Fresh Start Act Offers States $5M Grants to Automate Record Clearing, Eliminating Fines as Barrier

The Fresh Start Act of 2025 is setting up a new federal grant program designed to inject cash into state justice systems, specifically to automate the process of clearing criminal records. Think of it as federal funding for a major software upgrade aimed at giving people a genuine second chance.

The Upgrade: Automatic Record Clearance

The core of this legislation (SEC. 3) is a grant program, run by the Attorney General, offering up to $5 million per state. This money isn't for just anything, though. It’s strictly for building the data infrastructure necessary to make expungement or sealing of records automatic. Right now, if you’re eligible to clear your record, you usually have to hire a lawyer, fill out endless forms, and pay fees—a process that is so difficult and costly that most eligible people never complete it. This bill defines "automatic" as the state handling the entire process without the person having to file any paperwork.

No More Fees as Roadblocks

To even be considered for this federal cash, a state has to meet a crucial requirement (SEC. 3): it must already have a law ensuring that a person’s ability to get their record cleared or sealed cannot be blocked just because they haven't paid related fees or fines. For anyone who has struggled to find a job or housing because of an old record, this is huge. It means the federal government is putting its weight behind the idea that financial hardship shouldn't permanently sideline someone from getting a fresh start.

Following the Money: The State’s Share

If your state successfully applies, the money comes with strings attached (SEC. 4). First, only a small amount—up to 10%—can be used for planning and research. The rest must go directly into building the necessary data systems. Second, the federal grant will cover a maximum of 75% of the implementation costs. This means the state itself has to kick in at least 25% of the total budget. For state legislatures, this is the catch: they get $5 million from the feds, but they have to commit their own tax dollars to make the new system work. This ensures the states have real skin in the game.

Mandatory Transparency and Data

Here’s where the policy meets the public interest (SEC. 5). States that take the grant money must report back to the Attorney General annually with detailed data. They have to report the total number of people who qualify for automatic clearance, the number who actually received it, and the number of pending applications. Crucially, all this data must be broken down by race, ethnicity, and gender. This level of mandated transparency means we, the public, will finally get a clearer picture of who is benefiting from these laws and if the new automatic systems are working equitably. If the state can't collect the data, they have to submit a detailed plan on how they will fix their systems to collect it going forward.

Overall, this Act is a major step toward modernizing the justice system's administrative functions. It uses federal dollars ($50 million authorized annually for five years, per SEC. 6) to incentivize states to remove one of the most common, yet absurd, barriers to reintegration: the paperwork and the inability to pay old fines. It’s a classic example of using targeted federal funding to drive state-level policy change that directly impacts people’s ability to participate fully in the economy.