SB 485

General Assembly  Substitute Bill No. 485
  February Session, 2026
 AN ACT EXPANDING THE ADDRESS CONFIDENTIALITY PROGRAM
 TO SHIELD LAND RECORDS AND INCLUDE PRIVATE ENTITIES.
 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
 Assembly convened:
1Section 1. Section 54-240 of the general statutes is repealed and the
2    following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026):
3As used in this chapter and section 4 of this act:
4      (1) "Address confidentiality program" or "program" means the
5    program established pursuant to this chapter;
6      (2) "Agency" has the same meaning as "public agency" or "agency", as
7    provided in section 1-200;
8     (3) "Application assistant" means a person authorized by the
9   Secretary of the State to assist applicants in the completion of
10   applications for program participation;
11      (4) "Authorized personnel" means an employee in the office of the
12   Secretary of the State who has been designated by the Secretary of the
13   State, or an employee of an agency who has been designated by the chief
14   executive officer of such agency, to process and have access to records
15   pertaining to a program participant, including, but not limited to, voter
16   registration applications, voting records and marriage records;
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17    (5) "Certification card" means a card issued by the Secretary of the
18 State pursuant to section 54-240d;
19    (6) "Confidential address" means a program participant's address or
20 addresses as listed on such participant's application for program
21 participation that are not to be disclosed, including such participant's
22 residential address in this state and work and school addresses in this
23 state, if any;
24   (7) "Family violence" has the same meaning as provided in section
25 46b-38a;
26    (8) "Financial institution" has the same meaning as provided in
27 section 36a-2;
28    [(8)] (9) "Injury or risk of injury to a child" means any act or conduct
29 that constitutes a violation of section 53-21;
30    [(9)] (10) "Kidnapping" means any act that constitutes a violation of
31 section 53a-92, 53a-92a, 53a-94 or 53a-94a;
32   [(10)] (11) "Law enforcement agency" means the office of the Attorney
33 General, the office of the Chief State's Attorney, the Division of State
34 Police within the Department of Emergency Services and Public
35 Protection or any municipal police department;
36    [(11)] (12) "Marriage records" means an application for a marriage
37 license, an issued marriage license, a license certificate or other
38 documents related thereto;
39    [(12)] (13) "Program address" means the post office box number and
40 fictitious street address assigned to a program participant by the
41 Secretary of the State;
42    [(13)] (14) "Program participant" or "participant" means any person
43 certified by the Secretary of the State to participate in the address
44 confidentiality program;
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45    (15) "Real property address confidentiality program notice" means a
46 completed form, prescribed by the Secretary of the State pursuant to
47 section 4 of this act;
48    (16) "Real property record" means any record or data maintained by
49 a town clerk as part of the municipal land records or by a tax assessor
50 as part of the municipal tax records;
51    [(14)] (17) "Record" has the same meaning as "public records or files"
52 as provided in section 1-200;
53    [(15)] (18) "Sexual assault" means any act that constitutes a violation
54 of section 53a-70b of the general statutes, revision of 1958, revised to
55 January 1, 2019, or section 53a-70, 53a-70a, 53a-71, 53a-72a, 53a-72b or
56 53a-73a;
57    (19) "Shield" or "shielding" means to remove a real property record
58 from public inspection to a separate secure area to which persons who
59 do not have a legitimate reason for access are denied access;
60   [(16)] (20) "Stalking" means any act that constitutes a violation of
61 section 53a-181c, 53a-181d or 53a-181e; and
62    [(17)] (21) "Trafficking in persons" means any act that constitutes a
63 violation of section 53a-192a.
64    Sec. 2. Section 54-240h of the general statutes is repealed and the
65 following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026):
66   (a) A program participant may request, on a form prescribed by the
67 Secretary of the State, that an agency or a person use the program
68 address as the participant's residential, work or school address for all
69 purposes for which the agency or person requires or requests such
70 residential, work or school address. A program participant shall present
71 the participant's certification card to any agency official [creating a new
72 record pertaining to the participant] or person and request the use [in
73 such record] of the program address appearing on the certification card.
74 The agency official or person may make a photocopy of the certification
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75 card for the records of the agency or person and thereafter shall
76 immediately return the certification card to the program participant.
77    (b) If a program participant requests that an agency or person use the
78 program address pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, the agency
79 or person shall accept and use the program address as the program
80 participant's residential, work or school address, in lieu of the
81 participant's confidential address, unless the agency receives an
82 exemption from such use granted by the Secretary of the State pursuant
83 to section 54-240i. An agency or person shall not require a program
84 participant to provide a confidential address either as a substitute or in
85 addition to the program address, or as a condition of receiving a service
86 or benefit, unless the service or benefit would be impossible to provide
87 without having knowledge of the program participant's physical
88 location.
89    (c) Any agency or person that is in receipt of a written request using
90 the form prescribed by the Secretary of the State under subsection (a) of
91 this section shall not knowingly disclose the program participant's name
92 or confidential address.
93    (d) A bank, credit union or any other depository institution or
94 financial institution may require a program participant to make any
95 request under this section in writing and to use the form prescribed by
96 the Secretary of the State under subsection (a) of this section.
97    (e) A program participant who acquires an ownership interest in real
98 property while participating in the program may request the real
99 property records to be shielded in accordance with the provisions of
100 section 4 of this act.
101    Sec. 3. Subsection (d) of section 54-240k of the general statutes is
102 repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October
103 1, 2026):
104   (d) (1) The Secretary of the State shall notify in writing the authorized
105 personnel of the appropriate agency when a participant's certification in
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106 the program has been cancelled. After receipt of such notice, the agency
107 shall not be responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of the record
108 or address of a program participant whose certification has been
109 cancelled.
110    (2) If the marriage records of a program participant whose
111 certification has been cancelled were kept confidential pursuant to
112 section 54-240f, the Secretary of the State shall notify in writing the
113 authorized personnel of the appropriate office of the registrar of vital
114 statistics of the cancellation.
115    (3) If the participant whose certification has been cancelled was listed
116 on a voter registry list without the participant's street and house number
117 pursuant to section 54-240g, the Secretary of the State shall notify in
118 writing the authorized personnel of the appropriate office of the
119 registrar of voters of the cancellation.
120    (4) If the real property records of a program participant whose
121 certification has been cancelled were kept confidential pursuant to
122 section 4 of this act, the Secretary of the State shall notify in writing the
123 town clerk of the municipality in which the real property that is the
124 subject of such records is located of the cancellation.
125    Sec. 4. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2026) (a) A program participant
126 who acquires an ownership interest in real property while participating
127 in the address confidentiality program established pursuant to section
128 54-240a of the general statutes, may request the shielding of real
129 property records concerning the property in accordance with the
130 provisions of this section.
131    (b) (1) To request the shielding of real property records, a program
132 participant, or any agent of a program participant, shall submit to the
133 town clerk of the municipality where the real property is located (A) a
134 real property address confidentiality program notice, and (B) the deed
135 or other instrument to be recorded. Upon receipt of such request, such
136 town clerk shall keep the participant's real property records confidential
137 and shall not make available for inspection or copying the name and
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138 address of a program participant, except if (i) the program participant
139 consents to the disclosure for a specific purpose identified in writing
140 and signed by the program participant, which includes the participant's
141 certification code as stated on the real property address confidentiality
142 program notice, (ii) requested by a law enforcement agency, to the law
143 enforcement agency, (iii) directed by a court order, to a person identified
144 in such order, or (iv) the Secretary of the State authorizes disclosure in
145 accordance with the provisions of subsection (i) of this section.
146    (2) The town clerk shall also share such notice with authorized
147 personnel of the tax assessor or any other department that would have
148 access to and disclose real property records, and such authorized
149 personnel shall also be subject to such prohibition on disclosure.
150    (3) The prohibition on disclosure shall continue until (A) the program
151 participant consents to the termination of the real property address
152 confidentiality program notice in writing and signed by the program
153 participant, (B) the real property address confidentiality program notice
154 is terminated in accordance with a court order, (C) the program
155 participant no longer holds an ownership interest in the property
156 identified in the real property address confidentiality program notice,
157 or (D) the Secretary of the State notifies the town clerk that the program
158 participant's certification has been cancelled.
159    (c) The real property address confidentiality program notice shall be
160 on a form prescribed by the Secretary of the State and shall include (1)
161 the full legal name of the program participant, including middle name,
162 (2) the program participant's certification code as stated on the
163 certification card issued pursuant to section 54-240d of the general
164 statutes, (3) the program address designated by the Secretary of the State
165 pursuant to section 54-240e of the general statutes, (4) a description of
166 the property, including the physical address, and (5) the signature of the
167 program participant.
168    (d) The program participant shall submit to the Secretary of the State
169 a copy of any real property address confidentiality program notice
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170 submitted under subsection (b) of this section.
171    (e) A real property address confidentiality program notice applies to
172 (1) the instrument submitted for recordation at the same time as the real
173 property address confidentiality program notice, including the proof of
174 tax payment, and (2) any other instrument concerning the property
175 identified in the real property address confidentiality program notice
176 that is subsequently presented for recordation during the period of time
177 that the program participant holds a record interest in the property and
178 is a program participant.
179   (f) A program participant shall use a separate real property address
180 confidentiality program notice for each property in which the program
181 participant acquires an ownership interest.
182   (g) A real property address confidentiality program notice is not a
183 public record, as defined in section 1-200 of the general statutes.
184    (h) (1) Town clerks shall establish procedures for recording deeds and
185 other instruments to comply with the provisions of this section. The
186 procedures shall, at a minimum, include provisions for (A) shielding
187 recorded instruments that contain a program participant's physical
188 address or identifying information, (B) notifying other municipal
189 authorized personnel, and (C) providing notice to the public of the
190 existence of a shielded instrument and instructions for requesting access
191 to the shielded instrument in accordance with the provisions of
192 subsection (i) of this section.
193    (2) Nothing in this section shall be construed as prohibiting a town
194 clerk from returning an original deed or any other instrument to the
195 person who submitted the instrument for recordation.
196    (3) All state and local agencies involved in real property assessments
197 and taxation shall establish procedures for maintaining records,
198 including tax, utility and zoning records, in accordance with the
199 provisions of this section.
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200    (i) (1) Upon request, the Secretary of the State may authorize the
201 disclosure of real property records that have been shielded under this
202 section for the purposes of performing a bona fide title examination.
203 Any request made under this section shall include (A) the name, title,
204 address and affiliated organization, if applicable, of the individual
205 requesting the disclosure, (B) the individual's purpose for requesting the
206 disclosure, (C) the individual's relationship, if any, to the program
207 participant, (D) a legal description of the property subject to the title
208 examination, (E) a statement that any information disclosed to the
209 individual shall be treated as confidential and shall be used and
210 disclosed only for the purpose identified in the request, (F) the
211 individual's signature, and (G) any other information required by the
212 Secretary of the State to respond to the request.
213    (2) Within two business days after receiving a request under this
214 subsection, the Secretary of the State shall provide a written response
215 approving or denying the request. The Secretary of the State shall
216 approve the request only if the request meets the requirements of
217 subdivision (1) of this subsection and the Secretary of the State confirms
218 the property subject to the title examination is the property identified in
219 the real property address confidentiality program notice of a current
220 program participant. If the property belongs to an individual who is no
221 longer a program participant, (A) the Secretary of the State shall give
222 written notice to the town clerk of the municipality in which the real
223 property is located and inform the individual who made the request
224 under this subsection that such records are no longer shielded, and (B)
225 the town clerk shall cease shielding all real property records relating to
226 the property and shall notify all authorized personnel of the
227 municipality to cease shielding all real property records relating to the
228 property.
229   (j) If a program participant intends to request the shielding of real
230 property records under this section, the program participant may not
231 submit any instrument for recordation electronically.
232   Sec. 5. Subdivision (21) of subsection (b) of section 1-210 of the 2026
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233 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is
234 substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026):
235    (21) The residential, work or school address of any participant in the
236 address confidentiality program established pursuant to sections 54-240
237 to 54-240o, inclusive, as amended by this act, or any real property record
238 being shielded under section 4 of this act;
  This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
  sections:
  Section 1      October 1, 2026  54-240
  Sec. 2  October 1, 2026  54-240h
  Sec. 3  October 1, 2026  54-240k(d)
  Sec. 4  October 1, 2026  New section
  Sec. 5  October 1, 2026  1-210(b)(21)
 GAE  Joint Favorable Subst.
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