Senate File 476 - Introduced SENATE FILE 476 BY COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT (SUCCESSOR TO SSB 1178) A BILL FOR An Act relating to qualified immunity of law enforcement 1 officers, the peace officer, public safety, and emergency 2 personnel bill of rights, uniform commercial code filings, 3 and protected information of law enforcement officers and 4 state or federal judicial officers and prosecutors. 5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 6 TLSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh
S.F. 476 DIVISION I 1 QUALIFIED IMMUNITY 2 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 669A.1 Findings. 3 The general assembly finds the following: 4 1. Qualified immunity is intended for all but the plainly 5 incompetent or those who knowingly violate the law and is meant 6 to give law enforcement officials leeway to make reasonable 7 mistakes of fact and law. 8 2. The United States supreme court has observed that 9 qualified immunity balances two important interests: the 10 need to hold law enforcement officers accountable when law 11 enforcement officers exercise power irresponsibly and the 12 need to shield law enforcement officers from harassment, 13 distraction, and liability when law enforcement officers 14 perform their duties reasonably. 15 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 669A.2 Definitions. 16 For purposes of this chapter, unless the context otherwise 17 requires: 18 1. “Action for damages” means any case brought in a court 19 organized under the laws of this state in which the plaintiff 20 seeks any amount of monetary compensation, including but 21 not limited to claims alleging constitutional or statutory 22 violations. 23 2. “Constitution” means the Constitution of the United 24 States or the Constitution of the State of Iowa. 25 3. “Law enforcement officer” means any federal, state, 26 tribal, or local official who is authorized by law to engage 27 in or supervise the prevention, detection, investigation, or 28 incarceration of any person for any violation of law, and 29 has statutory powers of arrest, apprehension, detention, or 30 incarceration. “Law enforcement officer” includes but is not 31 limited to a peace officer, employee of the department of 32 public safety, employee of the department of corrections, and 33 employee of a judicial district’s department of correctional 34 services. 35 -1- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 1/ 12
S.F. 476 4. “Other law” means any statutory or common law, whether 1 federal or state. 2 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 669A.3 Liability —— law enforcement 3 officers. 4 A law enforcement officer subject to any action for damages 5 in the law enforcement officer’s individual capacity shall not 6 be found liable if such law enforcement officer is entitled to 7 qualified immunity. If the right secured by the constitution 8 or any other law was not clearly established at the time of the 9 alleged deprivation by the law enforcement officer, or at that 10 time, the state of the law was not sufficiently clear that a 11 reasonable law enforcement officer would have understood that 12 the conduct alleged constituted a violation of the constitution 13 or any other law, then the officer shall be entitled to 14 qualified immunity. The plaintiff must plead facts showing 15 that the law enforcement officer violated a constitutional or 16 statutory right, and shall bear the burden of establishing that 17 the alleged right was clearly established at the time the law 18 enforcement officer’s conduct occurred. 19 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION . 669A.4 Liability —— agency or 20 political subdivision. 21 An agency or political subdivision who employed a law 22 enforcement officer subject to an action governed by this 23 chapter shall not be liable for such action if the law 24 enforcement officer is found not liable under section 669A.3 25 and the law enforcement officer was acting within the scope of 26 the law enforcement officer’s employment with the agency or 27 political subdivision. 28 Sec. 5. NEW SECTION . 669A.5 Applicability of law. 29 To the extent any other provision of Iowa law provides less 30 protection to law enforcement officers than this chapter, this 31 chapter supplants that law. 32 DIVISION II 33 PEACE OFFICER, PUBLIC SAFETY, AND EMERGENCY PERSONNEL BILL OF 34 RIGHTS 35 -2- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 2/ 12
S.F. 476 Sec. 6. Section 80F.1, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 2021, 1 is amended to read as follows: 2 a. “Complaint” means a formal written allegation signed 3 by the complainant or a signed written statement by an 4 officer receiving an oral complaint stating the complainant’s 5 allegation. 6 Sec. 7. Section 80F.1, subsections 3, 5, 8, 9, 13, and 18, 7 Code 2021, are amended to read as follows: 8 3. a. A formal administrative investigation of an officer 9 shall be commenced and completed in a reasonable period of 10 time and an . An officer shall be immediately notified in 11 writing of the preliminary results of the investigation when 12 the investigation is completed and any recommendations for the 13 disposition of the complaint and discipline . 14 b. Upon initiating a formal administrative investigation 15 of an officer, the investigating agency shall promptly serve 16 the officer under investigation with written notice of the 17 complaint, shall inform the officer of the officer’s right to 18 counsel, and shall provide the officer with a copy of the peace 19 officer bill of rights. The notice shall include the names of 20 all of the complainants, the alleged date of the occurrence 21 giving rise to the complaint, a summary of the factual 22 allegations against the officer, and the name and rank or title 23 of the investigator in charge of the formal administrative 24 investigation. 25 5. a. An officer who is the subject of a complaint, shall 26 at a minimum, be provided a written summary of the complaint 27 prior to an interview. If a collective bargaining agreement 28 applies, the complaint or written summary shall be provided 29 pursuant to the procedures established under the collective 30 bargaining agreement. If the complaint alleges domestic abuse, 31 sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, an officer shall not 32 receive more than a written summary of the complaint. 33 b. Upon written request of the officer or the officer’s 34 legal counsel, the employing agency shall provide to the 35 -3- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 3/ 12
S.F. 476 officer or the officer’s legal counsel a complete copy of the 1 officer’s incident reports and the officer’s video or audio 2 recordings from the incident giving rise to the complaint 3 without unnecessary delay prior to an interview of the officer. 4 8. a. The officer shall have the right to have the 5 assistance of legal counsel present , at the officer’s expense, 6 during the interview of the officer , during hearings, or during 7 other disciplinary or administrative proceedings related to the 8 complaint . In addition, the officer shall have the right, at 9 the officer’s expense, to have a union representative present 10 during the interview or, if not a member of a union, the 11 officer shall have the right to have a designee present. 12 b. The officer’s legal counsel, union representative, or 13 employee representative shall not be compelled to disclose in 14 any judicial proceeding, nor be subject to any investigation 15 or punitive action for refusing to disclose, any information 16 received from the officer under investigation or from an agent 17 of the officer. The officer and the officer’s legal counsel 18 may coordinate and communicate in confidence with the officer’s 19 designated union representative or employee representative, 20 and the communications are not subject to discovery in any 21 proceeding. 22 9. If a formal administrative investigation results in 23 the removal, discharge, or suspension, or other disciplinary 24 action against an officer, copies of any witness statements 25 and the complete investigative agency’s report shall be timely 26 provided to the officer upon the request of the officer or the 27 officer’s legal counsel upon request at the completion of the 28 investigation . 29 13. An In addition to any other remedies available, an 30 officer shall have the right to pursue civil remedies under the 31 law against a citizen any person, group of persons, employer, 32 organization, or corporation for damages arising from the 33 filing of a false complaint against the officer or any other 34 violation of this chapter including but not limited to actual 35 -4- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 4/ 12
S.F. 476 damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney fees . 1 18. A municipality, county, or state agency employing 2 an officer shall not publicly release the officer’s official 3 photograph without the written permission of the officer or 4 without a request to release pursuant to chapter 22 . An 5 officer’s personal information including but not limited to the 6 officer’s home address, personal telephone number, personal 7 electronic mail address, date of birth, social security number, 8 and driver’s license number shall be confidential and shall be 9 redacted from any record prior to the record’s release to the 10 public by the employing agency. Nothing in this subsection 11 prohibits the release of an officer’s photograph or unredacted 12 personal information to the officer’s legal counsel, union 13 representative, or designated employee representative upon the 14 officer’s request. 15 Sec. 8. Section 80F.1, Code 2021, is amended by adding the 16 following new subsections: 17 NEW SUBSECTION . 20. The employing agency shall keep 18 an officer’s statement, recordings, or transcripts of any 19 interviews or disciplinary proceedings, and any complaints 20 made against an officer confidential unless otherwise provided 21 by law or with the officer’s written consent. Nothing in 22 this section prohibits the release of an officer’s statement, 23 recordings, or transcripts of any interviews or disciplinary 24 proceedings, and any complaints made against an officer to 25 the officer or the officer’s legal counsel upon the officer’s 26 request. 27 NEW SUBSECTION . 21. An agency employing full-time or 28 part-time officers shall provide training to any officer or 29 supervisor who performs or supervises an investigation under 30 this section, and shall maintain documentation of any training 31 related to this section. The Iowa law enforcement academy 32 shall adopt minimum training standards not inconsistent with 33 this subsection, including training standards concerning 34 interviewing an officer subject to a complaint. 35 -5- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 5/ 12
S.F. 476 NEW SUBSECTION . 22. Upon request, the employing agency 1 shall provide to the requesting officer or the officer’s legal 2 counsel a copy of the officer’s personnel file and training 3 records regardless of whether the officer is subject to a 4 formal administrative investigation at the time of the request. 5 DIVISION III 6 UNIFORM COMMERCIAL CODE FILINGS 7 Sec. 9. Section 554.9516, Code 2021, is amended by adding 8 the following new subsection: 9 NEW SUBSECTION . 5. Fraudulent filings. 10 a. The filing office may refuse to accept a financing 11 statement that it determines is not created pursuant to the 12 uniform commercial code, or is otherwise intended for an 13 improper purpose, such as to hinder, harass, or otherwise 14 wrongfully interfere with any person. The filing office may 15 also refuse to accept a financing statement that names the same 16 person as both debtor and secured party, describes collateral 17 not within the scope of applicable law, or is being filed for 18 a purpose other than a transaction within the scope of the 19 uniform commercial code. 20 b. If the filing office becomes aware that a financing 21 statement or other record was not created pursuant to the 22 uniform commercial code, or was otherwise intended for an 23 improper purpose, such as to hinder, harass, or otherwise 24 wrongfully interfere with any person, the filing office 25 shall review the record and relevant circumstances and, if it 26 determines that the record was wrongfully filed, the record 27 shall be deemed void and ineffective; and the filing office 28 shall remove the record from the index and communicate the 29 foregoing to the person that presented the wrongfully filed 30 record and to other persons, as appropriate. 31 DIVISION IV 32 PROTECTED INFORMATION 33 Sec. 10. Section 331.604, subsection 3, Code 2021, is 34 amended by adding the following new paragraph: 35 -6- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 6/ 12
S.F. 476 NEW PARAGRAPH . f. Upon request by a law enforcement 1 officer, as defined in section 80B.3, or state or federal 2 judicial officer or state or federal prosecutor, the recorder 3 or the recorder’s staff shall redact the requestor’s name 4 contained in electronic documents that are displayed for public 5 access through an internet site. This paragraph does not apply 6 to a requestor holding or seeking public office. The recorder 7 shall implement and maintain a process to facilitate these 8 requests. A fee shall not be charged for the administration 9 of this paragraph. 10 Sec. 11. Section 622.10, subsection 9, paragraphs a and b, 11 Code 2021, are amended to read as follows: 12 a. A peer support group counselor or individual present 13 for a group crisis intervention who obtains information from 14 an officer or a civilian employee of a law enforcement agency 15 or fire department by reason of the counselor’s capacity as a 16 peer support group counselor or an individual’s presence for 17 a group crisis intervention shall not be allowed, in giving 18 testimony, to disclose any confidential communication properly 19 entrusted to the counselor or individual present for a group 20 crisis intervention by the officer or civilian employee while 21 receiving counseling or group crisis intervention . 22 b. The prohibition in this subsection does not apply 23 where the officer or civilian employee has consented to the 24 disclosure of the information specified in paragraph “a” or 25 where the peer support group counselor or individual present 26 for a group crisis intervention was an initial responding 27 officer, a witness, or a party to the incident which prompted 28 the delivery of peer support group counseling services or the 29 group crisis intervention to the officer or civilian employee . 30 EXPLANATION 31 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 32 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 33 This bill relates to qualified immunity of law enforcement 34 officers, the peace officer, public safety, and emergency 35 -7- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 7/ 12
S.F. 476 personnel bill of rights, uniform commercial code filings, and 1 protected information of law enforcement officers and state 2 or federal judicial officers and prosecutors. The bill is 3 organized into divisions. 4 DIVISION I —— QUALIFIED IMMUNITY. Under the bill, the 5 general assembly finds that qualified immunity is intended 6 for all law enforcement officers except for law enforcement 7 officers who are incompetent or knowingly violate the law and 8 that as the United States supreme court has observed, qualified 9 immunity balances the need to hold law enforcement officers 10 accountable when law enforcement officers exercise their 11 power irresponsibly and the need to shield law enforcement 12 officers from harassment, distraction, and liability when law 13 enforcement officers perform their duties reasonably. 14 The bill defines “law enforcement officer” to mean any 15 federal, state, tribal, or local official who is authorized 16 by law to engage in or supervise the prevention, detection, 17 investigation, or incarceration of any person for any violation 18 of law, and has statutory powers of arrest, apprehension, 19 detention, or incarceration. “Law enforcement officers” 20 include but are not limited to peace officers, employees of 21 the department of public safety, employees of the department 22 of corrections, and employees of a judicial district’s 23 department of correctional services. The bill defines “action 24 for damages” to mean any case brought in a court organized 25 under the laws of this state in which the plaintiff seeks any 26 amount of monetary compensation, including but not limited to 27 claims alleging constitutional or statutory violations. The 28 bill defines “constitution” to mean the Constitution of the 29 United States or the Constitution of the State of Iowa. The 30 bill defines “other law” to mean any statutory or common law, 31 whether federal or state. 32 The bill provides that a law enforcement officer subject 33 to any action for damages in the law enforcement officer’s 34 individual capacity shall not be found liable if such law 35 -8- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 8/ 12
S.F. 476 enforcement officer is entitled to qualified immunity. If a 1 constitutional or statutory right was not clearly established 2 at the time of the alleged deprivation by the law enforcement 3 officer, or at that time, the state of the law was not 4 sufficiently clear that a reasonable law enforcement officer 5 would have understood that the conduct alleged constituted a 6 violation of law, then the officer is entitled to qualified 7 immunity. The plaintiff must plead facts showing that the law 8 enforcement officer violated a right, and bears the burden of 9 establishing that the alleged right was clearly established at 10 the time the law enforcement officer’s conduct occurred. 11 The bill provides liability protection for an agency or 12 political subdivision who employed a law enforcement officer 13 subject to an action governed under the new Code chapter shall 14 not be liable if the law enforcement officer is found not 15 liable under the provisions of the bill and the law enforcement 16 officer was acting within the scope of employment with the 17 agency or political subdivision. 18 The bill provides that the applicability of the new Code 19 chapter supersedes any other provision of Iowa law that 20 provides less protection to law enforcement officers. 21 DIVISION II —— PEACE OFFICER, PUBLIC SAFETY, AND EMERGENCY 22 PERSONNEL BILL OF RIGHTS. The bill modifies the definition 23 of “complaint” in Code section 80F.1 (peace officer, public 24 safety, and emergency personnel bill of rights) to mean a 25 formal written allegation signed by the complainant or a signed 26 written statement by an officer receiving an oral complaint 27 stating the complainant’s allegation. 28 The bill provides that an officer shall be immediately 29 notified in writing of any preliminary results from a formal 30 administrative investigation and any recommendations for the 31 disposition of the complaint and discipline. Upon initiation 32 of the formal administrative investigation, an officer shall 33 be promptly served with written notice of the complaint, be 34 informed of the officer’s right to counsel, and be provided 35 -9- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 9/ 12
S.F. 476 with a copy of the peace officer bill of rights. The written 1 notice shall include: names of all the complainants, alleged 2 date of the occurrence, summary of the factual allegations, and 3 the name and rank or title of the investigator in charge of the 4 formal administrative investigation. 5 The bill provides that the officer shall have a right 6 to legal counsel at the expense of the officer during the 7 interview, hearings, or other disciplinary or administrative 8 proceedings related to the complaint. The officer’s legal 9 counsel, union representative, or employee representative shall 10 not be compelled to disclose during any judicial proceeding 11 any information received from the officer under investigation 12 or from an agent of the officer. An officer’s legal counsel, 13 union representative, or employee representative shall not be 14 subject to any investigation or punitive action for refusing to 15 disclose any information. The bill provides that the officer 16 and officer’s legal counsel may coordinate and communicate in 17 confidence with the officer’s designated union representative 18 or employee representative and those communications shall not 19 be subject to discovery. 20 The bill provides that if a formal administrative 21 investigation results in removal, discharge, suspension, or 22 other disciplinary action against the officer, the complete 23 investigative reports shall be timely provided to the officer 24 or officer’s legal counsel upon request at the completion of 25 the investigation. 26 The bill provides that an officer’s personal information 27 shall be redacted from any record prior to the record’s release 28 to the public. An officer’s photograph or unredacted personal 29 information may be released to the officer’s legal counsel, 30 union representative, or designated employee representative 31 upon the officer’s request. 32 The bill provides that an officer may bring a private cause 33 of action, including but not limited to an action for money 34 damages, against any person for filing a false complaint 35 -10- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 10/ 12
S.F. 476 against the officer. 1 The bill provides that an officer’s personal information, 2 including certain personal information specified in the bill, 3 shall be confidential and shall be redacted from any record 4 prior to the record’s release to the public by an employing 5 agency. The bill provides that the following information shall 6 also be kept confidential: an officer’s statement, recordings, 7 or transcripts of any interviews or disciplinary proceedings, 8 and any complaints made against an officer. 9 The bill provides that an agency shall provide training to 10 any person who performs or supervises an investigation under 11 the bill. The Iowa law enforcement academy shall adopt minimum 12 training standards not inconsistent with the bill including 13 training standards concerning interviewing an officer subject 14 to a complaint. 15 The bill provides that upon request, the employing agency 16 shall provide to a requesting officer or the officer’s legal 17 counsel a copy of the officer’s personnel file and training 18 records regardless of whether the officer is subject to a 19 formal administrative investigation at the time of the request. 20 DIVISION III —— FRAUDULENT FILINGS —— UNIFORM COMMERCIAL 21 CODE. The bill provides that a filing office may refuse to 22 accept a financing statement that is determined to not have 23 been created pursuant to the UCC, is intended for an improper 24 purpose, names the same person as both the debtor and the 25 secured party, describes collateral not within the scope 26 of applicable law, or is filed for a purpose other than a 27 transaction within the scope of the UCC. If the filing office 28 becomes aware that a financial statement or other record was 29 not created pursuant to the UCC or was intended for an improper 30 purpose, the filing office shall review the record and relevant 31 circumstance, and determine if the record was wrongfully filed. 32 If the record is wrongfully filed, it shall be deemed void and 33 ineffective and the filing office shall remove the record from 34 the index and communicate that to the person who filed the 35 -11- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 11/ 12
S.F. 476 record and to other persons, as appropriate. 1 DIVISION IV —— PROTECTED INFORMATION. The bill provides 2 that upon request by a law enforcement officer, state or 3 federal judicial officer or prosecutor, the recorder or the 4 recorder’s staff shall redact the requester’s name contained in 5 electronic documents displayed for public access, unless the 6 person is holding or seeking public office. A fee shall not be 7 charged to redact the requester’s name. 8 The bill provides that a peer support group counselor 9 or individual present for a group crisis intervention who 10 obtains information from a law enforcement officer, fire 11 fighter, or civilian employee of a law enforcement agency or 12 fire department shall not be allowed, in giving testimony, to 13 disclose any confidential communication properly entrusted to 14 the counselor or individual by the law enforcement officer, 15 fire fighter, or civilian employee while receiving counseling. 16 However, the law enforcement officer, fire fighter, or civilian 17 employee may consent to the disclosure. Under current law, 18 this evidentiary rule applies to communications between peer 19 support group counselors and law enforcement officers or fire 20 fighters. 21 -12- LSB 1904SV (3) 89 cm/jh 12/ 12