SF 177 – Domestic Abuse Protective Orders and Pets
SF 2091 – Co-Ownership of Real Property
SF 2092 – Fraudulent Practices
SF 2095 – Consent Decrees for Juveniles
SSB 3041 – Ethics for Court Reporters
SSB 3112 – Statute of Limitations Relating to Child Sex Abuse
COMMITTEE ACTION:
SF 177 provides that when a court issues a domestic abuse protective order, it can include language prohibiting the respondent from taking, concealing or harming a family pet or companion animal. The court can grant exclusive care, possession or control of any family pets or companion animals to the Petitioner. The bill does not apply to livestock. [2/4: short form]
SF 2091, as amended in committee, adds language to the Code that creates a presumption in favor of joint tenancy with rights of survivorship if a conveyance of land is made to two or more persons who are married, or where the terms “joint tenants” or “their survivor” are used in the conveyance instrument. The bill also creates a presumption of severance of the joint tenancy with rights of survivorship upon an order of dissolution (of a marriage), annulment or separate maintenance. [1/30: short form (Taylor absent)]
SF 2092 modifies the definition of fraudulent practice in the first degree to include a fraudulent practice where the amount of services involved in the fraud exceeds $10,000. Fraudulent practice in the first degree under current law does not include the value of a service, but does include a fraudulent practice where the amount of money or value of property exceeds $10,000. The bill also specifies that if money, property or a service involved in two or more acts of fraudulent practice is from the same person or location, or from different persons by two or more acts which occur in approximately the same location or time period so that the occurrences are attributable to a single scheme, these acts may be considered a single fraudulent practice and the value may be the total value of the money, property or service involved. [1/30: short form (Taylor absent)]
SF 2095, as amended in committee, provides that when the juvenile court suspends juvenile delinquency proceedings to enter a consent decree, the decree can include language placing the child in shelter care, or group or family foster care. In addition, the court will be able to place a child in an inpatient mental health facility or a substance abuse treatment facility. This bill is the result of an Iowa Supreme Court decision that indicated the Code did not grant authority to the juvenile court to enter a consent decree that placed a child in a residential facility (State of Iowa v. Iowa District Court for Warren County, 828 N.W.2d 607 (2013). [1/30: short form (Taylor absent)]
SSB 3041 adds a new section in Chapter 602 of the Iowa Code to establish ethical standards for Iowa certified shorthand reporters and shorthand reporting firms that employ reporters. [2/4: short form]
SSB 3112 extends the period of time to bring civil and criminal action relating to sex abuse of children. Under the bill, the time to bring a civil action is extended from one year after a child turns 18 to 25 years after a child turns 18. In addition, a civil action for damages relating to child sex abuse can be brought 25 years after the discovery of both the injury and causal relationship between the injury and the sexual abuse. Criminal actions may be brought within 25 years after the child turns 18. Current law says they have to be brought within 10 years after age 18. [2/4: short form]