HF 715 (LSB 1070HV (3) 88)

HOUSE FILE 715

BY  COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT

(SUCCESSOR TO HSB 160)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to governmental bodies and advisory bodies and public notice requirements under the open meetings law. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 21.2, subsection 1, paragraphs a, c, e, h, and j, Code 2019, are amended to read as follows:
   a.  A board, council, commission, or other governing body expressly created by the statutes of this state or by executive order of the governor.
   c.  A multimembered body formally and directly created by one or more boards, councils, commissions, or other governing bodies subject to paragraphs paragraph “a” and or “b” of this subsection.
   e.  An advisory board, advisory commission, advisory committee, or task force formally and directly created by the governor or the general assembly to develop and make recommendations on public policy and budgetary issues.
   h.  An advisory board, advisory commission, advisory committee, task force, or other body formally and directly created by statute or executive order of this state or created by an executive order of any measure, including a motion, resolution, amendment, or ordinance, by a political subdivision of this state, one or more boards, councils, commissions, or other governing bodies subject to paragraph “a” or “b”, by a mayor, or by a superintendent of schools if the school board of a school district has expressly authorized the superintendent to act on behalf of the school district, to develop and make recommendations on public policy and budgetary issues to the board, council, commission, or other governing body.
   j.  An advisory board, advisory commission, advisory committee, task force, or other body formally and directly created by an entity organized under chapter 28E, or by the administrator or joint board specified in a chapter 28E agreement, to develop and make recommendations on public policy and budgetary issues to the entity or joint board.
    Sec. 2.  Section 21.2, subsection 2, Code 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  “Meeting” means a gathering in person or by electronic means, formal or informal, of a majority of the members of a governmental body where there is deliberation or action upon any matter within the scope of the governmental body’s policy-making or budgetary duties. Meetings shall not include a gathering of members of a governmental body for purely ministerial or social purposes when there is no discussion of policy or budgetary duties or no intent to avoid the purposes of this chapter.
    Sec. 3.  Section 21.4, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   a.  Except as provided in subsection 3, a governmental body shall give notice of the time, date, and place of each meeting including a reconvened meeting of the governmental body, and the tentative agenda of the meeting, in a manner reasonably calculated to apprise the public of that information. Reasonable notice shall include advising the news media any person who have has filed a request for notice with the governmental body and posting the notice on a bulletin board or other prominent place which is easily accessible to the public and clearly designated for that purpose at the principal office of the body holding the meeting, or if no such office exists, at the building in which the meeting is to be held.
    Sec. 4.  Section 21.4, subsection 2, paragraph a, Code 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   a.  Except as otherwise provided in paragraph “c”, notice conforming with all of the requirements of subsection 1 shall be given at least twenty-four hours prior to the commencement of any meeting of a governmental body, excluding weekend days and paid holidays as specified in section 1C.2, unless for good cause such notice is impossible or impractical, in which case as much notice as is reasonably possible shall be given. 
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to the regulation of a governmental body and public notice requirements under the open meetings law (Code chapter 21).
   The bill amends the definition of governmental body under the open meetings law to specify that only advisory boards, advisory commissions, advisory committees, task forces, or any other body that are formally and directly created by a political subdivision of this state, specified governmental bodies, by a mayor, or by a superintendent of schools if the school board of a school district has expressly authorized the superintendent to act on behalf of the school district, are considered governmental bodies subject to the open meetings law.
   The bill amends the definition of a meeting that is subject to the requirements of the open meetings law by expanding the definition to include any deliberations or actions (including recommendations) taken by a governmental body as defined in the open meetings law, that are within a governmental body’s budgetary duties.
   The bill provides that reasonable notice of a meeting shall include providing notice to any person, and not just the news media, if the person has filed a request for notice.
   The bill also excludes weekend days and paid holidays as specified in Code section 1C.2 when determining the 24-hour time period for purposes of public notice under the open meetings law.