A proposed Montgomery County bill greatly expands the County’s law prohibiting employers from asking about the criminal histories of job applicants until after an initial interview. In 2014, the County passed its “Ban the Box” law, which applies to employers with fifteen or more employees. Councilmember Will Jawando proposed an amendment reducing the employee threshold from fifteen to one on July 29, 2020. If passed, any employer in the County employing one individual would have to comply with the mandates of the Ban the Box law.
What Else is in the Proposed Bill?
The proposed legislation also would push the timeline back for when an employer could inquire about criminal histories from after a first interview until after the employer makes a conditional offer of employment. Further, as currently drafted, the bill would prohibit employers from asking about certain criminal offenses. Under the proposed legislation, employers could not ask about or, run a criminal records check to discover, whether the applicant has:
- Any arrest records that did not lead to a conviction;
- A first conviction for:
a. Trespass;
b. Disturbing the peace; or
c. Second degree assault; - A conviction for a misdemeanor if at least three years have passed since:
a. The date of conviction; and
b. The date any period of incarceration for the misdemeanor has ended; - Juvenile records deemed confidential by statute; or
- Convictions that have been expunged.
The bill also prohibits employers from inquiring about these offenses when considering current employees for promotions.
The legislation delegates to the County Executive responsibility for preparing implementing regulations and regulations necessary to notify employees and employers of their rights and responsibilities under the legislation.
How Would the Bill Impact Employers?
If passed, the bill would significantly limit employer’s ability to investigate the criminal histories of applicants. The current Ban the Box law simply regulates the timeline for when employers can check the criminal histories of applicants. The public policy behind the current law is that employers may be willing to hire an applicant with a criminal history if the information is learned after the applicant has an opportunity to make a good impression during an initial interview. The proposed legislation, however, would ban inquiry into certain offenses preventing employers from considering them at all during the hiring process. The list of excluded offenses includes what some would consider more than simple nuisance crimes. For instance, a conviction for second-degree assault in Maryland can result from a defendant intentionally or recklessly causing physical contact or physical harm to another.
The legislation also could significantly slow down the hiring process. Employers would not discover an applicant’s criminal history until the end of the hiring process meaning employers might have to start the search again if the employer disqualifies a successful candidate because of a criminal record.
The Council held a public hearing on the bill on September 15, 2020 at which five speakers testified. The Council referred the bill to the Health & Human Services and Public Safety Committees for consideration. The council staff issued a work session staff report to the Committees on September 23, 2020. The next step is for the two Committees to make a recommendation to the full Council on the bill.
For more information, contact Michael at 301-657-0740 or [email protected].
