H.R. 3470: Fair Chance Act

114th Congress · introduced 2015-09-10 · Government Operations and Politics · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2015-09-10 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Cummings, Elijah E. [D-MD-7] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Fair Chance Act

Plain summary

Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2015 or the Fair Chance Act This bill prohibits federal agencies and federal contractors from requesting that applicants for employment disclose criminal history record information before receiving a conditional offer (an offer of employment conditioned upon the results of a criminal history inquiry). The bill sets forth positions to which such prohibition shall not apply, such as positions for which prior consideration of criminal history record information is otherwise required by law, positions with law enforcement and national security duties, and positions requiring access to classified information. The bill prohibits agencies from requiring an individual or sole proprietor who submits a bid for a contract to disclose criminal history record information regarding that individual or sole proprietor before determining the apparent awardee. The Director of the Office of Personnel Management, the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance, the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, the Administrator of General Services, and the Secretary of Defense must: (1) establish procedures for submitting complaints about, and taking adverse actions against, agency employees and contractors for violating such prohibitions and for appealing such an adverse action; and (2) issue regulations to implement this Act. The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council shall revise the Federal Acquisition Regulation to implement the requirements of this Act. The Department of Labor, in coordination with the Bureau of the Census and the Bureau of Justice Statistics, must study and report every five years on the employment of individuals who are released from federal prison after completing a term of imprisonment for a federal criminal offense.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Fair Chance Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Cummings, Elijah E. [D-MD-7] · 26 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Darrell Issa (R-CA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Adam Smith (D-WA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Hakeem S. Jeffries (D-NY), Bill Foster (D-IL)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Rulemaking: The process agencies use to write regulations that carry out laws passed by Congress or a legislature. Usually an agency publishes a proposed rule, takes public comments, then publishes a final rule.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-114hr3470.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/114/hr>

Record fed-us-cong114-hr3470 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114