HF 397: A bill for an act relating to the address confidentiality program. - Iowa

Enrolled → Enrolled with Governor's Action · 5 edits · May 6, 2025

MODERATE

This bill updates Iowa's address confidentiality program to better protect victims of domestic abuse, stalking, and human trafficking by allowing shelters' names to be used instead of physical addresses, clarifying when certifications can be canceled, and improving voter registration protections. The changes make the program more flexible for vulnerable individuals while maintaining security measures.

Scope change

The bill expands eligibility flexibility by permitting shelter names as addresses and modifies voter registration procedures for program participants.

ELIGIBILITY

Allows applicants to provide shelter names and contact information instead of physical addresses when the person resides at a shelter known to the program.

REQUIREMENT

Clarifies that program certifications can be canceled when reliable information shows a participant has died or when a participant requests removal of adult household members.

Permits the secretary to hold mail for up to 30 days at a participant's request for safety reasons.

Allows program participants to register as absentee voters for the entire certification period rather than annually, with election officials determining the correct precinct based on residential address.

ENFORCEMENT

Requires election officials to cancel voter registrations when they learn a participant is registered to vote in another state.

Introduced → Signed Enrolled Bill (PDF) · 4 edits · May 6, 2025

MODERATE

This bill amends Iowa's address confidentiality program to clarify how shelters are handled as addresses, update procedures for canceling certifications when participants die or request household member removal, and ensure voter registration cancellation occurs when participants register in another state. The changes streamline administrative processes and improve protections for vulnerable individuals by standardizing how the Secretary of State manages sensitive address information.

Scope change

The bill expands clarity on when and how the Secretary of State can cancel program certifications, specifically adding provisions for deceased participants and household member removal requests, while maintaining the core purpose of protecting victims of domestic abuse and related crimes.

REQUIREMENT

Updated Section 9E.3 to clarify that shelter names and contact information can replace physical addresses when mail cannot be delivered to a participant's residential address.

Clarified in Section 9E.6 that participants may register as absentee voters for the entire certification period rather than annually, and that the Secretary must forward ballots to the correct precinct.

ENFORCEMENT

Added Section 9E.4 subsection 2 to specify that the Secretary must cancel certification when a participant dies or when a participant with legal documentation requests removal of an adult household member.

Modified Section 9E.6 to require cancellation of voter registration when a program participant registers to vote in another state.

Signed Enrolled Bill (PDF) → Enrolled · 2 edits · May 6, 2025

MINOR

The document transitioned from a signed enrolled bill with the Governor's signature and official letterhead to a clean enrolled version ready for publication. The substantive legislative text of House File 397 regarding the address confidentiality program remained unchanged, with only formatting and layout adjustments between the two versions.

TECHNICAL

Removed Governor Kim Reynolds' signature block, official letter to Secretary of State, and various formatting artifacts including page headers, footers, and certification signatures from the original signed version.

Added clean formatting for the enrolled bill version with proper spacing, centered headers, and standardized signature lines for the Speaker of the House, President of the Senate, and Chief Clerk of the House.

A bill for an act relating to the address confidentiality program.

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