“Today, over 70 million Americans are living with past legal records that exclude us from jobs, housing, voting rights and other common activities. A survey of people living with past legal records in California found nearly eight in ten have confronted barriers to their success as a result, even though people who have gone years with no justice system involvement are no more likely to commit a new offense than those with no previous history in the system. Many of us are several years beyond those old records and are just trying to move forward with our lives. The negative impact remains not just on us as individuals, but also on our families. And because our records never go away, they remain obstacles to our economy and public safety, hindering us all.”