This week the D.C. Council granted final approval to a bill that will lower the barrier for residents with criminal records to find employment.

Passed unanimously on its final reading during the final meeting of the legislative session, the Removing Barriers to Occupational Licensing for Returning Citizens Amendment Act includes a slew of safeguards to prevent licensing boards from denying employment opportunities based on criminal records.

Per the new law, boards would be barred from withholding a license based on a criminal conviction unless it is currently pending or “directly related” to the occupation. Boards will also be prohibited from considering arrests that never resulted in a conviction, as well sealed, expunged, or vacated records. Additionally, the measure repeals a “good moral character” clause — an often vague requirement in found in licensing and other financial applications (and that a Pennsylvania court recently called “absurd, discriminatory, and unconstitutional.”)

Earlier this year, the District’s protections for criminal-record-holding citizens seeking occupational licenses received a C- grade in a nationwide report on licensing barriers from the Institute for Justice. According to a 2019 D.C. Policy Center report, 12% of the city’s private sector jobs are regulated by a licensing board — and while workers may typically earn more in a licensed occupation, the regulatory burdens of obtaining one often create barriers for low-income residents, returning citizens, or those with criminal records.

In a press release following the council’s approval of the bill, the Institute for Justice said the sweeping measures will boost the city’s ranking to an A-.

“An honest living is one of the best ways to prevent re-offending. But strict occupational licensing requirements make it harder for ex-offenders to find work,” said the Institute’s activism policy manager Chad Reese, who submitted testimony in favor of the bill. “This bill will eliminate many licensing barriers that have little basis in common sense and unfairly deny countless Americans looking for a fresh start.”

In addition to the regulatory changes, the new legislation also includes two oversight provisions — one that would allow ex-offenders to petition a licensing board for any disqualifications prior to investing time and money in the application process (per an Institute for Justice study in 2017, obtaining an occupational license in D.C. costs on average $400 in fees, and 261 days of education and experience.) Another will require the mayor’s office to submit a yearly report of all applications submitted by residents with criminal records, and all licenses approved from those applications.

The bill joins other measures approved this legislative session aimed at bolstering employment opportunity in the District and reforming the impact of criminal sentencing; one gives  hospitality workers laid-off during the pandemic first dibs on job openings as they become available and another allows felons convicted of violent crimes before they turned 25 to petition for early release after serving 15 years of their sentence.