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House File 638 - IntroducedA Bill ForAn Act 1relating to matters before the Iowa ethics and campaign
2disclosure board, including campaign finance filings,
3attribution statements, authorized gifts, and delinquent
4payment penalties.
5BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
1 Section 1. Section 68A.201, subsection 2, paragraphs a and
2b, Code 2023, are amended to read as follows:
3a. The name, purpose, mailing address, electronic mail
4address, and telephone number of the committee. The committee
5name shall not duplicate the name of another committee
6organized under this section. For candidate’s committees
7filing initial statements of organization on or after July
81, 1995, the candidate’s name shall be contained within the
9committee name.
10b. The name, mailing address, electronic mail address, and
11position of the committee officers.
12 Sec. 2. Section 68A.201A, subsection 6, Code 2023, is
13amended to read as follows:
146. The verified statement shall be filed by 4:30 in an
15electronic format no later than 11:59 p.m.of the day the
16filing is due.
17 Sec. 3. Section 68A.401, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code
182023, is amended to read as follows:
19a. A state statutory political committee, a county statutory
20political committee, a political committee, and a candidate’s
21committee shall file all statements and reports in an
22electronic format by 4:30 no later than 11:59 p.m.of the day
23the filing is due and according to rules adopted by the board.
24 Sec. 4. Section 68A.405, subsection 1, paragraph a,
25subparagraph (3), Code 2023, is amended to read as follows:
26(3) “Published material” means any newspaper, magazine,
27shopper, outdoor advertising facility, poster, direct mailing,
28brochure, internet site, campaign sign, or any other form of
29printed or electronic general public political advertising.
30“Published material” includes radio, television, video, or
31motion picture internet advertising.
32 Sec. 5. Section 68A.405, subsection 1, paragraph b,
33subparagraph (1), Code 2023, is amended to read as follows:
34(1) Except as set out in subsection 2, published material
35designed to expressly advocate the nomination, election,
-1-1or defeat of a candidate for public office or the passage
2or defeat of a ballot issue shall include on the published
3material an a clear and conspicuous attribution statement
4disclosing who is responsible for the published material.
5 Sec. 6. Section 68A.405, subsection 3, Code 2023, is amended
6to read as follows:
73. For television, or video, or motion picture advertising,
8the attribution statement shall be displayed on the screen
9in a clearly readable manner for at least four seconds. For
10radio advertising, the attribution statement shall be read in a
11clearly understandable manner.
12 Sec. 7. Section 68B.22, subsection 4, paragraph j, Code
132023, is amended to read as follows:
14j. Nonmonetary items with a value of three ten dollars or
15less that are received from any one donor during one calendar
16day. The allowable value of nonmonetary items shall be
17annually adjusted to reflect a change in value due to inflation
18and shall not include the sales tax associated with such items.
19 Sec. 8. Section 68B.22, subsection 8, Code 2023, is amended
20to read as follows:
218. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4, an
22organization or association which has as one of its purposes
23the encouragement of the passage, defeat, introduction,
24or modification of legislation shall not give and a member
25of the general assembly shall not receive food, beverages,
26registration, or scheduled entertainment with a per person
27value in excess of three ten dollars. The allowable per
28person value of food, beverages, registration, or scheduled
29entertainment shall be annually adjusted to reflect a change
30in value due to inflation and shall not include the sales tax
31associated with such costs.
32 Sec. 9. Section 68B.32, subsections 3 and 5, Code 2023, are
33amended to read as follows:
343. The board shall annually elect one member to serve as
35the chairperson of the board and one member to serve as vice
-2-1chairperson. The vice chairperson shall act as the chairperson
2in the absence or disability of the chairperson or in the
3event of a vacancy in that office. The chairperson and vice
4chairperson shall not be members of the same political party.
55. The board shall employ a full-time executive director who
6shall be the board’s chief administrative officer. The board
7shall employ or contract for the employment of legal counsel
8notwithstanding section 13.7, and any other personnel as may
9be necessary to carry out the duties of the board. The board’s
10legal counsel shall be the chief legal officer of the board and
11shall advise the board on all legal matters relating to the
12administration of this chapter and chapter 68A. The state may
13be represented by the board’s legal counsel in any civil action
14regarding the enforcement of this chapter or chapter 68A, or at
15the board’s request, the state may be represented by the office
16of the attorney general. Notwithstanding section 8A.412, all
17of the board’s employees, except for the executive director and
18legal counsel, shall be employed subject to the merit system
19provisions of chapter 8A, subchapter IV. The salary of the
20executive director shall be fixed by the board, within the
21range established by the general assembly. The salary of the
22legal counsel shall be fixed by the board, within a salary
23range established by the department of administrative services
24for a position requiring similar qualifications and experience.
25If the executive director also serves as the board’s legal
26counsel, the board may award the executive director additional
27compensation which shall not annually exceed fifty percent of
28the maximum annual salary for the range established by the
29general assembly for the board’s executive director position.
30 Sec. 10. Section 68B.32A, Code 2023, is amended by adding
31the following new subsection:
32 NEW SUBSECTION. 20. Beginning January 1, 2024, and every
33January 1 thereafter, calculate and record any change in value
34due to inflation using the annual percentage change in the
35United States department of labor, bureau of labor statistics,
-3-1consumer price index for all urban consumers for the midwest
2region, all items, or its successor index, as provided under
3section 68B.22, subsection 4, paragraph “j”, and section
468B.22, subsection 8.
5 Sec. 11. NEW SECTION. 68B.32E Delinquent penalties —
6enforcement.
71. A civil penalty assessed by the board under section
868B.32D, subsection 1, paragraph “h”, shall be paid no later
9than thirty days after the order is issued. A civil penalty is
10delinquent if the full amount of the civil penalty has not been
11timely paid.
122. a. In lieu of paying the full amount of the civil
13penalty within thirty days, a person may enter into an
14installment payment plan. A payment plan must be agreed to
15in writing and signed by the board’s executive director and
16the person owing the civil penalty. The payment plan must
17include a payment schedule with the payment dates described.
18The payment plan must be established no later than thirty days
19after the issuance of the order requiring the person to pay a
20civil penalty, as provided under section 68B.32D, subsection
211, paragraph “h”.
22b. If a payment plan is established, the civil penalty is
23delinquent if an installment payment is not paid within thirty
24days of the payment date provided in the payment plan.
253. A civil penalty delinquent for sixty days or longer
26on or after July 1, 2023, shall accrue interest at a rate of
27ten percent per annum, compounded monthly, beginning on the
28later of July 1, 2023, and the date the civil penalty becomes
29delinquent. The board may waive any accrued interest.
304. If a civil penalty remains delinquent for thirty days or
31longer, the board shall send final notice to the person owing
32the civil penalty. Such notice shall be sent via restricted
33certified mail, and must include notice of the applicable
34action provided in subsection 5 or 6.
355. Notwithstanding sections 321.210, 321.210A, and
-4-1321.210B, if a civil penalty owed by a person who was issued a
2driver’s license in this state is delinquent under subsection 1
3or 2, and if the person owes two hundred fifty dollars or more,
4the person’s driver’s license shall be suspended as follows:
5a. The board shall issue an order to suspend the person’s
6driver’s license to the department of transportation thirty
7days after the person received a final notice in accordance
8with subsection 4.
9b. The department of transportation shall suspend the
10person’s driver’s license within ten business days of receiving
11the board’s order and shall send notice of the suspension to
12the person in accordance with section 321.210E and provide
13confirmation to the board when the person’s driver’s license
14is suspended.
15c. If the civil penalty owed by the person is no
16longer delinquent, the board shall order the department of
17transportation to reinstate the person’s driver’s license. The
18department of transportation shall send notice to the person
19whose license is reinstated and provide written confirmation to
20the board when the license is reinstated.
216. If a civil penalty owed by a person who was not issued a
22driver’s license in this state is delinquent under subsection 1
23or 2, and if the person owes two hundred fifty dollars or more,
24the board shall revoke any authority granted by the board for
25the person to operate a candidate’s committee and a political
26committee in this state until the person’s debt is no longer
27delinquent.
287. Any penalty shall be stayed if an appeal is pending for
29the underlying matter for which the person was issued a civil
30penalty. For the duration of the stay, the penalty shall not
31be deemed delinquent and shall not accrue interest.
328. The board may waive collection of a penalty owed in
33circumstances where collection is impracticable.
349. This section does not prohibit the board from taking
35alternative enforcement actions permitted by this chapter or
-5-1chapter 17A.
2 Sec. 12. NEW SECTION. 321.210E Suspension for delinquent
3administrative fines.
4Upon receipt of an order from the Iowa ethics and campaign
5disclosure board, the department shall suspend the driver’s
6license of a person who has a delinquent civil penalty under
7section 68B.32E and who received notice from the board required
8under section 68B.32E, subsection 4. The department shall
9send notice of the suspension to the person whose license is
10suspended and shall send confirmation of the license suspension
11to the Iowa ethics and campaign disclosure board.
12EXPLANATION
13The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
14the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
15This bill relates to matters before the Iowa ethics and
16campaign disclosure board (board).
17The bill requires a political committee and a candidate’s
18committee to provide an electronic mail address along with the
19name, purpose, mailing address, and telephone number of the
20committee when the committee files a statement of organization
21with the board. When a committee or organization is not
22organized under Code section 68A.201, such committee officers
23are also required to provide an electronic mail address when
24filing full disclosure reports of all financial activities with
25the federal election commission or another state’s disclosure
26commission.
27The bill extends the deadline for required filings to be
28submitted electronically to the board from 4:30 p.m.to 11:59
29p.m.on the day the filings are due. By operation of law,
30in computing time, the first day is excluded and the last
31included, unless the last falls on Sunday or holiday, in which
32case the time prescribed is extended so as to include the
33whole of the following Monday, or day after the holiday, as
34applicable.
35The bill adds radio and internet advertising to the
-6-1definition of “published material” as used in Code chapter
268A, and strikes motion picture advertising from the
3definition. “Published material”, including radio and internet
4advertising under the bill, that is designed to expressly
5advocate the nomination, election, or defeat of a candidate
6for public office or the passage or defeat of a ballot issue
7is required to include an attribution statement disclosing
8who is responsible for the material. The bill requires the
9attribution statement to be clear and conspicuous. For radio
10advertising, the attribution statement must be read in a
11clearly understandable manner.
12Under current law, a member of the general assembly, a public
13official, public employee, or candidate, or that person’s
14immediate family member is prohibited from, directly or
15indirectly, accepting or receiving certain gifts or series of
16gifts from restricted donors.
17Code section 68B.22 provides a number of exceptions to the
18general gift giving and receiving prohibitions including but
19not limited to authorizing public officials, public employees,
20candidates, and members of the immediate family of such persons
21to accept nonmonetary items with a value of $3 or less from
22any one donor during one calendar day. The Code section also
23authorizes a member of the general assembly to receive food,
24beverages, registration, or scheduled entertainment with a per
25person value of up to $3 from an organization or association
26which has as one of its purposes the encouragement of the
27passage, defeat, introduction, or modification of legislation.
28The bill increases the gift value to $10 and requires the
29value of those gifts to be adjusted to reflect a change in
30value due to inflation based on the annual percentage change
31in the United States department of labor, bureau of labor
32statistics, consumer price index for all urban consumers for
33the midwest region, all items, or its successor index. The
34Iowa ethics and campaign disclosure board must calculate and
35record the allowable monetary value changed due to inflation on
-7-1January 1, 2024, and every January 1 thereafter.
2Current law requires the board to annually elect one member
3to serve as the chairperson of the board and one member to
4serve as vice chairperson. The bill prohibits the chairperson
5and vice chairperson from being members of the same political
6party.
7Under current law, the board must employ a full-time
8executive director who is the board’s chief administrative
9officer. The board must also employ or contract for the
10employment of legal counsel and any other personnel as may
11be necessary to carry out the duties of the board. The
12board’s legal counsel is the chief legal officer of the
13board and advises the board on all legal matters relating to
14the administration of Code chapters 68A and 68B. The bill
15authorizes the board to award the executive director, if that
16person also serves as the board’s legal counsel, additional
17compensation. The additional compensation must not annually
18exceed 50 percent of the maximum annual salary for the range
19established by the general assembly for the board’s executive
20director position.
21The bill provides enforcement provisions related to
22delinquent civil penalties assessed by the board under Code
23section 68B.32, subsection 1, paragraph “h”. The bill requires
24civil penalties to be paid within 30 days of the board’s order
25for a penalty unless a payment plan is established. Under the
26bill, a civil penalty that is delinquent for 60 days or longer
27on or after July 1, 2023, shall accrue interest at a rate of
2810 percent per annum, compounded monthly, beginning on July 1,
292023, or the date the penalty becomes delinquent.
30The bill authorizes the board to send an order to the
31department of transportation (DOT) to suspend the driver’s
32license of a person who was issued a license in Iowa, if the
33person has a delinquent penalty in excess of $250 and received
34notice as provided in the bill. The bill requires the DOT
35to suspend the person’s driver’s license within 10 business
-8-1days of receiving the board’s order, and then send certain
2notices. If a delinquent civil penalty of more than $250 is
3owed by a person who was not issued a driver’s license in Iowa,
4the board is required to revoke any authority granted by the
5board for the person to operate a candidate’s committee and
6a political committee in Iowa until the person’s debt is no
7longer delinquent.
8The bill provides for penalties to be waived and stayed under
9certain circumstances.
-9-th/jh
2disclosure board, including campaign finance filings,
3attribution statements, authorized gifts, and delinquent
4payment penalties.
5BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
1 Section 1. Section 68A.201, subsection 2, paragraphs a and
2b, Code 2023, are amended to read as follows:
3a. The name, purpose, mailing address, electronic mail
4address, and telephone number of the committee. The committee
5name shall not duplicate the name of another committee
6organized under this section. For candidate’s committees
7filing initial statements of organization on or after July
81, 1995, the candidate’s name shall be contained within the
9committee name.
10b. The name, mailing address, electronic mail address, and
11position of the committee officers.
12 Sec. 2. Section 68A.201A, subsection 6, Code 2023, is
13amended to read as follows:
146. The verified statement shall be filed by 4:30 in an
15electronic format no later than 11:59 p.m.of the day the
16filing is due.
17 Sec. 3. Section 68A.401, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code
182023, is amended to read as follows:
19a. A state statutory political committee, a county statutory
20political committee, a political committee, and a candidate’s
21committee shall file all statements and reports in an
22electronic format by 4:30 no later than 11:59 p.m.of the day
23the filing is due and according to rules adopted by the board.
24 Sec. 4. Section 68A.405, subsection 1, paragraph a,
25subparagraph (3), Code 2023, is amended to read as follows:
26(3) “Published material” means any newspaper, magazine,
27shopper, outdoor advertising facility, poster, direct mailing,
28brochure, internet site, campaign sign, or any other form of
29printed or electronic general public political advertising.
30“Published material” includes radio, television, video, or
31motion picture internet advertising.
32 Sec. 5. Section 68A.405, subsection 1, paragraph b,
33subparagraph (1), Code 2023, is amended to read as follows:
34(1) Except as set out in subsection 2, published material
35designed to expressly advocate the nomination, election,
-1-1or defeat of a candidate for public office or the passage
2or defeat of a ballot issue shall include on the published
3material an a clear and conspicuous attribution statement
4disclosing who is responsible for the published material.
5 Sec. 6. Section 68A.405, subsection 3, Code 2023, is amended
6to read as follows:
73. For television, or video, or motion picture advertising,
8the attribution statement shall be displayed on the screen
9in a clearly readable manner for at least four seconds. For
10radio advertising, the attribution statement shall be read in a
11clearly understandable manner.
12 Sec. 7. Section 68B.22, subsection 4, paragraph j, Code
132023, is amended to read as follows:
14j. Nonmonetary items with a value of three ten dollars or
15less that are received from any one donor during one calendar
16day. The allowable value of nonmonetary items shall be
17annually adjusted to reflect a change in value due to inflation
18and shall not include the sales tax associated with such items.
19 Sec. 8. Section 68B.22, subsection 8, Code 2023, is amended
20to read as follows:
218. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4, an
22organization or association which has as one of its purposes
23the encouragement of the passage, defeat, introduction,
24or modification of legislation shall not give and a member
25of the general assembly shall not receive food, beverages,
26registration, or scheduled entertainment with a per person
27value in excess of three ten dollars. The allowable per
28person value of food, beverages, registration, or scheduled
29entertainment shall be annually adjusted to reflect a change
30in value due to inflation and shall not include the sales tax
31associated with such costs.
32 Sec. 9. Section 68B.32, subsections 3 and 5, Code 2023, are
33amended to read as follows:
343. The board shall annually elect one member to serve as
35the chairperson of the board and one member to serve as vice
-2-1chairperson. The vice chairperson shall act as the chairperson
2in the absence or disability of the chairperson or in the
3event of a vacancy in that office. The chairperson and vice
4chairperson shall not be members of the same political party.
55. The board shall employ a full-time executive director who
6shall be the board’s chief administrative officer. The board
7shall employ or contract for the employment of legal counsel
8notwithstanding section 13.7, and any other personnel as may
9be necessary to carry out the duties of the board. The board’s
10legal counsel shall be the chief legal officer of the board and
11shall advise the board on all legal matters relating to the
12administration of this chapter and chapter 68A. The state may
13be represented by the board’s legal counsel in any civil action
14regarding the enforcement of this chapter or chapter 68A, or at
15the board’s request, the state may be represented by the office
16of the attorney general. Notwithstanding section 8A.412, all
17of the board’s employees, except for the executive director and
18legal counsel, shall be employed subject to the merit system
19provisions of chapter 8A, subchapter IV. The salary of the
20executive director shall be fixed by the board, within the
21range established by the general assembly. The salary of the
22legal counsel shall be fixed by the board, within a salary
23range established by the department of administrative services
24for a position requiring similar qualifications and experience.
25If the executive director also serves as the board’s legal
26counsel, the board may award the executive director additional
27compensation which shall not annually exceed fifty percent of
28the maximum annual salary for the range established by the
29general assembly for the board’s executive director position.
30 Sec. 10. Section 68B.32A, Code 2023, is amended by adding
31the following new subsection:
32 NEW SUBSECTION. 20. Beginning January 1, 2024, and every
33January 1 thereafter, calculate and record any change in value
34due to inflation using the annual percentage change in the
35United States department of labor, bureau of labor statistics,
-3-1consumer price index for all urban consumers for the midwest
2region, all items, or its successor index, as provided under
3section 68B.22, subsection 4, paragraph “j”, and section
468B.22, subsection 8.
5 Sec. 11. NEW SECTION. 68B.32E Delinquent penalties —
6enforcement.
71. A civil penalty assessed by the board under section
868B.32D, subsection 1, paragraph “h”, shall be paid no later
9than thirty days after the order is issued. A civil penalty is
10delinquent if the full amount of the civil penalty has not been
11timely paid.
122. a. In lieu of paying the full amount of the civil
13penalty within thirty days, a person may enter into an
14installment payment plan. A payment plan must be agreed to
15in writing and signed by the board’s executive director and
16the person owing the civil penalty. The payment plan must
17include a payment schedule with the payment dates described.
18The payment plan must be established no later than thirty days
19after the issuance of the order requiring the person to pay a
20civil penalty, as provided under section 68B.32D, subsection
211, paragraph “h”.
22b. If a payment plan is established, the civil penalty is
23delinquent if an installment payment is not paid within thirty
24days of the payment date provided in the payment plan.
253. A civil penalty delinquent for sixty days or longer
26on or after July 1, 2023, shall accrue interest at a rate of
27ten percent per annum, compounded monthly, beginning on the
28later of July 1, 2023, and the date the civil penalty becomes
29delinquent. The board may waive any accrued interest.
304. If a civil penalty remains delinquent for thirty days or
31longer, the board shall send final notice to the person owing
32the civil penalty. Such notice shall be sent via restricted
33certified mail, and must include notice of the applicable
34action provided in subsection 5 or 6.
355. Notwithstanding sections 321.210, 321.210A, and
-4-1321.210B, if a civil penalty owed by a person who was issued a
2driver’s license in this state is delinquent under subsection 1
3or 2, and if the person owes two hundred fifty dollars or more,
4the person’s driver’s license shall be suspended as follows:
5a. The board shall issue an order to suspend the person’s
6driver’s license to the department of transportation thirty
7days after the person received a final notice in accordance
8with subsection 4.
9b. The department of transportation shall suspend the
10person’s driver’s license within ten business days of receiving
11the board’s order and shall send notice of the suspension to
12the person in accordance with section 321.210E and provide
13confirmation to the board when the person’s driver’s license
14is suspended.
15c. If the civil penalty owed by the person is no
16longer delinquent, the board shall order the department of
17transportation to reinstate the person’s driver’s license. The
18department of transportation shall send notice to the person
19whose license is reinstated and provide written confirmation to
20the board when the license is reinstated.
216. If a civil penalty owed by a person who was not issued a
22driver’s license in this state is delinquent under subsection 1
23or 2, and if the person owes two hundred fifty dollars or more,
24the board shall revoke any authority granted by the board for
25the person to operate a candidate’s committee and a political
26committee in this state until the person’s debt is no longer
27delinquent.
287. Any penalty shall be stayed if an appeal is pending for
29the underlying matter for which the person was issued a civil
30penalty. For the duration of the stay, the penalty shall not
31be deemed delinquent and shall not accrue interest.
328. The board may waive collection of a penalty owed in
33circumstances where collection is impracticable.
349. This section does not prohibit the board from taking
35alternative enforcement actions permitted by this chapter or
-5-1chapter 17A.
2 Sec. 12. NEW SECTION. 321.210E Suspension for delinquent
3administrative fines.
4Upon receipt of an order from the Iowa ethics and campaign
5disclosure board, the department shall suspend the driver’s
6license of a person who has a delinquent civil penalty under
7section 68B.32E and who received notice from the board required
8under section 68B.32E, subsection 4. The department shall
9send notice of the suspension to the person whose license is
10suspended and shall send confirmation of the license suspension
11to the Iowa ethics and campaign disclosure board.
12EXPLANATION
13The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
14the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
15This bill relates to matters before the Iowa ethics and
16campaign disclosure board (board).
17The bill requires a political committee and a candidate’s
18committee to provide an electronic mail address along with the
19name, purpose, mailing address, and telephone number of the
20committee when the committee files a statement of organization
21with the board. When a committee or organization is not
22organized under Code section 68A.201, such committee officers
23are also required to provide an electronic mail address when
24filing full disclosure reports of all financial activities with
25the federal election commission or another state’s disclosure
26commission.
27The bill extends the deadline for required filings to be
28submitted electronically to the board from 4:30 p.m.to 11:59
29p.m.on the day the filings are due. By operation of law,
30in computing time, the first day is excluded and the last
31included, unless the last falls on Sunday or holiday, in which
32case the time prescribed is extended so as to include the
33whole of the following Monday, or day after the holiday, as
34applicable.
35The bill adds radio and internet advertising to the
-6-1definition of “published material” as used in Code chapter
268A, and strikes motion picture advertising from the
3definition. “Published material”, including radio and internet
4advertising under the bill, that is designed to expressly
5advocate the nomination, election, or defeat of a candidate
6for public office or the passage or defeat of a ballot issue
7is required to include an attribution statement disclosing
8who is responsible for the material. The bill requires the
9attribution statement to be clear and conspicuous. For radio
10advertising, the attribution statement must be read in a
11clearly understandable manner.
12Under current law, a member of the general assembly, a public
13official, public employee, or candidate, or that person’s
14immediate family member is prohibited from, directly or
15indirectly, accepting or receiving certain gifts or series of
16gifts from restricted donors.
17Code section 68B.22 provides a number of exceptions to the
18general gift giving and receiving prohibitions including but
19not limited to authorizing public officials, public employees,
20candidates, and members of the immediate family of such persons
21to accept nonmonetary items with a value of $3 or less from
22any one donor during one calendar day. The Code section also
23authorizes a member of the general assembly to receive food,
24beverages, registration, or scheduled entertainment with a per
25person value of up to $3 from an organization or association
26which has as one of its purposes the encouragement of the
27passage, defeat, introduction, or modification of legislation.
28The bill increases the gift value to $10 and requires the
29value of those gifts to be adjusted to reflect a change in
30value due to inflation based on the annual percentage change
31in the United States department of labor, bureau of labor
32statistics, consumer price index for all urban consumers for
33the midwest region, all items, or its successor index. The
34Iowa ethics and campaign disclosure board must calculate and
35record the allowable monetary value changed due to inflation on
-7-1January 1, 2024, and every January 1 thereafter.
2Current law requires the board to annually elect one member
3to serve as the chairperson of the board and one member to
4serve as vice chairperson. The bill prohibits the chairperson
5and vice chairperson from being members of the same political
6party.
7Under current law, the board must employ a full-time
8executive director who is the board’s chief administrative
9officer. The board must also employ or contract for the
10employment of legal counsel and any other personnel as may
11be necessary to carry out the duties of the board. The
12board’s legal counsel is the chief legal officer of the
13board and advises the board on all legal matters relating to
14the administration of Code chapters 68A and 68B. The bill
15authorizes the board to award the executive director, if that
16person also serves as the board’s legal counsel, additional
17compensation. The additional compensation must not annually
18exceed 50 percent of the maximum annual salary for the range
19established by the general assembly for the board’s executive
20director position.
21The bill provides enforcement provisions related to
22delinquent civil penalties assessed by the board under Code
23section 68B.32, subsection 1, paragraph “h”. The bill requires
24civil penalties to be paid within 30 days of the board’s order
25for a penalty unless a payment plan is established. Under the
26bill, a civil penalty that is delinquent for 60 days or longer
27on or after July 1, 2023, shall accrue interest at a rate of
2810 percent per annum, compounded monthly, beginning on July 1,
292023, or the date the penalty becomes delinquent.
30The bill authorizes the board to send an order to the
31department of transportation (DOT) to suspend the driver’s
32license of a person who was issued a license in Iowa, if the
33person has a delinquent penalty in excess of $250 and received
34notice as provided in the bill. The bill requires the DOT
35to suspend the person’s driver’s license within 10 business
-8-1days of receiving the board’s order, and then send certain
2notices. If a delinquent civil penalty of more than $250 is
3owed by a person who was not issued a driver’s license in Iowa,
4the board is required to revoke any authority granted by the
5board for the person to operate a candidate’s committee and
6a political committee in Iowa until the person’s debt is no
7longer delinquent.
8The bill provides for penalties to be waived and stayed under
9certain circumstances.
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