1. A referendum shall be conducted as follows:
a. A referendum to extend the imposition of the assessment imposed pursuant to section 196A.4 shall be held every five years in the year prior to the expiration of the assessment in force.
b. The secretary shall call, and the department shall conduct, a referendum upon the department's receipt of a petition which is signed by at least twenty producers requesting a referendum to determine whether to terminate the council and the imposition of the assessment. The referendum shall be conducted within sixty days following receipt of the petition. The petitioners shall guarantee payment of the cost of the referendum by providing evidence of financial security as required by the department.
2. The following procedures shall apply to a referendum:
a. The department shall give notice of the referendum on the question whether to continue the council and the assessment by publishing the notice for a period of not less than five days in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the state. The notice shall state the voting places, period of time for voting, and other information deemed necessary by the department. A referendum shall not be commenced until five days after the last date of publication.
b. Upon signing a statement certifying to the secretary that a person is a bona fide producer, the person is entitled to one vote in each referendum conducted pursuant to this section. The department shall conduct the referendum and count and tabulate the ballots filed during the referendum within thirty days following the close of the referendum.
(1) If a majority of the total number of producers voting in the referendum approves the continuation of the council and the assessment as provided in the referendum, the council shall remain in existence and the assessment shall be levied as provided in this chapter.
(2) If a majority of the total number of producers voting in referendum held pursuant to this section do not approve continuing the council and the assessment as provided in the referendum, the secretary shall terminate collection of the assessment on the first day of the year for which the referendum was to continue. The secretary shall terminate the activities of the council in an orderly manner as soon as practicable after the determination. An additional referendum may be held as provided in section 196A.4. However, the subsequent referendum shall not be held within one hundred eighty days.
95 Acts, ch 7, §6
Referred to in § 196A.4
Iowa General Assembly
Search: Iowa Code 1997
© 1997 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa
Comments? webmaster@legis.iowa.gov.
Last update: Mon Jan 27 16:05:08 CST 1997
URL: /DOCS/IACODE/1997/196A/4C.html
jhf