H.B. 312
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
Mar 16, 2021
SESSION 2021 HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK
H D
HOUSE BILL DRH10129-ST-15
Short Title: Qualifications for Sheriff/Expunction. (Public)
Sponsors: Representative McNeill.
Referred to:
1 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
2 AN ACT TO REQUIRE A CANDIDATE OR APPOINTEE FOR THE OFFICE OF SHERIFF
3 TO DISCLOSE ALL FELONY CONVICTIONS, INCLUDING ANY EXPUNGED
4 CONVICTIONS.
5 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
6 SECTION 1. G.S. 162-2 reads as rewritten:
7 "§ 162-2. Disqualifications for the office.
8 (a) No person shall be eligible for the office of sheriff who is if any of the following
9 apply:
10 (1) The person is not of the age of 21 years, years.
11 (2) The person has been convicted of a felony in this State, the United States, or
12 any other state, whether or not that person has been restored to the rights of
13 citizenship or granted an expunction. This subdivision shall not include an
14 unconditional pardon of innocence.
15 (3) or has The person is not resided a qualified voter in the county in which he the
16 candidate is chosen for one year immediately preceding his election. chosen.
17 (b) Notwithstanding Article 5 of Chapter 15A of the General Statutes, any person filing
18 a notice of candidacy, or any appointee selected to fill a vacancy, to the office of sheriff shall
19 provide a statement of disclosure prepared by the North Carolina Sheriffs' Education and
20 Training Standards Commission in accordance with Article 3 of Chapter 17E of the General
21 Statutes.
22 (c) No person shall engage in the practice of law or serve as a member of the General
23 Assembly while serving as sheriff."
24 SECTION 2. G.S. 163-106 reads as rewritten:
25 "§ 163-106. Notices of candidacy; pledge; with whom filed; date for filing.
26 …
27 (e) Disclosure of Felony Conviction. – At Except for candidates to the office of sheriff
28 as provided in subsection (f) of this section, at the same time the candidate files notice of
29 candidacy under this section and G.S. 163-106.1, 163-106.2, 163-106.3, 163-106,5, and
30 163-106.6, the candidate shall file with the same office a statement answering the following
31 question: "Have you ever been convicted of a felony?" The State Board of Elections shall adapt
32 the notice of candidacy form to include the statement required by this subsection. The form shall
33 make clear that a felony conviction need not be disclosed if the conviction was dismissed as a
34 result of reversal on appeal or resulted in a pardon of innocence or expungement. The form shall
35 require a candidate who answers "yes" to the question to provide the name of the offense, the
36 date of conviction, the date of the restoration of citizenship rights, and the county and state of
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1 conviction. The form shall require the candidate to swear or affirm that the statements on the
2 form are true, correct, and complete to the best of the candidate's knowledge or belief. The form
3 shall be available as a public record in the office of the board of elections where the candidate
4 files notice of candidacy and shall contain an explanation that a prior felony conviction does not
5 preclude holding elective office if the candidate's rights of citizenship have been restored. This
6 subsection shall also apply to individuals who become candidates for election by the people under
7 G.S. 163-114, 163-122, 163-123, 163-98, 115C-37, 130A-50, Article 24 of this Chapter, or any
8 other statute or local act. Those individuals shall complete the question at the time the documents
9 are filed initiating their candidacy. The State Board of Elections shall adapt those documents to
10 include the statement required by this subsection. If an individual does not complete the statement
11 required by this subsection, the board of elections accepting the filing shall notify the individual
12 of the omission, and the individual shall have 48 hours after notice to complete the statement. If
13 the individual does not complete the statement at the time of filing or within 48 hours after the
14 notice, the individual's filing is not complete, the individual's name shall not appear on the ballot
15 as a candidate, and votes for the that individual shall not be counted. It is a Class I felony to
16 complete the form knowing that information as to felony conviction or restoration of citizenship
17 is untrue. This subsection shall not apply to candidates required by G.S. 138A-22(f) to file
18 Statements of Economic Interest.
19 (f) Every candidate to the office of sheriff, at the time of filing the notice of candidacy,
20 shall file a valid disclosure statement prepared in accordance with G.S. 17E-20 verifying that the
21 candidate has no prior felony convictions or expungements of felony convictions. If a candidate
22 does not file such valid disclosure statement required by this subsection, that candidate's filing is
23 not complete, the candidate's name shall not appear on the ballot as a candidate, and votes for
24 that candidate shall not be counted in accordance with Section 2 of Article VII of the North
25 Carolina Constitution."
26 SECTION 3.(a) G.S. 17E-1 through G.S. 17E-6 and G.S. 17E-10 are recodified as
27 Article 1 of Chapter 17E of the General Statutes as follows:
28 "Article 1.
29 "General."
30 SECTION 3.(b) G.S. 17E-7 through G.S. 17E-19, with the exception of
31 G.S. 17E-10, are recodified as Article 2 of Chapter 17E of the General Statutes as follows:
32 "Article 2.
33 "Justice Officers."
34 SECTION 3.(c) When recodifying pursuant to this section, the Revisor may separate
35 subsections of existing statutory sections into new sections and, when necessary to organize
36 relevant law into its proper place in Chapter 17E of the General Statutes, as amended by this act,
37 may rearrange sentences that currently appear within subsections. The Revisor may modify
38 statutory citations throughout the General Statutes, as appropriate, and may modify any
39 references to statutory divisions, such as "Chapter," "Subchapter," "Article," "Part," "section,"
40 and "subsection," adjust the order of lists of multiple statutes to maintain statutory order, correct
41 terms and conform names and titles changed by this act, and make conforming changes to catch
42 lines and references to catch lines. The Revisor may also adjust subject and verb agreement and
43 the placement of conjunctions. The Revisor shall consult with the North Carolina Sheriffs'
44 Education and Training Standards Commission on this recodification.
45 SECTION 4. G.S. 17E-4(b), as recodified by Section 3 of this act, is amended by
46 adding a new subdivision to read:
47 "(13) Prepare disclosure statements for candidates and potential appointees for the
48 office of sheriff with respect to felony convictions and expunctions, as
49 provided for in this Chapter. The Commission may charge a fee of the
50 applicant to cover the cost of any criminal history check."
51 SECTION 5. G.S. 17E-11, as recodified by Section 3 of this act, reads as rewritten:
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1 "§ 17E-11. Application and construction of Chapter.Article.
2 (a) Nothing in this Chapter Article shall apply to the sheriff elected by the people.
3 (b) Nothing in this Chapter Article shall be construed as modifying the character of a
4 sheriff from an elective office, or as modifying the character of the office of deputy sheriff from
5 an appointive office.
6 (c) If a justice officer, or a criminal justice officer as defined in G.S. 17C-2(c), becomes
7 sheriff, the justice officer is not required to maintain certification for the period served as sheriff.
8 The Commission shall reinstate certification upon the conclusion of the period of service as
9 sheriff and in conformance with the rules of the Commission for the application for certification."
10 SECTION 6. Chapter 17E of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new
11 Article to read:
12 "Article 3.
13 "Sheriffs.
14 "§ 17E-20. Disclosure of convictions and expungements for the office of sheriff.
15 (a) Each individual filing, or intending to file, a notice of candidacy for election, or any
16 individual prior to appointment to fill a vacancy to the office of sheriff shall request the
17 Commission to prepare a disclosure statement verifying that individual has no prior felony
18 convictions or expungements of felony convictions. The individual shall provide such
19 information as required by the Commission for the completion of the disclosure statement,
20 including any evidence that the individual has been granted an unconditional pardon of innocence
21 for a felony crime in this State, any other state, or the United States, and any fee to cover the cost
22 of the criminal background check.
23 (b) Upon the request of an individual filing, or intending to file, a notice of candidacy for
24 election as sheriff, or any individual prior to appointment to fill a vacancy to the office of sheriff,
25 the Commission shall prepare a disclosure statement verifying that the individual has no prior
26 felony convictions or expungements for felony convictions. The disclosure statement shall be in
27 a format as determined by the Commission, but shall include at least all of the following:
28 (1) Name of the individual.
29 (2) Date the disclosure statement was prepared.
30 (3) County of residence of the individual.
31 (4) A statement that the individual has no prior felony convictions or
32 expungements for felony convictions, if in fact the individual has no prior
33 felony convictions or expungements for felony convictions.
34 (c) In preparing the disclosure statement, the Commission shall do at least all of the
35 following:
36 (1) Conduct a criminal history record check of State and national databases to
37 determine if the individual has a record of a felony conviction.
38 (2) Contact the Administrative Office of the Courts and request confirmation of
39 whether or not the individual has previously received an expunction of a
40 felony record.
41 (3) Determine if the individual has ever been convicted of a felony in violation of
42 Section 2 of Article VII of the North Carolina Constitution.
43 (d) Any request for a disclosure statement, any supporting documentation used in the
44 preparation of any disclosure statement, and any disclosure statement prepared by the
45 Commission in accordance with this section is confidential and not a public record under Chapter
46 132 of the General Statutes.
47 "§§ 17E-21 through 17E-24. Reserved.
48 "§ 17E-25. Expunction records access.
49 Notwithstanding G.S. 15A-145.4 or G.S. 15A-145.5, the Commission may gain access to an
50 individual's felony conviction records, including those maintained by the Administrative Office
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1 of the Courts in its confidential files containing the names of persons granted expunctions for the
2 purposes of this Article.
3 "§§ 17E-26 through 17E-29. Reserved.
4 "§ 17E-30. Expiration of disclosure of convictions and expungements for the office of
5 sheriff.
6 Any disclosure statement prepared by the Commission shall be valid for the purpose of filing
7 in accordance with G.S. 163-106, 162-5, or 162-5.1 for 90 days after issuance."
8 SECTION 7. G.S. 15A-151(a) reads as rewritten:
9 "(a) The Administrative Office of the Courts shall maintain a confidential file for
10 expungements containing the petitions granted under this Article and the names of those people
11 for whom it received a notice under G.S. 15A-150. The information contained in the file may be
12 disclosed only as follows:
13 (1) Upon request of a judge of the General Court of Justice of North Carolina for
14 the purpose of ascertaining whether a person charged with an offense has been
15 previously granted a discharge or an expunction.
16 (2) Upon request of a person requesting confirmation of the person's own
17 discharge or expunction.
18 (3) To the General Court of Justice of North Carolina in response to a subpoena
19 or other court order issued pursuant to a civil action under G.S. 15A-152.
20 (4) Upon request of State or local law enforcement, if the criminal record was
21 expunged pursuant to G.S. 15A-145.4, 15A-145.5, or 15A-145.6 under this
22 Chapter for employment purposes only.
23 (5) Upon the request of the North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and
24 Training Standards Commission, if the criminal record was expunged
25 pursuant to G.S. 15A-145.4, 15A-145.5, or 15A-145.6 under this Chapter for
26 certification purposes only.
27 (6) Upon request of the North Carolina Sheriff's Standards Commission, if the
28 criminal record was expunged pursuant to G.S. 15A-145.4, 15A-145.5, or
29 15A-145.6 under this Chapter for certification purposes only.
30 (7) To the district attorney in accordance with G.S. 15A-151.5.
31 (8) Upon request of the North Carolina Sheriffs' Education and Training
32 Standards Commission, if the criminal record was expunged under this
33 Chapter for purposes of preparing a disclosure statement in accordance with
34 Article 3 of Chapter 17E of the General Statutes."
35 SECTION 8.(a) G.S. 15A-153 reads as rewritten:
36 "§ 15A-153. Effect of expunction; prohibited practices by employers, educational
37 institutions, agencies of State and local governments.
38 …
39 (e) [Exceptions. –] The provisions of subsection (d) of this section do not apply to any
40 applicant or licensee seeking or holding any certification issued by the North Carolina Criminal
41 Justice Education and Training Standards Commission pursuant to Article 1 of Chapter 17C of
42 the General Statutes or the North Carolina Sheriffs Education and Training Standards
43 Commission pursuant to Article 2 of Chapter 17E of the General Statutes:
44 (1) Convictions expunged pursuant to G.S. 15A-145.4. – Persons pursuing
45 certification under the provisions of Article 1 of Chapter 17C or Article 2 of
46 Chapter 17E of the General Statutes shall disclose any and all felony
47 convictions to the certifying Commission regardless of whether or not the
48 felony convictions were expunged pursuant to the provisions of
49 G.S. 15A-145.4.
50 (2) Convictions expunged pursuant to G.S. 15A-145.5. – Persons pursuing
51 certification under the provisions of Article 1 of Chapter 17C or Article 2 of
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1 Chapter 17E of the General Statutes shall disclose any and all convictions to
2 the certifying Commission regardless of whether or not the convictions were
3 expunged pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 15A-145.5.
4 (e1) The provisions of subsection (d) of this section do not apply to any individual
5 requesting a disclosure statement be prepared by the North Carolina Sheriffs' Education and
6 Training Standards Commission pursuant to Article 3 of Chapter 17E of the General Statutes.
7 …."
8 SECTION 8.(b) G.S. 15A-145.4 reads as rewritten:
9 "§ 15A-145.4. Expunction of records for first offenders who are under 18 years of age at
10 the time of the commission of a nonviolent felony.
11 …
12 (f) No person as to whom an order has been entered pursuant to subsection (e) of this
13 section shall be held thereafter under any provision of any laws to be guilty of perjury or
14 otherwise giving a false statement by reason of that person's failur