Branstad signs gambling cheating bill, 17 other measures

DES MOINES - Gov. Terry Branstad signed 18 bills into law on Friday, including a measure that will change the penalties related to cheating on gambling games at casinos.

Under current law, a person who places a bet after acquiring knowledge, not available to all players, of the outcome of the gambling commits a Class D felony carrying a penalty of up to five years in prison upon conviction, regardless of the amount bet. The person charged is banned for life from excursion gambling boats and gambling structures after a single offense.

House File 146, which takes effect July 1, replaces the current provision with a new requirement concerning the offense of unlawful betting by setting a Class D felony if the potential winnings from the unlawful bet exceeds $1,000, an aggravated misdemeanor if the potential winnings exceed $500 but are less than $1,000; a serious misdemeanor if the potential winnings exceed $200 but are less than $500; and a simple misdemeanor if the potential winnings do not exceed $200.

According to the Justice Data Warehouse, there were 22 people charged under Iowa's current law in fiscal 2014 related to cheating at gambling games. Overall, eight of the 22 people who were charged were convicted, while charges were dismissed in the other 14 cases.

In other action, Branstad approved a bill whereby a peace officer in Iowa who is found guilty of sexual misconduct with offenders or juveniles while transporting them from a jail to another facility will face a criminal aggravated misdemeanor charge.

House File 258 establishes a new crime and penalty of no more than two years in jail and a fine of up to $6,000 upon conviction. Current law just applies to employees of the Iowa Department of Corrections, but backers said H.F. 258 expands the statute to bar peace officers from engaging in a sex act with an offender under the supervision of the Department of Corrections or community-based corrections districts, or with a juvenile in a juvenile placement facility, or a prisoner in a county jail.

Also Friday, the governor signed House File 467, a bill which provides that a violation of the deer and turkey harvest reporting requirements is punishable as a scheduled violation with a $20 fine rather than as a simple misdemeanor with a scheduled fine of $100.

Other bills signed into law by the governor on Friday: House File 172: an act relating to corporations' powers and duties, document filings, meetings, mergers, voting procedures, and the functions of directors and officers; House File 259: an act relating to certain people who are excluded from coverage under the Workers' Compensation Law of this state; House File 421: an act relating to the qualifications for community college career and technical education instructors; House File 515: an act relating to the use of the district management levy and including applicability provisions; House File 529: an act relating to drainage and levee districts, by providing for mergers, repairs and improvements, and elections; House File 563: an act relating to vehicle recyclers, including the transfer of motor vehicles to vehicle recyclers and compliance with the national motor vehicle title information system, making penalties applicable, and including effective date provisions; Senate File 155: an act relating to the illumination of rear registration plates on dump trucks and construction vehicles; Senate File 200: an act relating to the employment and duties of the executive director of the Dental Board; Senate File 201: an act relating to the findings of an examining physician assistant for a person believed to be seriously mentally impaired in an emergency situation; Senate File 218: an act relating to the operation of a snowmobile within the right of way of an interstate highway or freeway and including penalty provisions; Senate File 222: an act relating to the disposition of seized firearms or ammunition; Senate File 264: an act relating to access to local exchange service information; Senate File 276: an act relating to the administration of medical licenses by the Board of Medicine; Senate File 435: an act relating to public access to data processing software under Iowa's Open Records Law; and Senate File 451: an act relating to the transfer of jurisdiction from the Juvenile Court to the District Court related to a child in need of assistance case.