A measure to expand cases when eviction records can be sealed has advanced out of a House committee.
Proponents say unsealed eviction notices can taint a renter’s record even if an eviction is never carried out. That makes it difficult for renters to find a new home.
Bob Palmer of Housing Action Illinois says,“We understand that landlords have a compelling interest in wanting to screen tenants so they can get good tenants, but we don't think that just having an eviction filing is a good reflection on someone's ability to be a good tenant.”
A Republican lawmaker who cast a “no” vote said she did so because the bill as it stands is too broad and that it creates a new cost for county clerks.
Margo McDermed, a Republican from Mokena, “We certainly don't want to have a situation where folks that should have been evicted and are worried that they didn’t actually have the proper notice of that behavior on their credit records. So we have to somehow walk that line and get the right remedy for the problem.”
A report last year found that of about 57,000 eviction cases in 2016, more than 50 percent didn't end up in actual evictions.
