Texas Ban-the-Box and Fair Chance hiring — Ask HR AI

What changes in Texas

Ban-the-box scope: Statewide (HB 2466, eff. Sept 1, 2025) + Austin ordinance. HB 2466, effective September 1, 2025, is Texas's first statewide fair-chance statute. Public and private employers with 15 or more employees may not inquire about criminal history until the employer has determined the applicant is otherwise qualified, offered an interview, or extended a conditional offer. Independent contractors and gig workers are outside the statute, and roles where law requires a criminal-history check — law enforcement, healthcare, childcare, and certain financial-services positions — are carved out. Austin's Fair Chance Hiring Ordinance (private employers with 15+ workers) still layers on top.
Report lookback: 7 years convictions (Bus. & Com. Code §20.05). The Texas Business and Commerce Code §20.05 incorporates the FCRA seven-year cap into state law for non-convictions; convictions may be reported beyond seven years for positions paying $75,000+.

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"When can I ask about criminal history in California, and what individualized assessment is required? Focus on Texas."

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Practitioner steps for Texas

Step 1. Remove conviction questions from every Texas application when a covered ban-the-box or Fair Chance law applies (Statewide (HB 2466, eff. Sept 1, 2025) + Austin ordinance).
Step 2. Delay any criminal-history inquiry until the trigger point the TX statute or local ordinance requires — usually interview or conditional offer.
Step 3. Document your individualized assessment (nature of offense, time elapsed, job-relatedness) in the candidate file.
Step 4. Layer city ordinances (e.g. NYC, LA County, Philadelphia) on top of the Texas statute — always follow the stricter rule.

Applicable Texas statutes and references

Bus. & Com. Code §20.05
HB 2466 (2025)
Gov. Code §411 (DPS access)
Austin Fair Chance Hiring Ordinance
15 U.S.C. §1681 et seq. (federal FCRA)

Frequently asked (federal + Texas overlay)

What is a ban-the-box law?

Ban-the-Box (also called Fair Chance) laws prohibit employers from asking about criminal history at certain points in the hiring process — usually on the initial application, and often until after an interview or a conditional offer.

Which states have statewide ban-the-box laws for private employers?

Seventeen states plus the District of Columbia have statewide statutes reaching private employers: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington. Texas joined September 1, 2025 under HB 2466 (employers with 15+ employees), and Virginia's Clean Slate sealed-record inquiry ban took effect July 1, 2026. Washington's amended Fair Chance Act applies to employers with 15+ employees as of July 1, 2026 and to smaller employers January 1, 2027. Many additional states cover only public-sector hiring.

What is an individualized assessment?

An individualized assessment is a documented review of whether a specific conviction should disqualify a specific candidate, weighing factors such as the nature and gravity of the offense, the time that has passed, and the nature of the job being sought — as required by EEOC guidance and codified in California's Fair Chance Act and NYC's Fair Chance Act.

Does ban-the-box apply if we run the background check after an offer?

Often yes. Many jurisdictions restrict not just when you can ask about criminal history on the application, but also what analysis you must perform after the report comes back — including a documented individualized assessment and separate pre-adverse and adverse action notices with an opportunity to respond.

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Ask HR AI is not legal advice. Confirm any final answers or suggested actions with your employment legal counsel before acting on them.

Ban-the-Box and Fair Chance hiring in Texas.