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ROW Record

State record · IA · 2026-09-01 · Statute

Iowa

Live on this state’s ALPR statute. The occupancy form on file is not a named ALPR highway instrument. A live card is not a permit in hand.

Statute
Open the workbenchThe method
Highway system
Primary
Primary roads / primary road system: roads and streets inside and outside municipalities that are under department jurisdiction (Iowa Code § 306.3(6)). Secondary roads are county; municipal streets are city, with concurrent department jurisdiction over primary roads inside municipalities (§ 306.4).
Owner
Primary
Iowa Department of Transportation (the department) has jurisdiction and control over the primary roads (Iowa Code § 306.4(1)). County boards of supervisors control secondary roads; municipalities control the municipal street system.
Right-of-way
Primary
Iowa Code § 306.3(7). “Public road right-of-way” means an area of land, the right to possession of which is secured or reserved by the state or a governmental subdivision for roadway purposes. The right-of-way for all secondary roads is sixty-six feet in width, unless otherwise specified by the county board of supervisors of the respective counties.
Public records
Primary
Iowa Open Records Law (Examination of Public Records) (Iowa Code chapter 22; right to examine § 22.2). Who may request: Every person shall have the right to examine and copy a public record and to publish or otherwise disseminate a public record or the information contained in a public record (Iowa Code § 22.2). IPIB nicknames chapters 21 and 22 together as Iowa’s “sunshine” laws. Pack the actual chapters: 22 is records, 21 is meetings. Do not treat them as one statute.

IPIB nicknames chapters 21 and 22 together as Iowa’s “sunshine” laws. Pack the actual chapters: 22 is records, 21 is meetings. Do not treat them as one statute.

Open meetings
Primary
Iowa Open Meetings Law (Official Meetings Open to the Public) (Iowa Code chapter 21; meetings § 21.3)
ALPR statute
Primary
Iowa Code § 321P.4 — Automatic registration plate readers — data retention limited — penalty. The operator of an automatic registration plate reader or any associated data storage device shall permanently delete every captured registration-plate image and accompanying data no later than thirty days after capture (§ 321P.4(1)). Before that deletion, a law-enforcement agency may copy and store the image and data if they are relevant to an ongoing criminal case or investigation; those copies follow the agency’s evidence-retention policies and are not on the thirty-day clock (§ 321P.4(2)). “Automatic registration plate reader” or “plate reader” means a camera or other optical device designed or programmed to automatically detect a vehicle’s registration plate, or to automatically capture or store an image of a vehicle’s registration plate and any accompanying data (§ 321P.4(3)). Violation of subsection 1 is a simple misdemeanor (§ 321P.4(4)). History: 2024 Acts, ch 1181, §4 (HF 2681). The section sits in chapter 321P (Automated Traffic Enforcement) but uses its own plate-reader definition for purposes of this section — it is not limited to the 321P.1 speed-measuring “system.” It is a retention-and-penalty rule. It is not a use-policy, notice, or audit statute, and it is not an Iowa DOT right-of-way permit. 321P.2 is the separate ATE speed-camera permit for local authorities; do not pack that as this statute. Retention: Permanently delete every captured registration-plate image and accompanying data no later than thirty days after the image was captured (§ 321P.4(1)). A law-enforcement agency may copy and store the image and data before deletion if relevant to an ongoing criminal case or investigation; copies then follow that agency’s evidence-retention policies and are not subject to subsection 1 (§ 321P.4(2))..

Iowa Code 2026, Section 321P.4 (3, 0), retrieved from legis.iowa.gov. NYU Policing Project scorecard lists Iowa as “No ALPR statute” — secondary, contradicted by this enrolled text. 2026 HF 2161 / HF 2701 / SF 2350 would have expanded or repealed § 321P.4; they are not packed as law.

ROW permit
Primary
Utility permit (Iowa Admin. Code 761—ch. 115; Iowa DOT Electronic Permitting System) — not an ALPR-named instrument. Who may apply: 761—115.2: applicant is the utility owner or the utility owner’s designated representative who submits a request for a utility permit on the primary road system. Iowa DOT’s utility-accommodation page: the utility owner must apply and have a permit issued to place the utility within the highway rights-of-way (Iowa Code § 306.46). Applications are submitted through the Electronic Permitting System (EPS) and reviewed by district offices. No ALPR applicant class is listed. Do not import Florida GUP, Minnesota OLPA, or Utah Special Use.. The department may revoke the permit for noncompliance with chapter 115 or any term of a permit (761—115.3(11)(c)). A utility permit does not convey a permanent right of occupancy (761—115.7(2)(b)).. Primary as a utility-accommodation instrument only. 761—ch. 115 and the DOT page do not name ALPR, LPR, camera, or public-safety sensor. Automated Traffic Enforcement under § 321P.2 is a separate speed-camera permit for local authorities — not this instrument. Do not copy Florida GUP, Minnesota OLPA, or Utah Special Use.

Primary as a utility-accommodation instrument only. 761—ch. 115 and the DOT page do not name ALPR, LPR, camera, or public-safety sensor. Automated Traffic Enforcement under § 321P.2 is a separate speed-camera permit for local authorities — not this instrument. Do not copy Florida GUP, Minnesota OLPA, or Utah Special Use.

https://iowadot.gov/consultants-contractors/right-way/utility-accommodation-coordination

Install process in this state

Highway owner, § 321P.4 retention, and the 761—ch. 115 utility permit are primary. There is still no ALPR-named Iowa DOT ROW instrument.

  1. This is Iowa primary-road right-of-way under Iowa DOT (Iowa Code §§ 306.3–306.4), not Florida SHS, not Minnesota trunk highway, not Utah state highway. Do not import FAC 14-20.010, MnDOT OLPA, or UDOT Special Use.
  2. Iowa Code § 321P.4 is the automatic-registration-plate-reader retention rule: delete captured plate images and accompanying data by thirty days, unless a law-enforcement agency copied them as relevant to an ongoing criminal case or investigation. Simple misdemeanor for missing the deletion. It is not an Iowa DOT right-of-way permit.
  3. Do not treat chapter 321P’s Automated Traffic Enforcement permit (§ 321P.2) as ALPR. That permit is for local-authority speed-control cameras (the 321P.1 “system”). Iowa DOT’s ATE page is that program.
  4. Iowa DOT’s retrieved ROW instrument is a utility permit under 761—ch. 115, applied through EPS by a utility owner. That chapter and the utility-accommodation page do not name ALPR. Empty beats treating the utility permit as an ALPR install path.
  5. Chapter 22 still applies to agency records (every person). Chapter 21 covers meetings. Neither is an install permit.
  6. Do not copy Johnson City, TN dollar figures or FDOT EOM 26-01 into this pack.

Primary

Where to ask

  • Lawful custodian of the government body (Iowa Code ch. 22)

    Public records of that body, including contracts if not exempt

  • City or county clerk

    Minutes (ch. 21 are public records under § 21.3(2))

  • Purchasing / finance

    Vendor contract, amendments, invoices — if a contract exists

  • Police / sheriff records

    Plate-reader copies retained under § 321P.4(2) as evidence in an ongoing criminal case or investigation; local use policy and logs if created — no statewide use-policy or notice mandate packed

  • Iowa DOT district / EPS (utility accommodation)

    761—ch. 115 utility-permit file if one was issued — not an ALPR-named file

  • Iowa DOT Traffic and Safety (Automated Traffic Enforcement)

    § 321P.2 ATE speed-camera permit files — not ALPR install files

SupportedEvidence
The operator of an automatic registration plate reader in Iowa must permanently delete captured registration-plate images and accompanying data no later than thirty days after capture, unless a law-enforcement agency copied them as relevant to an ongoing criminal case or investigation (Iowa Code § 321P.4).

ia-321p-4

UnprovenAssumption
Iowa DOT’s 761—ch. 115 utility permit is the statewide ALPR right-of-way instrument.

The utility permit occupies primary-road ROW for a utility owner. It does not name ALPR.

ia-utility · ia-761-115

DisputedAssumption
Iowa DOT’s Automated Traffic Enforcement permit is the instrument for ALPR on primary roads.

§ 321P.2 / the ATE page is speed-control cameras under the 321P.1 “system.” Packing it as ALPR would be wrong.

ia-ate · ia-321p-2

Sources in this pack

What was checked

  1. 2026-09-01

    https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/22.2.pdf, /21.3.pdf, /306.3.pdf, /306.4.pdf, /306.46.pdf

    Primary: Open Records, Open Meetings, primary-road system, public-road ROW definition, § 306.46 public-utility facilities in public-road ROW.

  2. 2026-09-01

    https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/321P.4.pdf, /321P.1.pdf, /321P.2.pdf, /321P.pdf, /docs/code/2026/321P.html

    Primary: § 321P.4 automatic registration plate readers — 30-day deletion, LE-copy exception, simple misdemeanor. 2024 Acts, ch 1181, §4. § 321P.1 “system” is speed cameras; § 321P.2 is the ATE permit. Packed 321P.4 as the ALPR statute; did not pack 321P.2 as the ALPR instrument.

  3. 2026-09-01

    https://iowadot.gov/consultants-contractors/right-way/utility-accommodation-coordination and /permit-process; https://eps.iowadot.gov/; https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/761.115.pdf

    Primary: utility permit under 761—ch. 115; applicant is the utility owner or designated representative; EPS is the application portal; district review. Permit does not convey permanent occupancy; department may revoke. ALPR/LPR/camera not named.

  4. 2026-09-01

    https://ia.iowadot.gov/traffic/Automated-Traffic-Enforcement

    Primary: ATE is speed-control permitting under chapter 321P / HF 2681 — not ALPR. Logged so it is not packed as the ALPR instrument.

  5. 2026-09-01

    NYU Policing Project ALPR scorecard (alprscorecard.com, Aug 2026); NCSL 2022 ALPR list; ACLU of Iowa Dec 2025 ALPR report; 2026 HF 2161, HF 2701, SF 2350; 1 Sept 2026 re-audit of 91st GA

    NYU lists Iowa among 26 “No ALPR statute” states — secondary, contradicted by enrolled § 321P.4. NCSL 2022 predates the 2024 act. ACLU: no notice mandate (still true; 321P.4 is retention). HF 2161 last action 18 Feb 2026 (calendar); BillTrack50 marks it Dead 3 May 2026. HF 2701 introduced 23 Feb 2026. Radio Iowa 16 Apr 2026: House-passed ALPR bill returned to Senate — not packed as enrolled. § 321P.4 remains the packed statute.

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