Newsletter NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2025
What to Know About Clean Slate House Bill 1836 All information in this article is from Clean Slate Illinois. As a reminder, we do not have attorneys on staff at CTJC, and this does not serve as legal advice. For more information, visit cleanslateillinois.org or consult your attorney. 1. How will Illinois be ready to automate the record sealing process? The Clean Slate Act includes an implementation timeline to give agencies the necessary time to prepare. It establishes the Clean Slate Task Force, a five-year oversight body composed of key stakeholders, legislators, advocates, and members of the public. The Task Force will guide implementation by reviewing best practices and case studies from other states, and by helping develop effective communication channels and procedures for accurate record matching. 2. How will the Clean Slate (automated sealing) process work? Under the Clean Slate process, the Illinois State Police (ISP) will identify records eligible for automatic sealing and notify the circuit clerk in all 102 counties through the statewide e-filing system. Circuit clerks will then seal the records and send notice to arresting agencies. 3. Who oversees the Clean Slate Task Force? The Task Force meets quarterly and reports annually to the Illinois General Assembly. The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA) is responsible for administrative support. 4. What convictions are eligible for automatic sealing under Clean Slate? All misdemeanor convictions, ordinance violations, and Class 1, 2, 3, and 4 felony convictions are eligible for automatic sealing unless listed below. 5. Convictions Ineligible under Petition-Based and Automatic Sealing Sex Offenses under Article 11 of the Criminal Code (except Prostitution or misdemeanor public indecency) Domestic Battery and Aggravated Battery of an Unborn Child Violations of Orders of Protection, Violations of Stalking No Contact Order, or Violation of Civil No Contact Order Dog Fighting and any other Class A misdemeanor or felony conviction under the Humane Care for Animals Act (510 ILCS 70/) Driving Under the Influence or Reckless Driving Any conviction requiring registration on the Sex Offense Registration Act 6. Convictions Ineligible for Automatic Sealing (remains eligible for petition-based sealing) Class X Felonies Homicide Offenses under Article 9 of the Criminal Code Convictions for Robbery, Residential Burglary, Burglary (Class 1 or 2 only), Vehicular Hijacking, Trafficking, Indentured Servitude, and Organized Retail Crime Convictions for a “Crime of Violence” as defined by the Drug Court Treatment Act (730 ILCS 166/20), which ncludes the following (not already listed specifically above): Armed Robbery, Arson, Kidnapping, Aggravated Battery Resulting in Great Bodily Harm or Permanent Injury, Stalking, Home Invasion,
Aggravated Vehicular Hijacking, or any offense involving discharge of a firearm 7. What if a conviction is not eligible for automatic sealing under Clean Slate? If a conviction record is not eligible for automatic sealing, but is eligible under current law (convictions above), they can still file a petition in court if the waiting period has passed. 8. What other types of records are eligible for automatic sealing under Clean Slate? Clean Slate covers non-conviction records too! Non-conviction records include cases resulting in dismissal, acquittal, and successfully completed supervision and qualified probation sentences programs (710-1410 probation, TASC probation, Second Chance probation). 9. What other types of records are eligible for automatic sealing under Clean Slate? Clean Slate covers non-conviction records too! Non-conviction records include cases resulting in dismissal, acquittal, and successfully completed supervision and qualified probation sentences programs (710-1410 probation, TASC probation, Second Chance probation). 10. When will the automated sealing process start in Illinois? The Illinois State Police (ISP) will begin to develop and program its criminal history record systems on July 1, 2026. The system is set to go live on January 1, 2029. There are two timelines: records created after January 1, 2029, and records created between 1970 and January 1, 2029. 11. When are records eligible for automatic sealing under Clean Slate? Eligible cases after January 1, 2029 will be automatically sealed based on the timelines below.* Dismissals and Acquittals Immediately after conclusion of the case Supervision + Qualified Probation 2 after after completion of sentence Misdemeanor + Ordinance Convictions 2 after after completion of sentence Felony Convictions 3 years after completion of last felony conviction sentence 12. When will cases before 2029 be automatically sealed under Clean Slate? A phased process to seal past eligible criminal records is based on the timelines outlined in the table below, so long as the waiting period has been met, detailed below.*
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