Prince George’s County, Maryland has expanded its “ban the box” ordinance. Currently, the county’s ordinance only delays the consideration of a conviction record until after an interview, and allows employers to deny an offer based on an employee’s criminal record before the final employment decision. The new legislation goes further by prohibiting the consideration of certain convictions entirely, provided enough time has passed since the sentence was served.
Specifically, employers are prohibited from inquiring into or considering at any time the following types of following types of records:
- Convictions where the sentence of the applicant was completed for a nonviolent felony, at least 5 years or 60 months before the employment application.
- Convictions where the sentence of the applicant was completed for a misdemeanor, at least 30 months before the application.
- Arrests that did not result in a conviction, except where the result was probation before judgement. In such cases, these are treated as misdemeanors.
- Arrests or convictions for possession of marijuana, cannabis, or cannabis-related materials or paraphernalia, provided any sentence for such crime has been completed, unless it was a conviction that included an intent to distribute.
Additionally, while the ordinance currently applies to employers with 25 or more employees, the amended ordinance will apply to employers with 10 or more employees.
The ordinance goes into effect on September 16, 2024.
