BLAIR LEE III, Acting Governor                        3043

Senate Bill 551, which was enacted by the General
Assembly and signed by me on May 29, 1978, clarifies and
otherwise amends numerous provisions of the Juvenile Causes
law. These changes include a repeal of the provisions for
the expungement of the records which are the subject of
Senate Bill 354. However, both Senate Bills 354 and 551
retain the authority of the court to seal any court records
of a juvenile.

Obviously, with respect to the expungement of records
in cases in which an adjudication has not been made, these
two bills are inconsistent. The sponsors of Senate Bill 551
have advised me that the purpose for repealing the
expungement provision is that the sealing of records
provides sufficient confidentiality for the juvenile. In
fact, the records, once sealed, may not be opened for any
purpose except by court order upon a showing of good cause.

The General Assembly has presented to me two different
policy decisions with regard to the expungement of juvenile
records in certain cases. I have chosen to sign Senate Bill
551. The sponsor of Senate Bill 354 has advised me that he
does not object to a veto of the bill under these
circumstances.

For these reasons, I have decided to veto Senate Bill
354.

Sincerely,
Blair Lee III
Acting Governor

Senate Bill No. 360 - Pensions — Benefits

AN ACT concerning

Pensions — Benefits

FOR the purpose of amending certain provisions that relate
to service retirement benefits under the Employees'
Retirement System; correcting the surviving spouse
provisions; deleting certain obsolete provisions;
correcting certain errors; numbering and renumbering
certain provisions; and generally relating to service
retirement benefits.

May 29, 1978
Honorable Steny H. Hoyer