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Kansas House advances amended bill creating civil process for removing unauthorized occupants
Summary
House Bill 2378, amended to remove criminalization language, would allow property owners or their agents to submit a notarized affidavit to law enforcement to seek removal of unauthorized occupants after a verification and at least 24-hour notice; the Office of Judicial Administration warned of increased district court filings.
The Kansas House of Representatives’ Committee of the Whole reported House Bill 2378 favorably as amended, a measure titled the "Removal of Squatters Act" that creates a civil process by which an owner or an agent may request law enforcement help to remove unauthorized occupants from a dwelling.
Representative Reisman described the bill's mechanics: an owner or agent files a notarized affidavit with local law enforcement attesting that (1) the affiant is owner or agent, (2) a person has entered or remains unlawfully, (3) the person is not a tenant or holdover tenant, (4) the affiant requested the person vacate and they did not, and (5) the unauthorized person is not an immediate family member. After verification and at least 24 hours, the law enforcement agency must serve a notice to immediately vacate. The bill allows law enforcement to arrest persons in the dwelling for separate criminal acts such as trespassing or burglary.
The bill originally included language treating squatting as a crime; Representative Will Carpenter offered committee amendments to remove criminal-intent language after review by judiciary staff. "When, judiciary folks got a hold of this, they realized that this is not a crime. These are civil actions. And so with that, we needed an amendment to remove, any reference to criminals," Carpenter said.
Supporters said the measure protects property rights and gives law enforcement a clear procedure. Opponents and questioners raised concerns about tenant protections and the potential impact on people experiencing homelessness. Representative Miller asked whether the bill could allow landlords to bypass eviction processes; sponsors said the bill applies to unauthorized occupants who are not tenants or holdover tenants and that law enforcement verification is part of the affidavit process. The Office of Judicial Administration provided a fiscal note saying the bill will increase the number of cases filed in district court because it creates a new civil cause of action and allows for civil suits for wrongful removal.
The committee adopted amended language that requires the affidavit be notarized, replaces repeated references to the sheriff with "law enforcement agency or law enforcement officer," and defines dwelling unit and immediate family member in statute. The Committee of the Whole reported the bill favorably as amended.
