The bill sponsored by Republican Senator Jimmy Higdon of Lebanon would make all Class D felonies that don't involve sexual crimes open to expungement after 10 years.
Higdon said some folks were just 'young and dumb," and still have felonies on their record that deny them some rights and hinder employment chances.
"This is not a 'soft on crime,' issue, this is a jobs issue, and that's what brought me to work on expungements," Higdon said.
Senate Bill 57 expands on a 2016 law that allowed some low-level felony offenders to apply after five years.
Senate President Robert Stivers, said, "You're basically creating a legal fiction as if the conviction never existed, therefore restoring all voting rights and all gun rights."
Higdon said there have been about 2,000 expungements granted and 300 denied since the enactment of the 2016 law.
The bill also calls for the offender to pay the $500 fee, a point that has been criticized by civil rights groups who argue it puts an expungement out of reach for some.
The bill now moves to the full Senate.
