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Committee advances bill to criminalize false leases and fraudulent listings of residential property
Summary
House Bill 321 would create misdemeanors and felonies for creating false lease documents and for advertising or attempting to sell or rent property without legal title. The committee voted 14-0 to send the bill to the floor with a due-pass recommendation.
Rep. Bruce Scogg, representing House District 10, described House Bill 321 as a response to incidents in which people return to vacant homes and find others occupying the property with forged or false documents. "We heard a lot of this in the news around the country the past couple of years," Scogg said. "If a person knowingly and willfully present a false document purporting to be a valid lease, then that person commits a misdemeanor."
Under Scogg’s description of the bill, knowingly listing or advertising a residential property for sale or rent without legal title would be a felony. "Should a person list or advertise a residential real property for sale or rent that's not theirs, knowing that they don't have legal title to do so, then that person commits a felony," Scogg said.
Rep. Behar asked why the bill treats presenting a false lease as a misdemeanor while listing or advertising for sale or rent is a felony. Scogg answered that the felony classification targets situations with more victims — for example, people who are induced to purchase or enter lease agreements under false pretenses.
Rep. Scott moved to send House Bill 321 to the floor with a due-pass recommendation. The committee conducted a roll-call vote and the motion passed unanimously, 14-0. Vice Chairman Alfieri, Representatives Scott, Ehart, Erickson, Garner, Handy, Hawkins, Hill, Hostetler, Bohanka, Schertz, Messias, Rubel and Chairman Skog were recorded as voting yes.
During a brief follow-up, Rep. Vihar asked how quickly the measure would take effect; the transcript does not include an answer specifying an effective date. The bill’s proponents said the measure is intended to provide criminal penalties to deter people from taking or attempting to transfer property they do not own, and to give law enforcement clearer options than civil eviction processes.
The committee sent H321 to the floor; the transcript records committee members’ questions about scope and the misdemeanor-versus-felony distinction but no amendments were recorded at the committee hearing.
