A proposed bill would require Kansas district courts to remove certain eviction documents from the public record.
Eviction records can include a variety of documents, all of which are publicly available.
Some, like the judge’s ruling, may result in the tenant having to leave their rental housing. Others, like the initial petition to evict, may be filed by the landlord and later dismissed for various reasons, such as the tenant paying their rent.
State Rep. Leah Howell, a Republican representing parts of Mulvane and Derby, says those records can make it harder for some Kansans to find housing – sometimes unfairly.
“In Kansas, eviction filings are permanent. Even if the case was dismissed, resolved, or filed in error,” Howell wrote in her testimony in support of the bill.
“Current laws allow tenant screening companies to scrape court records and generate ‘risk scores,’ leading to automatic rejections by property owners – even for cases where tenants were never evicted. This can cause long term and ongoing issues for individuals and their families being able to find and qualify for housing.”
That’s why Howell introduced the bill alongside state Rep. Cyndi Howerton. It would require courts to seal many eviction records from the public, including instances where the case is dismissed or the judge rules in favor of the tenant.
Evictions in which the judge ruled in favor of the landlord would remain unsealed. But after two years, the courts would automatically expunge the eviction from the tenant’s record — except in certain circumstances, such as if money is still owed to the landlord.
The bill garnered support from three Wichita City Council members across the political spectrum: Brandon Johnson and Mike Hoheisel, both Democrats, as well as Dalton Glasscock, a Republican.
Glasscock wrote in testimony supporting the bill that it “strikes the right balance” by ensuring that landlords can make informed decisions while preventing tenants from being unfairly punished for dismissed cases.
“It does not erase legitimate judgments, nor does it prevent landlords from protecting their investments,” Glasscock said. “Instead, it ensures that people who have met their obligations and corrected past issues are not permanently locked out of housing.”
But the bill drew some detractors. Ed Jaskinia is president of the Associated Landlords of Kansas, which mostly represents “mom and pop” landlords. He said he opposes the automatic sealing or expungement of eviction records.
“We need the information to screen out the bad players,” Jaskinia said.
For example, Jaskinia said he would want to know whether a tenant had an eviction filed against them that was then dropped because the tenant paid their rent – especially if the pattern repeats. If the bill was passed, eviction cases that are dismissed would not be public record.
Jaskinia said he supports offering expungement as an option for tenants, but does not think it should be an automatic process.
The Kansas Judicial branch also weighed in on the bill at a hearing this week, saying it worried it could be time- and resource-intensive to seal and expunge eviction cases. Many cases would have to be tracked by hand due to contingencies in the bill.
That could be burdensome, as about 32,400 eviction cases were filed in Kansas courts in 2023 and 2024 combined, said Marisa Bayless, special counsel to the chief justice of the state’s Supreme Court.
Eviction mediation
The bill also requires courts to order mediation between tenants and landlords in eviction cases.
Mediation is a process in which the tenant and landlord meet with a neutral third-party in an attempt to come to an agreement instead of going in front of the judge.
Johnson County is one of the few Kansas counties that has an existing mandatory landlord-tenant eviction mediation program.
Christina Ashie Guidry, director of Policy & Planning at United Community Services of Johnson County, told legislators the program has been successful.
“In 90% of cases referred to mediation, the tenant and property owner reach an agreement,” Guidry said. “73% of the time, the tenant fulfills that agreement and the case is dismissed. That has realized for them really significant cost-savings.
“Landlords and tenants are in favor of it. And law enforcement alone saved $600,000 in the past year not having to go out and serve those evictions.”
Sedgwick County has a landlord-tenant mediation program. But it’s voluntary and has had limited participation, in part due to landlords’ reticence to partake, reporting by KMUW found.
Jaskinia said he doesn’t “have a problem” with mediation but is skeptical that it would be effective.
“Well over 90% of all evictions are people just not paying rent,” Jaskinia said. “And what is there to mediate at that point?”
Bayless, the court official, also asked who would pay for the mediation, particularly in counties that don’t yet have a program set up.
“The majority of counties in Kansas don’t have eviction mediations readily available,” Bayless said. “That’s not something the court necessarily pays for. That would be on the onus of the parties involved potentially, if there’s no local resources to help aid that.”
She emphasized that the courts support eviction mediation efforts. The state’s Office of Judicial Administration put in place the mediation program in Sedgwick County's district court.
