Summary — North Dakota HB 1499 (2025 Session)
Title: An Act to amend and reenact subsection 1 of section 44‑04‑18.3 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to confidential records related to a justice of the United States, federal judge, or magistrate judge.
Sponsors: Representative Klemin; Senator Larson
Purpose
- To expand and clarify which personal contact details and personnel information are treated as confidential under North Dakota public‑records law, and to limit the disclosure of certain personnel records to inmates.
Key provisions and changes
- Amends NDCC § 44‑04‑18.3(1) to specify that, except as provided in subsection 5, the telephone number and home address of the following are confidential:
- Prosecutors;
- Justices of the United States, federal judges, and magistrate judges;
- State supreme court justices, district court judges, judicial referees;
- Juvenile court directors and probation officers;
- Employees of law‑enforcement agencies;
- Employees of state or local correctional facilities;
- Employees of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DOC).
- Prohibits disclosure of personnel‑record information of DOC employees to inmates who are in the legal custody of the DOC and confined in jails, prisons, or other correctional facilities, unless the DOC director authorizes disclosure.
- Prohibits disclosure of personnel‑record information of law‑enforcement officers or correctional employees (under chapter 12‑44.1) to inmates confined in state correctional facilities unless the employing agency authorizes disclosure.
- Retains reference to subsection 5 (not reproduced here), which contains enumerated exceptions to confidentiality.
Who is affected
- Individuals whose home addresses and telephone numbers are now (or clarified as) confidential under state law: federal and state judges, prosecutors, certain court personnel, law enforcement and correctional personnel, and DOC employees.
- State and local agencies that handle public records requests (courts, DOC, law‑enforcement agencies) — these agencies must withhold specified contact details and restrict certain personnel‑record disclosures to inmates except where authorization is granted.
- Members of the public, media, and inmates — access to certain personal and personnel information will be restricted.
Procedural and timeline aspects / current status
- Introduced: December 3, 2024.
- Sponsors: Rep. Klemin (House) and Sen. Larson (Senate).
- Legislative action (as recorded): Passed both chambers (House vote: Yeas 86, Nays 5; Senate vote: Yeas 45, Nays 1). Read 3rd time and passed; enrolled and transmitted for executive action.
- Filed with Secretary of State: April 16, 2025 (per provided status).
- The amendment targets an existing public‑records confidentiality provision and takes effect according to state enactment practice (no separate effective date specified in the excerpt).
Notes and potential impacts
- The bill increases privacy protections for judges, prosecutors, and public‑safety personnel by treating home addresses and phone numbers as confidential.
- It also tightens controls on what personnel information inmates may access, potentially reducing safety and privacy risks for covered employees but limiting transparency for inmates seeking certain records unless agency approval is given.
- The law preserves exceptions in subsection 5; users should consult the full NDCC text for those exceptions and for implementation details.
