GRIM REPORT SHOWS HAVING A BABY IN AMERICA IS MORE DANGEROUS THAN EVER. WHERE AM I’M GOING TO BE DELIVERING MY BABY AND FOR EXPECTANT MOTHERS IN RURAL WEST TEXAS. ACCESS TO PROPER MATERNITY CARE IS A GROWING CONCERN. THEY TOLD ME THAT I WOULD NEED TO BE TRANSFERRED TO ANOTHER HOSPITAL. WHAT’S THE SOLUTION FOR WOMEN TRAVELING HUNDREDS OF MILES TO GIVE BIRTH? PLUS, FROM CHILD OF POVERTY TO LEADING ONE OF THE NATION’S LARGEST PHILANTHROPIES. HOW DOES THE FORD FOUNDATION AS AN ORGANIZATION THINK ABOUT HOW TO DIG INTO SOME OF THESE EXTREMELY ENTRENCHED PROBLEMS IN AMERICA? SO FOR FORD, OUR LAND IS INEQUALITY, SOLEDAD GOES ONE ON ONE WITH DARREN WALKER ABOUT HIS STRATEGY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE AND WE HAVE AN UPDATE ABOUT THIS COMMUNITY BAND ATTRACTING INTERNATIONAL ATTENTION. IS WIDESPREAD LOVE THE SOUNDS OF SUCCESS? COMMUNITY BAND IS ONE STEP CLOSER TO REACHING THEIR GOAL. HOW MUCH MONEY DO YOU STILL NEED? WE’RE STILL SHORT $140,000. BUT WILL A ROADBLOCK STOP THEM FROM MAKING THE TRIP. I’M SOLEDAD O’BRIEN. WELCOME TO MATTER OF FACT. AMERICA’S EXPECTANT MOTHERS ARE AT RISK. THE NUMBER OF WOMEN DYING DURING PREGNANCY OR WITHIN 42 DAYS AFTER DELIVERY IS SOARING. THE CDC REPORTS THAT IN 2021, THE U.S. HAD ONE OF ITS HIGHEST MATERNAL MORTALITY RATES. MORE THAN 1200 WOMEN DIED, A 40% INCREASE FROM THE PREVIOUS YEAR. AND WHEN COMPARED TO THE AVERAGE OF OTHER DEVELOPED COUNTRIES, THE RATES ARE TEN TIMES HIGHER IN THE U.S. RESEARCHERS SUSPECT THE PANDEMIC IS PARTLY TO BLAME. BUT THERE ARE MANY OTHER FACTORS. FOR EXAMPLE, ACCESS TO MATERNITY CARE, LABOR AND DELIVERY UNITS ARE EXPENSIVE FOR HOSPITALS TO MAINTAIN. SO MANY HOSPITALS CAN’T AFFORD THEM. TEXAS LEADS THE NATION IN MATERNITY WARD CLOSURES. ONLY 40% OF RURAL HOSPITALS THERE HAVE THEM. SOME WOMEN HAVE TO DRIVE HOURS JUST TO GIVE BIRTH. OUR CORRESPONDENT LEONI LAKHANI WENT TO WEST TEXAS AND FOLLOWED EXPECTANT MOMS FOR A FIRSTHAND LOOK AT THEIR LONG JOURNEYS. THIS REMOTE TOWN IN WEST, TEXAS IS HOME TO FEWER THAN 400 PEOPLE. THIS IS WHERE KARI GONZALEZ AND HER HUSBAND DECIDED TO MAKE THEIR HOME SIX YEARS AGO. WE ENDED UP HERE KIND OF BY ACCIDENT. WE FOUND PROPERTY AND STARTED BUILDING A HOUSE HERE. CARRIE’S BRINGING UP HER FIRST CHILD HERE. LITTLE PALOMA IS HAPPY AND CAREFREE TODAY, BUT HER JOURNEY INTO THE WORLD WAS A HARROWING ONE. WE HAD PLANNED TO HAVE HER AT HOME, BUT AS CARRIE APPROACHED FULL TERM, HER BLOOD PRESSURE BECAME A CONCERN. I CALLED MY MIDWIFE AND SHE CONSULTED WITH MY DOCTOR AND SHE TOLD ME THAT I SHOULD GO TO THE HOSPITAL AND JUST HAVE THEM CHECK ME OUT. WHILE THE NEAREST HOSPITAL WAS JUST 30 MINUTES AWAY, THE LABOR AND DELIVERY UNIT PERIODICALLY CLOSED DUE TO STAFF SHORTAGES. THE DOCTOR CAME IN AND TOLD ME THAT I NEEDED TO BE INDUCED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AND THAT I WAS GOING TO HAVE MY BABY NOW. THE THEY TOLD ME THAT I WOULD NEED TO BE TRANSFERRED TO ANOTHER HOSPITAL. THE NEAREST HOSPITAL WITH SPECIALIZED CARE WAS TWO AND A HALF HOURS AWAY. GIVEN HER CONDITION, CARRIE HAD TO BE AIRLIFTED THERE. THANKFULLY, PALOMA ARRIVED SAFELY. THE COST OF THE DELIVERY FOR US WAS, I THINK IT WAS 7000. THAT DOESN’T INCLUDE. THE $94,000 HELICOPTER RIDE. ASIDE FROM THE POTENTIAL COSTS, THE DISTANCES ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR SAVE CHILDBIRTHS IN REMOTE AREAS LIKE THESE. ACCORDING TO DR. JOHN RAY, RAY TRAVELS BETWEEN THREE CITIES EVERY WEEK TO SEE PATIENTS. THE FURTHEST IS PRESIDIO, A CITY NEAR THE MEXICAN BORDER 90 MILES FROM HIS HOME. CAN’T TELL YOU HOW MANY TIMES I’VE HEARD STORIES WHERE SOMEONE DROVE FROM PRESIDIO ALL THE WAY TO ODESSA FOR A FOLLOW UP VISIT. PROBABLY 250 MILES. ONE WAY IN THIS BORDER TOWN. THIS CLINIC IS THE ONLY OPPORTUNE CITY FOR MANY EXPECTANT MOTHERS TO SEE A DOCTOR UNLESS THEY TRAVEL FOR HOURS. MAJOR CRASHES, CARLA. A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE COME MULTIPLE TIMES. YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAVE CONTRACTIONS OR IF YOU THINK YOUR WATER BROKE. BUT WHEN YOU DRIVE 90 MILES TO GET TO THE HOSPITAL, THERE’S A BIG DIFFERENCE. DENTAL ASSISTANT BRITTNEY ALONZO GETS GENERAL CHECKUPS AT THE PRESIDIO CLINIC. BUT HAS TO DRIVE AN HOUR AND A HALF FOR HER BABY’S ULTRASOUNDS. AND THERE’S NO OPTION TO DELIVER HER BABY HERE. WHENEVER I KNEW THAT I WAS PREGNANT. MY FIRST THINKING WAS LIKE, WHERE AM I GOING TO BE DELIVERING MY BABY? IT MIGHT MEAN GIVING BIRTH IN THE EMERGENCY ROOM WHERE NOT ALL NURSES ARE SPECIALLY TRAINED FOR DELIVERIES. THE NEXT SPECIALIST HOSPITAL IS MORE THAN 200 MILES AWAY IN MIDLAND, ODESSA. I MIGHT BE MOVING TO MIDLAND, UPROOTING HER LIFE TO GIVE BIRTH. CARRIE GONZALEZ SAYS SHE WOULD DO THE SAME NEXT TIME. I MEAN, I FEEL REALLY LUCKY THAT WE HAD A HEALTHY BABY, BUT THAT SHOULDN’T BE THE MINIMUM WHEN YOU’RE HAVING A BABY. FOR A MATTER OF FACT, I’M LEONE LAKHANI IN WEST TEXAS. NEXT ON A MATTER OF FACT. THE IDEA IS TO TAKE THIS BUILDING AND MAKE IT TRULY A CENTER FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE. SOLEDAD TALKS TO THE FORD FOUNDATION’S PRESIDENT, DARREN WALKER, ABOUT THE FUTURE OF GIVING. PLUS, FOR THEM, YOU’RE GOING TO BE MUCH LIKE HIM. WE CATCH UP WITH THE COMMUNITY BAND LEADER TRYING TO GET HIS MUSICIANS TO LONDON. THIS SUMMER. TALK TO ME ABOUT WHAT THE NEW CHALLENGE IS FOR THE BAND. HOW A NEW ROADBLOCK COULD PREVENT THAT DREAM FROM COMING TRUE. AND LATER, CRIMINAL RECORDS GONE FOR MORE THAN A MILLION PEOPLE IN MICHIGAN. HOW THE CLEAN SLATE LAW IS TRANSFER WARMING LIVES. YOU’RE WATCHING MATTER OF FACT. AMERICA’S NUMBER ONE NATIONALLY SYNDICATED PUBLIC AFFAIRS NEWSMAGAZINE. THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE THAT YOU’VE DONATED MONEY OR AT LEAST CONSIDERED DONATING AT LEAST ONCE, WHETHER THROUGH A CHURCH OR SYNAGOGUE OR A MOSQUE OR DIRECTLY TO SOMETHING LIKE A FOOD BANK OR A SCHOOL OR A GO FUND ME PAGE. THAT MONEY CAN HELP PEOPLE GET AN EDUCATION OR PAY MEDICAL BILLS OR BUY FOOD FOR ALMOST A CENTURY. THE FORD FOUNDATION HAS BEEN DOING JUST THAT BY GIVING OUT GRANTS TOTALING SEVERAL HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS EVERY YEAR. I CAUGHT UP WITH FORD FOUNDATION PRESIDENT DARREN WALKER TO TALK ABOUT LEADING ONE OF THE NATION’S BIGGEST PHILANTHROPIES AND THE CHANGES HE’S TRYING TO MAKE. THE IDEA IS TO TAKE THIS BUILDING AND MAKE IT TRULY A CENTER FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE. OVER THE PAST DECADE, THE FORD FOUNDATION HAS LITERALLY OPENED ITS DOORS TO HUNDREDS OF NEW YORK BASED NONPROFITS AND REMADE THE SPACE AROUND THEM INTO ONE THAT ITS PRESIDENT, DARREN WALKER SAYS IS MORE WELCOMING. WE PURCHASED ALL NEW CONTEMPORARY WORK THAT REPRESENTS THE CURRENT WORK OF THE FOUNDATION IN THIS CENTURY. THIS IS A FAMOUS PHOTOGRAPH OF A YOUNG GIRL AT THE GRADUATION OF A HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGE IN THE SOUTH. AND YOU CAN SEE IN HER FACE HER DREAMS, THOSE DREAMS, WALKER SAYS, ARE HIS INSPIRATION. THEY REVEAL A CALL TO PROMOTE OPPORTUNITY THAT GROWS OUT OF WALKER’S EARLY LIFE. GROWING UP IN SMALL TOWN RURAL AMERICA, BLACK, GAY, A SINGLE MOM, NOT MUCH MONEY I KNOW FROM LIVED EXPERIENCE. THE VERY ISSUES WE’RE WORKING ON, AND I BRING THAT WITH ME. FOUNDED IN 1936 BY HENRY FORD SON EDSEL, THE FOUNDATION WAS AT ONE POINT THE WORLD’S LARGEST PHILANTHROPY. TODAY, ITS ENDOWMENT SITS AT $16 BILLION. HOW DOES THE FORD FOUNDATION AS AN ORGANIZATION, SHOULD THINK ABOUT HOW TO DIG INTO SOME OF THESE EXTREMELY ENTRENCHED PROBLEMS IN AMERICA? FOR FORD, OUR LENS IS INEQUALITY. ADDRESSING THE SCOURGE OF INEQUALITY IN THE UNITED STATES AND AROUND THE WORLD IN ALL ITS FORMS. AND THAT ANALYSIS HAS LED US TO FOCUSING ON THE NEEDS AND RIGHTS FOR JUSTICE AND EQUALITY FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE MARGINALIZED, THE DISABLED PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN POORER AREAS AND COMMUNITIES THAT WORK HAS SOMETIMES BEEN AT ODDS WITH FORD, THE COMPANY. IN ORDER TO DO THAT, WE HAVE TO FUND AND SUPPORT SOME THINGS THAT MAY ACTUALLY IMPLICATE US. THE FORD FOUNDATION HELPED TO CREATE THE PUBLIC INTEREST LAW FIELD. SOME OF THOSE LAWYERS SUED THE FORD MOTOR COMPANY AND THE AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY IN THE 1960S FOR POLLUTING THE AIR. ANNUALLY, THE FOUNDATION GIVES OUT HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS, PRIMARILY TO WOMEN LED INITIATIVES AND ORGANIZATIONS LED BY PEOPLE OF COLOR. THOSE GRANTS INCLUDE INITIATIVES THAT PROMOTE REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL AND RACIAL JUSTICE. FORD FOUNDATION FUNDS BLACK LIVES MATTER AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS THAT I THINK PEOPLE WOULD SAY, OH, THAT’S THOSE ARE POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS. IS THE MOVE TO JUSTICE REALLY POLITICAL? WE’RE NOT A POLITICAL ORGANIZATION. THE WORDS IN OUR FOUNDING DOCUMENT, EQUALITY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. THAT IS OUR HIGHEST, MOST NOBLE ASPIRATION AS A NATION. AND WE SEE OUR WORK AT FORD AS SUPPORTING THAT, EMPOWERING DRIVE. HOW DO YOU MEASURE SUCCESS IN AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE WE STILL HAVE POVERTY? WE STILL HAVE INEQUALITY? HOW DO YOU SAY, YES, WE’VE BEEN SUCCESSFUL ON THIS FRONT? NO, WE NEED TO WORK MORE ON THAT FRONT. I’LL GIVE ONE EXAMPLE. THE ACP LEGAL DEFENSE FUND WE HAVE SUPPORTED SINCE THE 1960S AND MANY STATES THEY HAVE ENSURED THAT ALL AMERICANS, ESPECIALLY BLACK AMERICANS, HAVE ACCESS TO THE BALLOT BECAUSE, AGAIN, NOTHING IS MORE PATRIOTIC AND A MARICON THAN THE IDEA OF VOTING. THERE WAS A MOMENT WHEN WE COULD DECLARE SUCCESS, BUT IN A DEMOCRACY WE JUSTICE AND WHO HAS IT AND WHO DOESN’T IS A CONTESTED IDEA AND WILL BE. THIS IS WALKER’S 10TH YEAR AS HEAD OF THE FORD FOUNDATION. COMING UP, THE FLORIDA COMMUNITY MARCHING BAND TRYING TO GET TO LONDON THIS SUMMER IS JUST SHY OF REACHING THEIR GOAL. I’M NOT GOING TO BE MAD, THOUGH. I HOPE YOU STILL PRACTICE. WE’LL HAVE AN UPDATE FOR. WELCOME BACK TO MATTER OF FACT, WE HAVE A HEARTWARMING UPDATE ABOUT A COMMUNITY BAND WE TOLD YOU ABOUT LAST MONTH. THE SOUNDS OF SUCCESS. MARCHING BAND WAS FOUNDED NEAR WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA, TO KEEP KIDS SAFE FROM THE VIOLENCE AROUND THEM. THE BAND IS NOW FLOURISHING AND HAS GARNERED INTO NATIONAL ATTENTION WITH AN INVITE TO PERFORM IN LONDON THIS SUMMER. BUT GETTING THERE BECAME A PROBLEM. OUR CORRESPONDENT JESSICA GOMEZ TALKED TO BAND MEMBER ZAN, THEIR BAND LEADER, ABOUT THAT ROADBLOCK. HERE’S A SNIPPET. PRETTY TIRED, ANTOINE MILLER IS THE FOUNDER OF THE SOUNDS OF SUCCESS COMMUNITY MARCHING BAND. PRETTY MUCH EVERY CHILD COMES INTO THEIR PROGRAM HAVE NEVER PLAYED BEFORE. WE TRAIN THEM HOW TO READ MUSIC. WE TRAIN THEM HOW TO PLAY THEIR INSTRUMENT, DANCE AND MUSIC. TEACHERS VOLUNTEER THEIR TIME, AND MANY OF THE INSTRUMENTS LIKE THIS OLD SOUSAPHONE, ARE DONATED. NOW, 80 MEMBER STRONG, THE BAND WITH PROCEEDS FROM FUNDRAISERS TAKES ITS SHOW ON THE ROAD, PERFORMING, EVEN COMPETING. I NEVER THOUGHT, LIKE, I’LL HAVE LIKE A BIG CROWD WATCHING ME FOR A JOB BUDDY. WHEN IT COMES TO S.O.S., IT’S NOT. WHAT WE DO IS HOW WE DO IT. THE KIDS HAVE SO MUCH ENERGY. IT WAS THAT ENERGY THAT PROMPTED A SPECIAL INVITATION. ALL THE WAY FROM LONDON, ENGLAND. AND OFFER TO PERFORM WITH THE ROYAL MARINE BAND AND YOUTH BANDS FROM ACROSS THE UNITED KINGDOM AT THE FIRST ANNUAL LONDON BAND WEEK THIS SUMMER. BUT IN A CITY WHERE NEARLY 20% OF THE POPULACE SHOULD LIVE IN POVERTY, MOST OF THE S.O.S. PARENTS CAN’T AFFORD THE COST OF THE TRIP. WE WANT TO TAKE 80 KIDS IN 20 ADULTS. PR PROFESSIONAL SANDY COLLIER HELPING TO GET THE WORD OUT. WHEN I SEE THESE LITTLE KIDS RUN UP TO ME AND SAY, MAN, SANDY, CAN I SIT WITH YOU ON THE PLANE. WHAT DO I SAY TO THEM. SINCE OUR REPORT, THE BAND HAS RAISED NEARLY ENOUGH MONEY TO MAKE THE TRIP ACROSS THE POND. HOWEVER, THERE’S NOW ANOTHER ISSUE PAST PORTS. HERE TO FILL US IN IS THE SOUNDS OF SUCCESS BAND DIRECTOR ANTOINE MILLER. ANTOINE MILLER. SO NICE TO HAVE A CHANCE TO TALK TO YOU. SO FIRST AND FOREMOST, LET’S START WITH UPDATES. WELL, SINCE THE LAST TIME YOU GUYS DID A BEAUTIFUL STORY ON US, WE WERE ABLE TO COME UP WITH $65,000, BUT IT STILL WASN’T ENOUGH TO TAKE THE WHOLE ENTIRE 85 PIECE BAND OVER TO LONDON. HOW MUCH MONEY DO YOU STILL NEED? IF YOU WANT IT TO TAKE THE ENTIRE BAND? SURE. WE’RE STILL SHORT $140,000. THAT’S ACHIEVABLE. I THINK YOU HAVE A NEW OBSTACLE THAT I MENTIONED IN YOUR INTRODUCTION. TALK TO ME ABOUT WHAT THE NEW CHALLENGE IS FOR THE BAND. IT COULD TAKE UP TO 3 TO 4 MONTHS JUST TO GET PASSPORTS. SO THAT WAS A DELAY THAT WE DID FACE, EVEN MYSELF. I THIS THIS IS GOING TO BE MY FIRST TIME LEAVING THE COUNTRY AND FLYING, YOU KNOW, SO IT MOST DEFINITELY CAME FOR THE CHALLENGE OF MAKING SURE THAT ALL OF THE STUDENTS AND PARENTS WHO WANTED TO ATTEND WAS ABLE TO RECEIVE THAT PASSPORT AND TIME. SO YOU’RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO POSTPONE THE TRIP. THEY HAVE SAID NOW THAT YOU CAN COME NEXT YEAR, WHICH IS AMAZING. WE WERE ABLE TO POSTPONE THE TRIP 24 AND FOR ME, AS DOWN THERE, I BELIEVE THAT’S THE BEST DECISION BECAUSE NOW THAT GIVES US ANOTHER YEAR TO TAKE THE ENTIRE BAND. WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO NOT LEAVE ANYBODY BEHIND? I EXPERIENCED THIS WHEN I WAS A CHILD. I WAS IN THE FIFTH GRADE AND I WAS IN MY MIDDLE SCHOOL BAND AND THEY TRAVELED TO TALLAHASSEE TO PERFORM AT FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY. AND MY PARENTS PRETTY MUCH TOLD ME FLAT OUT IT WAS LIKE, YOU KNOW, YOU COULD GO ON THE TRIP AND WHEN YOU COME BACK, WE WON’T HAVE A ROOF OVER OUR HEAD OR, YOU KNOW, WE COULD FREEZE BILLS AND YOU CAN HAVE SOMEWHERE TO STAY. AND AS A CHILD, I DIDN’T UNDERSTAND THE FINANCIAL PART OF WHAT MY PARENTS WERE SAYING. I JUST KNOW THAT I WAS LEFT BEHIND. SO NOW, AS A TEACHER, I REFUSE TO LEAVING THE Y BEHIND. YOU HAVE SAID YOU THINK THIS TRIP IS GOING TO CHANGE LIVES. MOST DEFINITELY. FOR ONE, TRAVELING GIVES THE KIDS A CHANCE TO ADD ON SO THEY ARE A COLLEGE PORTFOLIO. YOU KNOW, EVERY SCHOOL YOU GO TO, THE ACTS WHERE YOU HAVE AN ACTIVITY IS WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? WHAT HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED? SO TO GO TO A TRIP TO LONDON WITH SUCH GREAT CALIBER, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT WOULD BE A GREAT WAY TO BE ABLE TO THE COLLEGE PORTFOLIO IN THE FUTURE. AND GIVE THEM THE ULTIMATE EXPERIENCE. THANKS FOR TALKING WITH ME, ANTWAN. CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU. I’M REALLY GLAD ABOUT THIS NEWS. THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN FOR THE BEAUTIFUL INTERVIEW I HAD ON, MATTER OF FACT. MORE THAN A MILLION PEOPLE IN MICHIGAN HAVE HAD THEIR CRIMINAL RECORDS ERASED. WE’LL SHOW YOU HOW THE CLEAN SLATE LAW WORKS. AND LATER, ARMADILLOS ARE ON THE MOVE. FIND OUT WHERE THE SCALY ANIMALS ARE POPPING UP NOW TO STAY UP TO DATE WITH MATTER OF FACT. SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER AT MATTEROFFACT.TV. EVEN AFTER SERVING THEIR TIME, AMERICANS WITH CRIMINAL RECORDS FACE BARRIERS TO GETTING JOBS AND HOUSING. WELL, NOW A LAW IN EFFECT IN MICHIGAN HAS WIPED THE RECORDS OF MORE THAN A MILLION PEOPLE CLEAN. THE CLEAN SLATE LAW, AUTOMATICALLY EXPUNGE IS CERTAIN MISDEMEANORS AND FELONIES. MISDEMEANORS ARE GONE SEVEN YEARS AFTER SENTENCING AND FELONIES WILL BE REMOVED FROM PUBLIC RECORD. TEN YEARS AFTER CONVICTION OR WHEN A SENTENCE IS COMPLETED. MISDEMEANORS ARE THINGS LIKE TRESPASSING OR SHOPLIFTING OR DRIVING WITH A SUSPENDED LICENSE AND FELONIES THAT ARE ELIGIBLE FOR EXPUNGEMENT ARE FOR NON-VR VIOLENT CRIMES LIKE FRAUD OR WRITING BAD CHECKS FOR THOSE WHO GET THEIR CRIMINAL RECORDS CLEARED. IT’S A BIG DEAL. PROFESSOR SONYA STARS A JULIUS KRIEGER PROFESSOR OF LAW AND CRIMINOLOGY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO. SHE COAUTHORED A 2020 STUDY ABOUT THE POSITIVE EFFECTS OF CRIMINAL RECORD EXPUNGEMENT. WE WERE ABLE TO LINK THE PEOPLE’S CRIMINAL RECORDS TO THEIR SUBSEQUENT WAGE OUTCOMES AND EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES, AND WE FOUND THAT BOTH EMPLOYMENT LEVELS INCREASE AND ALSO WAGES. THE AVERAGE EXPUNGED HIT RECIPIENT WITHIN ABOUT A YEAR OF GETTING AN EXPUNGEMENT HAD 23% HIGHER WAGES. AND WE ALSO SAW THAT PEOPLE WHO RECEIVED EXPUNGEMENTS HAD EXTREMELY LOW RATES OF SUBSEQUENT CRIME, NO HIGHER THAN THE GENERAL POPULATION. MORE SERIOUS OFFENSES LIKE THOSE INVOLVING MINORS OR VULNERABLE ADULTS, ASSAULTS OR MURDER ARE NOT INCLUDED. MICHIGAN IS ONE OF JUST TEN STATES TO PASS LAWS AUTOMATICALLY, SETTING ASIDE CERTAIN CONVICTIONS. STILL AHEAD, ON A MATTER OF FACT. WE’LL EXPLAIN WHY ARMADILLO SHOWS ARE MIGRATING NORTH. AND FINALLY, ARMADILLOS ARE ON THE MOVE, MIGRATING NORTH AT A FASTER PACE. THE SCALY MAMMAL IS MOSTLY ASSOCIATED WITH TEXAS, BUT AFTER THE 1900S, ARMADILLOS WERE SPOTTED IN MISSOURI, IOWA AND ILLINOIS. AND NOW WILDLIFE EXPERTS ARE TRACKING THE CRITTERS. MOVES TO NORTH CAROLINA. THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF MORE THAN 800 ARMADILLOS SIGHTED ACROSS THAT STATE. NO SURPRISE, CLIMATE CHANGE IS DRIVING THE MIGRATION. THE ENTIRE COUNTRY NOW HAS WARMER WINTERS, WHICH MEANS MORE PLACES FOR ARMADILLOS TO LIVE. PLUS, THEY’RE NOT PICKY EATERS AND CAN ENJOY THEIR DIET OF INSECTS AND SNAILS AND SMALL REPTILES JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE. SOME PEOPLE CONSIDER ARMADILLOS TO BE PESTS. THEY’RE KNOWN FOR DIGGING HOLES AND EATING BIRD EGGS. PLUS, SCIENTISTS SAY ARMADILLOS CAN TRANSMIT LEPE BRESEE BUT THAT’S VERY RARE. THE UPSIDE IS THAT THEIR BURROWS, ONCE ABANDONED, CAN BE NEW HOMES FOR OTHER ANIMALS, A FORM OF UPCYCLING IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. THAT’S IT FOR THIS EDITION OF MATTER OF FACT. I’M SOLEDAD O’BRIEN. I’LL SEE YOU BACK HERE NEXT WEEK. AS A REMINDER, YOU CAN ALWAYS WATCH MATTER OF FACT DURING THE WEEK ON FYI AND YOUTUBE.