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Mr. Michaei Wnif
July 08, 2011
Office of the Attorney General
State of Iowa
Opinion No. 11-7-1
*1 July 8, +2011-
LIBRARIES: Sex Offender Exclusion Zones. Iowa Code 4 692A.113. Iowa Code section 692A.113(1)(f) prohibits sex offenders who
have been convicted of a sex offense involving a minor child from being present on the real property of a public library without the
written permission of the library administrator. A library administrator should exercise such discretion through a deliberation of
competing considerations although such decision making could be exercised in broad categories. (Oetker to Wolf, Clinton County
Attorney, 7-8-11)
Mr. Michael Wolf
Clinton County Attorney
P.O. Box 2957
612 North Second Street - 2nd Floor
Clinton, Iowa 52733-2957
Dear Mr. Wolf:
You have requested an opinion from this office regarding application of the sex offender exclusion zones codified in Iowa Code
section 692A.113 to the real property of a public library. In relevant part, section 692A.113 excludes sex offenders who have been
convicted of a sex offense against a minor from the real property of a public library without the permission of the library
administrator. You ask whether a library administrator may adopt a blanket policy refusing to grant such written permission under
any and all circumstances or whether a library administrator is required to exercise such decision-making authority on a case-by-
case basis.
To place this issue within the proper context, it is perhaps beneficial to examine the history of Iowa's residency restrictions and
exclusionary zones made applicable to sex offenders. In early 2002, the Iowa legislature enacted certain sex offender residency
restrictions, which became effective on July 1, 2002. 2002 Iowa Acts ch. 1157. See also Michael J. Duster, Note, Out of Sight, Out
of Mind: State Attempts to Banish Sex Offenders, 53 Drake L. Rev. 711, 720-21 (2005) (discussing progression of Iowa's sex
offender residency restriction legislation). The legislation was made applicable to all persons who have committed a criminal
offense against a minor, or an aggravated offense, sexually violent offense, or other relevant offense that involved a minor and
precluded such persons from residing within two thousand feet of the real property comprising a public or nonpublic elementary
or secondary school or a child care facility. Iowa Code 44 692A.2A(1) & (2) (2003).
Following the State's adoption of the sex offender residency restrictions, Iowa cities sought to impose their own residency
restrictions under their broad home rule powers. See Iowa Const. art. III, 38A (providing that [m] unicipal corporations are
granted home rule power and authority, not inconsistent with the laws of the General Assembly); Iowa Code 5 364.1 (providing
that a city may, except as expressly limited by the Constitution of the State of Iowa, and if not inconsistent with the laws of the
general assembly, exercise any power and perform any function it deems appropriate to protect and preserve the rights,
privileges, and property of the city or of its residents, and to preserve and improve the peace, safety, health, welfare, comfort,
and convenience of its residents). As this office observed in responding to the question of whether a city could expand the
residency restrictions beyond the real property identified within the state statute, [i] n light of the high recidivism threat posed by
sex offenders and the desire to protect children from this risk, some small towns have enacted residency restrictions to other
locations, including public parks, libraries, and campgrounds. Iowa Att'y Gen. Op. #08-9-2, 2008 WL 6690123, at *5. This office
opined not only that a city's home rule authority to exercise police power encompasses the imposition of residency restrictions
upon convicted sex offenders, but also, that a court would likely reject the contention that the State's residency restriction statute
either expressly or implicitly preempted local legislation on the subject. Id. at * 3, 4. See eq., Formaro v. Polk County, 773 N.W.2d
834, 844 (Iowa 2009) (noting that cities and counties had begun adopting ordinances further restricting the residency zones for
sex offenders).
*2 As local communities began adopting their own ordinances, rales, and regulations expanding the restrictions beyond the real
property identified within the state statute, the area of the state in which sex offenders could reside diminished. In Formaro, the
Court observed that evidence presented tended to substantiate the offender's claim that almost ninety percent of the state falls
within the exclusion zones .... Id.
During the 2009 legislative session, the Iowa General Assembly enacted a comprehensive revision of the sex offender ... laws in
Chapter 692A. State v. Adams, No. 09-1499, 2010 WL 3894440, at *1 n.2 (Iowa Ct. ADD. Oct. 6, 2010) (citing 2009 Iowa Acts ch.
119). The legislature repealed Iowa's prior statutes governing the registry and residency of sex offenders, see 2009 Iowa Acts ch.
119, § 31, and enacted new registry and residency restrictions. Iowa Code §§ 692A. 101 through 692A.130. Additionally, the](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.sag/sagia0022&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)