House File 548 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 548 BY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 43) A BILL FOR An Act relating to court records for residential forcible 1 entry and detainer actions and including effective date 2 provisions. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 1644HV (3) 90 cm/ns

H.F. 548 Section 1. Section 648.22, Code 2023, is amended to read as 1 follows: 2 648.22 Judgment —— execution —— costs —— sealing of court 3 records . 4 1. If the defendant is found guilty, judgment shall be 5 entered that the defendant be removed from the premises, and 6 that the plaintiff be put in possession of the premises, and an 7 execution for the defendant’s removal within three days from 8 the judgment shall issue accordingly, to which judgment for 9 costs shall be entered in the judgment docket and lien index, 10 and to which shall be added a clause commanding the officer to 11 collect the costs as in ordinary cases. 12 2. In a residential forcible entry and detainer action, 13 the court records of the action shall be sealed not later than 14 three days from the date of the order, if any of the following 15 occurs: 16 a. The defendant is found not guilty. 17 b. The case is dismissed. 18 c. The plaintiff does not appear for the hearing. 19 3. In a residential forcible entry and detainer action, the 20 court shall enter an order sealing the court records of the 21 action not later than three days from the date of the order 22 if, by motion or upon the court’s own determination, the court 23 finds there is no genuine issue of material fact between the 24 parties. 25 4. Upon application of a defendant found guilty in a 26 residential forcible entry and detainer action for nonpayment 27 of rent, the court shall enter an order sealing the record of 28 the action, the existence of the petition, all filings and 29 documentation within the case file, and any associated writs of 30 execution, if all of the following conditions are met: 31 a. More than five years have passed since the date of the 32 finding of guilt. 33 b. The applicant has not been found guilty in a subsequent 34 forcible entry and detainer action in the five-year period 35 -1- LSB 1644HV (3) 90 cm/ns 1/ 4

H.F. 548 directly preceding the application. 1 c. The applicant has not previously been granted a sealing 2 of a finding of guilt under this chapter within ten years prior 3 to the application. 4 d. The applicant has paid all court costs, fees, fines, and 5 any other financial obligation ordered by the court or assessed 6 by the clerk of the district court in the case. 7 5. The application to seal the record of the action shall be 8 included in the record the defendant wishes to seal, using a 9 form prescribed by the supreme court. 10 6. Upon sealing, the existence of the petition, all filings 11 and documentation within the case file, and any associated 12 writs of execution shall be removed from any publicly 13 accessible location under the direction of the judicial branch 14 or county, as applicable. The clerk of court shall enter 15 satisfaction of judgment in the judgment docket and lien index. 16 Notwithstanding chapter 22, records sealed upon satisfaction 17 of the requirements specified in this section shall not be 18 available for public inspection except in one of the following 19 manners: 20 a. Upon request by the defendant or the attorney for the 21 defendant by filing a motion in the sealed case. 22 b. Upon application to the judicial branch using a form 23 prescribed by the supreme court for scholarly, educational, 24 journalistic, or governmental purposes only, provided that in 25 all cases, the names of minor children shall remain sealed 26 at all times, and that the names and personally identifiable 27 information of all persons named as defendants or included in 28 the plaintiff’s petition shall be redacted and remain sealed 29 unless the court determines that release of such information is 30 necessary to fulfill the scholarly, educational, journalistic, 31 or governmental purpose of the request. 32 c. State court administration shall maintain a record in 33 the aggregate of all filings and the final disposition of any 34 such actions, to include dismissal, default judgment, and writs 35 -2- LSB 1644HV (3) 90 cm/ns 2/ 4

H.F. 548 associated with disposition. State court administration shall 1 make available to the public and report annually such aggregate 2 information in such a manner prescribed by the supreme court as 3 to protect the identity of the parties while still providing 4 the public with information regarding eviction proceedings. 5 7. Upon sealing, a consumer reporting agency shall 6 not disclose the existence of, or information regarding, 7 an eviction action or other civil action sealed or made 8 confidential under this section or use such action as a factor 9 to determine any score or recommendation to be included in a 10 consumer report regarding any person named in such case. 11 8. Subsections 4 through 7 do not apply to a money judgment 12 awarded for an action that was filed with a forcible entry 13 and detainer action or arising from the same set of facts and 14 circumstances. 15 Sec. 2. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act takes effect July 1, 2024. 16 EXPLANATION 17 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 18 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 19 This bill relates to sealing court records of residential 20 forcible entry and detainer actions (eviction actions). 21 The bill requires a court to seal the court records of an 22 eviction action not later than three days from the date of the 23 order if any of the following have occurred: the defendant is 24 found not guilty, the case is dismissed, the plaintiff does not 25 appear for the hearing, or if, by motion or upon the court’s 26 own determination, the court finds there is no genuine issue of 27 material fact between the parties. 28 The bill provides that upon application of a defendant found 29 guilty in an eviction action for nonpayment of rent, the court 30 shall seal the court records if more than five years have 31 passed since disposition, the applicant has not been found 32 guilty in a subsequent eviction action in the five-year period 33 preceding the application, the applicant within the last 10 34 years has not been granted a sealing of eviction court records, 35 -3- LSB 1644HV (3) 90 cm/ns 3/ 4

H.F. 548 and the applicant has paid all costs. The application to seal 1 shall be included in the sealed court records. 2 The bill provides that upon sealing the court records, all 3 filings, documentation, and writs of association shall be 4 removed from any publicly accessible location. Sealed court 5 records shall not be available for public inspection except 6 upon request by the defendant or the attorney for the defendant 7 by filing a motion in the sealed case or application to the 8 judicial branch using a form to be prescribed by the supreme 9 court for scholarly, educational, journalistic, or governmental 10 purposes. The bill requires the state court administrator 11 to maintain a record in the aggregate of all filings and to 12 make such information available to the public in such a manner 13 prescribed by the supreme court as to protect the identity of 14 the parties while still providing the public with information 15 relating to eviction actions. 16 The bill provides that upon sealing a consumer reporting 17 agency shall not disclose the existence of, or information 18 regarding, an eviction action or other civil action sealed or 19 made confidential under the bill or use such action as a factor 20 to determine any score or recommendation to be included in a 21 consumer report regarding any person named in such case. 22 Under the bill, certain provisions do not apply to an 23 application to seal a record for an eviction action by a 24 defendant found guilty when a money judgment has been awarded 25 to the plaintiff. 26 The bill takes effect July 1, 2024. 27 -4- LSB 1644HV (3) 90 cm/ns 4/ 4