Committee narrows redaction bill to digital records, adds campaign treasurers to coverage

The committee debated a broad House bill that would allow certain covered individuals — including current and former elected officials, judges, prosecutors, public defenders and law‑enforcement officers, and household family members — to ask state or local agencies to remove or redact personal residential information from publicly accessible records. Sponsors said the measure primarily aims to protect officials and their families from doxing and swatting incidents.

Members raised practical concerns about the effect on county clerks, deed books and title searches. Senators said a broad redaction requirement could force clerks to maintain duplicate digital copies or otherwise burden search and title workflows. In response, the committee narrowed the bill: the definition of "record" was changed to mean a "publicly and remotely accessible website or database," limiting redaction obligations to digital records. The committee also accepted an amendment to add campaign treasurers to the list of covered individuals after members noted treasurers’ contact information appears on campaign filings and can make volunteers vulnerable.

Sponsor testimony emphasized the rise in swatting and threats against public officials and said the bill’s opt‑in, written‑request design was intended to limit the number of redaction requests and avoid wholesale disruption of public records while protecting individuals at demonstrable risk. The committee adopted the technical and policy amendments and reported the measure to the full Senate.

Practical note: The final digital-only approach leaves physical deed and title documents outside the redaction requirement; the bill preserves exceptions for disclosures required by federal law and for parties who need records for elections or title transactions.