2025 Minnesota Statutes

480.50 PERSONAL INFORMATION IN REAL PROPERTY RECORDS.

Subdivision 1.Definitions.

(a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the meanings given.

(b) "County recorder" has the meaning given in section 13.045, subdivision 1, clause (4).

(c) "Government entity" has the meaning given in section 13.02, subdivision 7a.

(d) "Judicial official" has the meaning given in section 480.40, subdivision 1, paragraph (b), except that it does not include: (1) employees of the Minnesota judicial branch, the Office of Administrative Hearings, the Workers' Compensation Court of Appeals, or the Tax Court; or (2) judges or employees in the Department of Human Services Appeals Division.

(e) "Personal information" has the meaning given in section 480.40, subdivision 1, paragraph (c).

(f) "Real property records" means any of the following:

(1) real property records as defined in section 13.045, subdivision 1, clause (5);

(2) Uniform Commercial Code filings and tax liens maintained by the Secretary of State; and

(3) any other records maintained by a county recorder or other government entity evidencing title to, or any lien, judgment, or other encumbrance on, real or personal property.

(g) "Responsible authority" has the meaning given in section 13.02, subdivision 16.

Subd. 2.Classification of data.

(a) Subject to the provisions of this section, the personal information of all judicial officials collected, created, or maintained in real property records is private data on individuals, as defined in section 13.02, subdivision 12.

(b) If the responsible authority or government entity violates this section, the remedies and penalties under chapter 13 are available only if the judicial official making a claim previously provided a real property notice that complies with subdivision 3. If the subject of the data is the spouse, domestic partner, or adult child of a judicial official who does not reside with the judicial official, the remedies and penalties under chapter 13 are available only if the spouse, domestic partner, or adult child previously provided a notification under subdivision 3 to the responsible authority confirming their status as the spouse, domestic partner, or adult child of a judicial official. In the case of county records, the notification shall be filed with the responsible authority that maintains the personal information for which protection is sought. A notification submitted under this section is private data on individuals, as defined in section 13.02, subdivision 12.

Subd. 3.Notification.

(a) For the classification in subdivision 2 to apply to personal information in real property records, a judicial official must submit a real property notice in writing to the county recorder in the county where the property identified in the real property notice is located and to the Office of the Secretary of State. To affect real property records maintained by any other government entity, a judicial official must submit a real property notice in writing to the other government entity's responsible authority. If the personal information is that of the spouse, domestic partner, or adult child of a judicial official who does not reside with the judicial official, the spouse, domestic partner, or adult child must submit a real property notice. The real property notice is classified as private data on individuals, as defined in section 13.02, subdivision 12. A real property notice must be on a form provided by the judicial branch and must include:

(1) the full legal name of the individual submitting the form;

(2) the last four digits of the individual's Social Security number;

(3) the individual's date of birth;

(4) the individual's telephone number and email;

(5) the residential address of the individual in Minnesota;

(6) the legal description, parcel identification number, and street address, if any, of the real property affected by the notice;

(7) if applicable, the document number and certificate of title number; and

(8) a certification that the individual is a judicial official or the spouse, domestic partner, or adult child of a judicial official that contains the notarized signature of the individual.

(b) A notice submitted by a judicial official employed by the state must include the employer's business address and a verification of current employment signed by the employer's human resources office.

(c) A notice submitted pursuant to this subdivision by a spouse, domestic partner, or adult child of a judicial official not residing with the judicial official must include a notarized verification that the individual is the spouse, domestic partner, or adult child of a judicial official.

(d) Only one parcel of real property may be included in each notice, but an individual may submit more than one notice. A government entity may require an individual to provide additional information necessary to identify the records or the real property described in the notice. An individual submitting a notice must submit a new real property notice if their legal name changes.

Subd. 4.Access to real property records.

(a) If an individual submits a notice under subdivision 3, the county recorder or other government entity must not disclose the individual's personal information in conjunction with the property identified in the written notice, unless:

(1) the individual has consented to sharing or dissemination of the personal information for the purpose identified in a writing signed by the individual and acknowledged by a notary public;

(2) the personal information is subject to dissemination pursuant to a court order under section 13.03, subdivision 6;

(3) the personal information is shared with a government entity for the purpose of administering assessment and taxation laws;

(4) the personal information is disseminated pursuant to subdivision 5; or

(5) the personal information is shared with the examiner of titles or deputy examiner as necessary to perform their statutory duties under chapters 508 and 508A, including the dissemination of personal information in Reports of Examiner.

(b) This subdivision does not prevent the county recorder from returning original documents to the person who submitted the documents for recording. Each county recorder shall establish procedures for recording documents to comply with this subdivision. These procedures may include masking personal information and making documents or certificates of title containing the personal information private and not viewable except as allowed by this paragraph. The procedure must comply with the requirements of chapters 386, 507, 508, and 508A, and other laws as appropriate, to the extent these requirements do not conflict with this section. The procedures must provide public notice of the existence of recorded documents and certificates of title that are not publicly viewable and the provisions for viewing them under this subdivision. Notice that a document or certificate is private and viewable only under this subdivision or subdivision 5 is deemed constructive notice of the document or certificate.

(c) A real property notice submitted under subdivision 3 shall apply retroactively to all online and digital real property records, but only to the extent the individual submitting the notice provides: (1) for county recorder records, the document number or certificate of title number of each record for which protection is sought, except digitized or scanned tract pages and books; and (2) for other government entity real property records, the parcel identification number of each record for which protection is sought. Otherwise, paragraph (a) applies only to the real property records recorded or filed concurrently with the real property notice specified in subdivision 3 and to real property records affecting the same real property recorded subsequent to the county recorder or other government entity's receipt of the real property notice.

(d) The county recorder or other government entity shall have 60 days from the date of receipt of a real property notice under subdivision 3 to process the request. If the individual cites exigent circumstances, the county recorder or other government entity shall process the request as soon as practicable.

(e) The prohibition on disclosure in paragraph (a) continues until:

(1) the individual has consented to the termination of the real property notice in a writing signed by the individual and acknowledged by a notary public;

(2) the real property notice is terminated pursuant to a court order;

(3) the individual no longer holds a record interest in the real property identified in the real property notice;

(4) the individual is deceased and a certified copy of the death certificate has been filed with the county recorder or other government entity to which a notice was given under subdivision 3; or

(5) the individual who filed a real property notice pursuant to subdivision 3 no longer qualifies for protection under this section because they are no longer a judicial official or the spouse, domestic partner, or adult child of a judicial official. If the individual no longer qualifies for protection under this section, the individual must notify each county recorder or other government entity to which a notice under subdivision 3 was given within 90 days after the individual no longer qualifies for protection.

(f) Upon termination of the prohibition of disclosure, the county recorder shall make publicly viewable all documents and certificates of title that were previously partially or wholly private and not viewable pursuant to a notice filed under subdivision 3.

Subd. 5.Access to personal information in real property records; title examination.

(a) Upon request, the individual who submitted the real property notice under subdivision 3 shall verify that the individual's real property is the property subject to a bona fide title exam.

(b) The county recorder or other government entity shall provide the unredacted real property records of an individual who submitted a real property notice under subdivision 3 upon request of any of the following persons:

(1) a licensed title insurance company representative, a licensed title insurance agent, a licensed abstractor, or an attorney licensed to practice law in Minnesota;

(2) a mortgage loan originator;

(3) a real estate broker or a real estate salesperson; and

(4) an individual or entity that has made or received an offer for the purchase of real property to or from an individual who submitted a real property notice under subdivision 3 whose address is subject to nondisclosure, provided the request is accompanied by a written consent from the individual.

(c) A request made under paragraph (a) or (b) must be made on a notarized form and include:

(1) the full legal name, title, address, and place of employment, if applicable, of the person requesting the real property records;

(2) the lawful purpose for requesting the real property records;

(3) the requestor's relationship, if any, to the individual who submitted a real property notice under subdivision 3;

(4) the legal description of the property subject to the title examination; and

(5) proof of the requestor's licensure.

(d) Personal information provided under this subdivision may be used only for the purposes authorized in this subdivision or the lawful purposes set forth in the request for disclosure form and may not be further disseminated to any other person. A person receiving private data under this subdivision shall establish procedures to protect the data from further dissemination unless further dissemination is required by law. However, the dissemination of personal information in real property records by a licensed attorney or any employees in the office of the licensed attorney is permitted when reasonably necessary for the provision of legal services.

Subd. 6.Service fees to county recorder or other government entity.

The county recorder or any other government entity is authorized to charge the following service fees:

(1) up to $75 for each real property notice under subdivision 3;

(2) up to $75 for each consent submitted under subdivision 4, paragraphs (a), clause (1), and (e), clause (1); and

(3) up to $75 for each request submitted under subdivision 5.

These service fees shall not be considered county recorder fees under section 357.18 or registrar of titles fees under section 508.82 or 508A.82 and shall be deposited into the county recorder or other government entity's general fund.

History:

2025 c 35 art 9 s 13