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HR 1434 108th Congress House Crime and Law Enforcement Alcoholism Community service (Punishment) Court records Criminal investigation Criminal justice information Criminal procedure District courts Drug abuse Drug abuse treatment Education Educational tests Electronic government information Elementary and secondary education Employee selection Ex-offenders Federal law enforcement officers Fines (Penalties) Firearms Firearms control

Second Chance for Ex-Offenders Act of 2003

Introduced: March 25, 2003 See on congress.gov
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This bill died when the 108th Congress ended
It never became law before the 108th Congress (2003–2004) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
May 5, 2003
Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
Mar 25, 2003
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Mar 25, 2003
Introduced in House
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 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service
Second Chance for Ex-Offenders Act of 2003 - Amends the Federal criminal code to allow an individual to file a petition for expungement of a record of conviction for a nonviolent criminal offense if such individual has: (1) never been convicted of another violent offense; (2) fulfilled all requirements of the sentence of the court in which conviction was obtained; (3) remained free from dependency on or abuse of alcohol or a controlled substance for a minimum of one year and has been rehabilitated, to the court's satisfaction, if so required by the terms of supervised release; (4) obtained a high school diploma or completed a high school equivalency program; and (5) completed at least one year of community service.

Authorizes an individual convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor to file an expungement petition. Directs the court, in ruling on such petition, after determining petitioner eligibility, to weigh the petitioner's interests against the best interests of justice and public safety.

Authorizes the Department of Justice to maintain a nonpublic manual or computerized index of expunged records, to be made available only to Federal and State law enforcement personnel who have custody of such records for limited disclosure purposes.

Requires the restoration of expunged records of individuals subsequently convicted of any Federal or State offense.

What's happening now May 5, 2003

Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
 Cosponsors 5
All 5 Democratic 5
D
Meeks, Gregory W.
New York · Jul 22, 2004
 D
Waters, Maxine
California · Jan 27, 2004
 D
Thompson, Bennie G.
Mississippi · Nov 19, 2003
 D
Davis, Danny K.
Illinois · Nov 5, 2003
 D
Norton, Eleanor Holmes
District of Columbia · Nov 5, 2003
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 1434: Second Chance for Ex-Offenders Act of 2003. 108th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/108-HR-1434/
MLA
"H.R. 1434: Second Chance for Ex-Offenders Act of 2003." 108th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/108-HR-1434/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 1434, 108th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/108-HR-1434/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 1434: Second Chance for Ex-Offenders Act of 2003](https://openamerica.io/bill/108-HR-1434/)
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