummings has introduced legislation to codify banning the box. J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Bill Would Ban Federal Contractors From Asking About Criminal History Early in Job Application Process

Legislation would codify delaying when federal hiring officials inquire about candidates’ criminal records, and apply the requirement to contractors as well.

A House committee appears poised to advance legislation that would enshrine in law a policy banning federal agencies from asking about a job applicant’s criminal history until after a conditional offer has been made, and expand that prohibition to federal contractors.

The Fair Chance Act (H.R. 1076), introduced by House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., codifies the so-called Ban the Box policy in federal law. In 2016, the Obama administration issued regulations to that effect, but the policy did not apply to private companies that do business with agencies, and can be rescinded administratively.

Most lawmakers seemed supportive of the measure during a joint hearing of the oversight panel’s Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties and the Subcommittee on Governmental Operations on Wednesday, although some expressed concern about the policy’s efficacy.

Proponents of banning the box say that for former prisoners, being forced to disclose their criminal record at the start of a job application process effectively blocks them from employment. Companies and agencies use the question as a tool to pare down applications without considering a candidate's qualifications or experience, so moving it to the end of the application process allows candidates with criminal records to compete on a more even footing with the rest of the applicant pool.

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., who cosponsored companion legislation in the Senate, described his work with a non-profit to help formerly incarcerated people to secure jobs as “the most inspirational activity my staff and I have been involved in since I took office.” He noted the significant impact securing a job has on reducing a former prisoner’s chance of reentering the criminal justice system.

“Those who maintain employment one year post-release have a 16 percent probability of returning to prison, versus a 52 percent probability for those without jobs,” Johnson said. “That is a significant difference.”

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., another Senate sponsor of the bill, outlined the uphill battle former prisoners face in finding a job when they must disclose their criminal history at the outset of the hiring process.

“[Disclosing] a criminal conviction reduces the likelihood of a job callback by 50 percent, something that is acutely felt by people of color,” Booker said. “[The] Fair Chance Act allows qualified people with criminal records to get their foot in the door and be judged by their merit, not a past conviction . . . An employer has a right to know [about a past conviction], but by placing it at the end of the process, it allows them to be judged objectively, rather than having their resume reflexively tossed out.”

Although most members of the House oversight subcommittees indicated they would support the measure, some Republicans were uneasy about whether the policy is effective in improving post-carceral employment. Former Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., and Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, have both asked the Government Accountability Office to study the impact of the Obama administration rule on federal hiring of former inmates, and Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, ranking member of the Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Subcommittee, cited studies that suggest that in practice, employers could substitute discrimination based on criminal history with broader race-based discrimination.

“[These studies’] analysis said that delaying the disclosure of this information could lead to discrimination of groups more likely to have a recent conviction,” Roy said. “It’s important that we look at that, and that’s why we have this inquiry in for the GAO study that we’re still waiting on.”

Teresa Hodge, a former inmate and longtime advocate of Ban the Box, noted that in one jurisdiction for which data are available–Washington, D.C.–the hiring of people with criminal records has increased 33 percent since the city implemented the policy.

“The crux of that study talks about how Ban the Box is not a cure-all, and we agree,” Hodge said. “But it’s a good first step.”

Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., noted a number of studies that found that the policy is effective, and said the suggestion that some employers could choose to discriminate based on race is a fundamentally different issue.

“I don’t know that it’s a powerful argument, even if it were true,” he said. “It’s like saying we shouldn’t have a pregnancy discrimination act because some employers say, ‘Then we’ll just discriminate on the basis of gender.’ You can’t use one form of discrimination to justify another form of discrimination . . . the core problem raised by these studies isn’t Ban the Box, but entrenched racism.”

And Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said concerns about institutional racism in hiring could be the basis of bipartisan cooperation on different legislation.

“If we are truly concerned about race-based and other forms of discrimination in employment, I’d be happy to work across the aisle and work with colleagues to strengthen and expand Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.”

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.