Introducing Clean Slate
Clean Slate is a bipartisan policy model that uses technology to automate arrest and conviction record clearance if a person stays crime-free for a period of time. It's a proven and successful model to implement commonsense policies that create transformational changes in people's lives.
Clean Slate is rooted in the American Dream - the belief that if you work hard, you should be able to get ahead and provide for your family. Everyone deserves a shot at redemption. People who have made mistakes, paid their debt to society, and now want to make a better life for themselves and those who depend on them deserve a chance to do so.
Clean Slate Updates
Reflections from CSI's 2022 Annual Convening
In May 2022, partners from across the country gathered in Detroit for the Clean Slate Initiative’s 1st Annual Convening. While we certainly did our fair share celebrating policy wins, the Convening focused on building the movement’s future.
Read some of our key takeaways from the Convening.
Why We Need Clean Slate
1 in 3
Americans has a criminal record.
Any criminal record—even an arrest that never led to conviction—can be a lifelong barrier to opportunity.
9 in 10
Employers use background checks in hiring.
Applicants with a record are nearly half as likely to get a callback or a job offer.
1 in 2
Children has a parent with a criminal record.
Having a parent with a record can hamper kids’ brain development, school performance, and even future earnings.
$87 billion
In lost GDP every year.
Shutting people with records out of the labor market takes a huge toll on the U.S. economy.