(A) Definitions.
EMPLOYEE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF CHILD SERVICES. Pursuant to I.C. 36-1-8.5-2.5, an individual who is or was employed as any of the following by the Department of Child Services established by I.C.
(a) A family case manager trainee;
(b) A family case manager;
(c) A family case manager supervisor;
(d) A local office director;
(e) A regional manager;
(f) A child services assistant; or
(g) A child services attorney.
JUDGE. Pursuant to I.C. 36-1-8.5-3, an individual who holds or formerly held office as:
(a) A judge of the supreme court, court of appeals, tax court, circuit court, superior court, municipal court, county court, federal court, or small claims court; or
(b) A magistrate, commissioner, or juvenile referee of a court.
LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER. Pursuant to I.C. 36-1-8.5-4, an individual who is employed or was formerly employed as:
(a) A police officer (including a tribal police officer, a correctional police officer, and a hospital police officer employed by a hospital police department established under I.C. 16-18-4), sheriff, constable, marshal, prosecuting attorney, special prosecuting attorney, special deputy prosecuting attorney, the securities commissioner, or the inspector general;
(b) A deputy of any of the persons specified in division (a) above;
(c) An investigator for a prosecuting attorney or for the inspector general;
(d) A conservation officer;
(e) An enforcement officer of the Alcohol and Tobacco Commission; or
(f) An enforcement officer of the securities division of the Office of the Secretary of State.
PROGRAM PARTICIPANT. Pursuant to I.C. 36-1-8.5-4.3, an individual certified as a program participant under I.C. 5-26.5-2-3.
PUBLIC OFFICIAL. Pursuant to I.C. 36-1-8.5-4.5, an individual who holds or formerly held office at any time during the preceding four years in the executive or legislative branch of the state or federal government or a political subdivision of the state or federal government.
PUBLIC PROPERTY DATA BASE WEB SITE. Pursuant to I.C. 36-1-8.5-5, an internet web site that:
(a) Is available to the general public over the internet;
(b) Does not require registration, subscription, or the creation of a user name and password to search the web site; and
(c) Connects a covered person's home address to the covered person's name, so that a search of the web site for the covered person's name discloses the covered person's home address.
WRITTEN REQUEST. The request to restrict home address form obtained from the County Auditor's Office.
(B) Process to restrict access. In accordance with I.C. 36-1-8.5-7(b), the following process is hereby established to prevent a member of the general public from gaining access to the home address of a covered person by means of any county public property data base web site.
(1) Submit a written request.
(a) A covered person who wishes to restrict access to the covered person's home address by means of a county public property data base web site must apply for address confidentiality by submitting a written request to the County Auditor's Office ("Auditor's Office").
(b) Pursuant to I.C. 36-1-8.5-10, a covered person, who has previously applied for address confidentiality under this section and who has obtained a change of name under I.C. 34-28-2, must notify the Auditor's Office in writing if he or she wishes to restrict access with respect to both the covered person's former and new name.
(c) A covered person who has previously applied for address confidentiality under this section and who has moved must notify the Auditor's Office in writing if he or she wishes to restrict access with respect to the covered person's new address.
(d) In the event the title to a parcel restricted as to home address for a covered person changes, the parcel will be removed from the list of restricted properties. In that event, a covered person must notify the Auditor's Office in writing if he or she wishes to have access to the parcel restricted again.
(2) Information or verification required for processing written request. The following described information and verification is required for processing of a request filed by a covered person.
(a) A judge must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating current or previous employment status as:
1. A judge of the Supreme Court, court of appeals, tax court, circuit court, superior court, municipal court, county court, federal court, or small claims court; or
2. A magistrate, commissioner, or juvenile referee of a court.
(b) A law enforcement officer must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating current or previous employment status as:
1. A police officer (including a tribal police officer, a correctional police officer, and a hospital police officer employed by a hospital police department established under I.C. 16-18-4), sheriff, constable, marshal, prosecuting attorney, special prosecuting attorney, special deputy prosecuting attorney, the securities commissioner, or the inspector general;
2. A deputy of any of the persons specified in division (B)(2)(b)1.;
3. An investigator for a prosecuting attorney or for the inspector general;
4. A conservation officer;
5. An enforcement officer of the Alcohol and Tobacco Commission; or
6. An enforcement officer of the securities division of the Office of the Secretary of State.
(c) An address confidentiality program participant must provide a paper copy of the certification of program participation in the address confidentiality program established by the Attorney General.
(d) A public official must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating service as a public official who holds or formerly held office at any time during the preceding four years in the executive or legislative branch of the state or federal government or a political subdivision of the state or federal government.
(e) A surviving spouse of a law enforcement officer described in I.C. 36-1-8.5-2(5) must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating the name of the law enforcement officer and that said law enforcement officer was killed in the line of duty.
(f) An employee of the Department of Child Services must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating current or previous employment by the Department of Child Services as:
1. A family case manager trainee;
2. A family case manager;
3. A family case manager supervisor;
4. A local office director;
5. A regional manager;
6. A child services assistant; or
7. A child services attorney.
(g) A current or former probation officer must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating current or previous employment as a probation officer.
(h) A current or former community corrections officer must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating current or previous employment status as a community corrections officer.
(i) A regular, paid firefighter or a volunteer firefighter, as defined in I.C. 36-8-12-2, must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating current status as a regular, paid firefighter or as a volunteer firefighter.
(j) A person who resides in the same household as a person described in divisions (B)(2)(a) through (i) above must provide a signed letter in paper copy stating the name of the person described in divisions (B)(2)(a) through (i) above and stating that he or she resides in the same household as that person.
(3) Person or department to receive and process written request.
(a) Written request forms will be received and processed by the Auditor's Office. If any written request form is denied by the Auditor's Office, the applicant may appeal to the County Board of Commissioners.
(b) Any written request form that is not denied will be forwarded by the Auditor's Office to the County GIS Department, the County Recorder, and any other county office or department that operates a public property data base web site.
(c) Any other county office or department that receives a written request form that is not received from the Auditor's Office will forward a copy of the written request form to the Auditor's Office for distribution under this policy to the county offices and departments that operate a public property data base web site.
(4) Fee schedule. No fee applies to a covered person applying for address confidentiality under this policy.
(C) Result of changes to access of property information. The process of restricting home addresses on any county public property data base web site will cause the following:
(1) The public property data base web site. Requests to restrict access to home addresses affect either one or possibly multiple parcels that may display the home address. A parcel's parcel identification number (PIN) will be added to a suppression list if it would otherwise provide the covered person's home address. The act of adding a parcel's PIN number to the suppression list will redact the home address information for the affected parcel(s). Performing a search on suppressed PINs will return no home address information.
(2) Internal county property record databases. Property home address information stored on internal county databases will still exist and may be made available to the public, unless excepted, in accordance with the provisions of the Indiana Access to Public Records Act at I.C. 5-14-3.
(D) Immunity and litigation proceedings. It is the intention of the county to comply with the intent of the code to not make property information associated with a home address accessible by means of removing the link between home address and parcel information for a covered person who makes a request under this policy. A unit may not be held liable for failure to timely restrict disclosure of an address under I.C. 36-1-8.5, unless the unit's act or omission constitutes gross negligence or willful or wanton misconduct.
(E) Reversal of privacy settings. In accordance with I.C. 36-1-8.5-9, a covered person may request reinstatement of his or her restricted address information. To reinstate his or her restricted address information, a covered person must provide appropriate identification to the county. The county will determine whether a particular form of identification is appropriate under this section.
(F) Confidentiality. A written request, notification of name change, or any other information submitted to the county by a covered person under this policy is confidential under I.C. 5-14-3-4(a).
(G) Amendments. The county reserves the right to amend or revise the contents of this policy at any time. The revised policy will be available in the Auditor's Office. This policy supersedes and replaces the prior Restricted Addresses Policy dated March 9, 2020.
(Res. passed 12-18-2017; Res. CO 2020-09, passed 3-9-2020; Res. CO-2023-36, passed 7-17-2023)
Statutory reference:
Covered person defined, see I.C. 36-1-8.5