Thank you for all your letters and calls to pass AB1756 out of the Assembly.
AB 1756, the Starting Over Strong bill, seeks to eliminate the fee for juvenile record sealing and make the record sealing remedy equally accessible to all California youth.
Now that we are out of the Assembly, the bill goes next to the Senate Public Safety Committee.
Please continue to support AB 1756. Send a NEW letter of support to Senator Loni Hancock, Chair of the Senate Education Committee, by Tuesday, June 10th.
[SUPPORTING ORGANIZATION’S LETTERHEAD]
[DATE]
Senator Loni Hancock
Chair, Senate Public Safety Committee
Sacramento, CA 95814
Via Fax: (916) 445-4688
RE: SUPPORT FOR AB 1756 “STARTING OVER STRONG” (SKINNER)
Dear Senator Hancock,
[SUPPORTING ORGANIZATION] strongly supports AB 1756. This bill improves economic outcomes for California’s youth and, in so doing, protects public safety by eliminating an unnecessary barrier to reentry for youth who are eligible for and seeking the juvenile record sealing remedy.
[ADD BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SUPPORTING ORGANIZATION AND INTEREST IN THIS ISSUE]
Juvenile records create barriers to employment, housing and education for too many young people. An unsealed juvenile record can appear on a background check, and lead to an unfair decision that often excludes youth from employment, job training, housing, education and income supports. Without access to opportunities and resources, youth are trapped in the underground economy and low-wage work, increasing their chances for cycling back into court and incarceration.
Current law allows counties to charge young people up to $150 for sealing their juvenile record; a prohibitively expensive cost for California’s low and no-income youth. An inability to access the juvenile record remedy results in greater discrimination for young people across the state. This fee, as currently imposed, does not generate substantial revenue, and, even if it did, we should use this opportunity to invest in and support our youth instead of saddling them with additional financial burden. By eliminating the fee for record sealing for youth under age twenty-six, AB 1756 will increase public safety and reduce recidivism.
AB 1756 is a small change that will positively impact public safety and economic opportunity for California youth in big ways. For these reasons, we strongly support AB 1756.
Sincerely,
[NAME, TITLE]
CC: Assemblymember Nancy Skinner, fax: 916-319-2115