House File 234 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE
BY PAULSEN
Passed House, Date Passed Senate, Date
Vote: Ayes Nays Vote: Ayes Nays
Approved
A BILL FOR
1 An Act relating to retention of city and county assessors at
2 election and including an effective date and transition
3 provision.
4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
5 TLSB 1190YH 81
6 sc/sh/8
PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. Section 441.8, unnumbered paragraphs 1, 2, 6,
1 2 and 7, Code 2005, are amended to read as follows:
1 3 The term of office of an assessor appointed under this
1 4 chapter shall be for six years beginning January 1 following
1 5 appointment. Appointments for each succeeding term shall be
1 6 made in the same manner as the original appointment except
1 7 that not less than ninety days before the expiration of the
1 8 term of the assessor the conference board shall hold a meeting
1 9 to determine whether or not it desires to reappoint the
1 10 incumbent assessor to a new term. At the end of each regular
1 11 term of office, the incumbent assessor is subject to retention
1 12 in office by election pursuant to section 441.8A. If an
1 13 incumbent assessor chooses not to seek retention in office,
1 14 the office is considered vacant at the expiration of the
1 15 incumbent's regular term and the conference board shall fill
1 16 the vacancy by appointment pursuant to section 441.6.
1 17 Effective January 1, 1980, the conference board shall have
1 18 the power to reappoint the An incumbent assessor is eligible
1 19 to declare candidacy for retention only if the incumbent
1 20 assessor has satisfactorily completed the continuing education
1 21 program provided for in this section.
1 22 Upon receiving credit equal to one hundred fifty hours of
1 23 classroom instruction during the assessor's current term of
1 24 office of which at least ninety of the one hundred fifty hours
1 25 are from courses requiring an examination upon conclusion of
1 26 the course, the director of revenue shall certify to the
1 27 assessor's conference board that the assessor is eligible to
1 28 be reappointed stand for retention to the position. For
1 29 persons appointed to complete an unexpired term, the number of
1 30 credits required to be certified as eligible for reappointment
1 31 shall be prorated according to the amount of time remaining in
1 32 the present term of the assessor. If the person was an
1 33 assessor in another jurisdiction, the assessor may carry
1 34 forward any credit hours received in the previous position in
1 35 excess of the number that would be necessary to be considered
2 1 current in that position.
2 2 Within each six=year period following the appointment of a
2 3 deputy assessor, the deputy assessor shall comply with this
2 4 section except that upon the successful completion of ninety
2 5 hours of classroom instruction of which at least sixty of the
2 6 ninety hours are from courses requiring an examination upon
2 7 conclusion of the course, the deputy assessor shall be
2 8 certified by the director of revenue as being eligible to
2 9 remain in the position. If a deputy assessor fails to comply
2 10 with this section, the deputy assessor shall be removed from
2 11 the position until successful completion of the required hours
2 12 of credit. If a deputy is appointed to the office of
2 13 assessor, the hours of credit obtained as deputy pursuant to
2 14 this section shall be credited to that individual as assessor
2 15 and for the individual to be reappointed eligible to stand for
2 16 retention at the expiration of the term as assessor, that
2 17 individual must obtain the credits which are necessary to
2 18 total the number of hours for reappointment eligibility to
2 19 stand for retention.
2 20 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 441.8A ASSESSOR RETENTION
2 21 ELECTIONS.
2 22 1. Retention elections for county assessors shall be held
2 23 at the time of the general election. Retention elections for
2 24 city assessors shall be held at the time of the regular city
2 25 election.
2 26 2. a. Electors entitled to vote at the general election
2 27 or the regular city election, as applicable, shall be entitled
2 28 to vote at the assessor retention election. The election
2 29 registers used for the general election or the regular city
2 30 election, as applicable, shall also constitute the election
2 31 registers for the assessor retention election.
2 32 b. So far as applicable, election and absent voter laws
2 33 shall apply to assessor retention elections. An application
2 34 for an absent voter ballot for a general election or a regular
2 35 city election shall also constitute an application for an
3 1 absent voter ballot for an assessor retention election to be
3 2 held at the same time, and the ballots shall be mailed or
3 3 delivered to the voter together. The sealed envelope
3 4 transmitted by the absent voter to the county commissioner of
3 5 elections containing the absent voter election ballot may also
3 6 contain the assessor retention election ballot.
3 7 All voting procedures provided by chapter 53 for absent
3 8 voting by members of the armed forces in general elections
3 9 shall be applicable to assessor retention elections.
3 10 3. At least one hundred four days before the assessor
3 11 retention election preceding expiration of the regular term of
3 12 office, an assessor may file a declaration of candidacy with
3 13 the state commissioner of elections to stand for retention or
3 14 rejection at that election. If an assessor fails to file the
3 15 declaration, the office shall be vacant at the end of the
3 16 term. An assessor filing the declaration shall stand for
3 17 retention in the assessing jurisdiction where the assessor has
3 18 served.
3 19 4. At least sixty=nine days before each assessor retention
3 20 election, the state commissioner of elections shall certify to
3 21 the county commissioner of elections of each county the names
3 22 of the county or city assessors to be voted on in the county
3 23 at that election. The county commissioner of elections shall
3 24 place the names upon the appropriate ballots. The assessor
3 25 retention question on the ballot shall be in substantially the
3 26 following form:
3 27 Shall the following assessor for (insert county or city, as
3 28 appropriate) be retained in office?
3 29 CANDIDATE'S NAME YES NO
3 30 5. Voting at assessor retention elections shall be by
3 31 separate paper ballot, special paper ballot, ballot cards, or
3 32 by voting machine in the space provided for public measures.
3 33 If paper ballots are used, the election judges shall offer a
3 34 ballot to each voter. If special paper ballots or ballot
3 35 cards are used, either a separate ballot or a distinct heading
4 1 may be used to distinguish the assessor retention ballot.
4 2 Separate ballot boxes for the general election ballots, or
4 3 regular city election ballots, and the assessor retention
4 4 election ballots are not required. The general election
4 5 ballot, or regular city election ballot, and the assessor
4 6 retention election ballot may be voted in the same voting
4 7 booth.
4 8 6. An assessor must receive more affirmative than negative
4 9 votes to be retained in office. When the poll is closed, the
4 10 election judges shall publicly canvass the vote forthwith.
4 11 The board of supervisors shall canvass the returns on the
4 12 Monday or Tuesday after the election, and shall promptly
4 13 certify the number of affirmative and negative votes on each
4 14 assessor to the county commissioner of elections.
4 15 The county board of supervisors shall, at the time of
4 16 canvassing the vote cast at a general election or regular city
4 17 election, open and canvass all of the returns for the assessor
4 18 retention election. Each assessor who has received more
4 19 affirmative than negative votes shall receive from the county
4 20 board of supervisors an appropriate certificate so stating.
4 21 7. If an assessor is not retained, the office shall be
4 22 considered vacant and the conference board shall fill the
4 23 vacancy by appointment pursuant to section 441.6. An assessor
4 24 who is not retained in office, or who chooses not to seek
4 25 retention in office, is ineligible to serve as assessor in the
4 26 county or city where the assessor was not retained, or chose
4 27 not to seek retention, for the six years following the
4 28 retention election.
4 29 Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE AND TRANSITION.
4 30 1. This Act takes effect January 1, 2007, for purposes of
4 31 the transition to retention of incumbent assessors by election
4 32 at the regular city election in November 2007 or the general
4 33 election in November 2008, whichever is applicable.
4 34 2. The terms of county assessors expiring on December 31,
4 35 2009, shall be shortened so that all county assessors, if they
5 1 wish to continue in office for another regular term, must
5 2 declare candidacy for retention at the general election in
5 3 November 2008. The regular term of those county assessors
5 4 retained at election in November 2008 and those county
5 5 assessors appointed in December 2008 because of the decision
5 6 of the incumbent assessor not to seek retention at the
5 7 election in November 2008, or because of the failure of the
5 8 incumbent to retain office at the election in November 2008,
5 9 shall begin January 1, 2009.
5 10 3. The conference board of a city with a city assessor
5 11 shall adopt a plan for shortening or lengthening the term of
5 12 the city assessor so that the retention question for the
5 13 incumbent city assessor will be on the ballot at the regular
5 14 city election in November 2007. The conference board of each
5 15 of those cities shall submit its plan to the department of
5 16 revenue by March 1, 2007. The department shall review and
5 17 comment on the plans and the plans shall be forwarded to the
5 18 state commissioner of elections and the appropriate county
5 19 commissioner of elections by April 15, 2007. In developing
5 20 the plan, the city conference board shall take into
5 21 consideration the date on which the city assessor's term
5 22 expires.
5 23 4. The regular term of those city assessors retained at
5 24 election in November 2007 and those city assessors appointed
5 25 in December 2007 because of the decision of the incumbent
5 26 assessor not to seek retention at the election in November
5 27 2007, or because of the failure of the incumbent to retain
5 28 office at the election in November 2007, shall begin January
5 29 1, 2008.
5 30 EXPLANATION
5 31 This bill provides that incumbent city and county assessors
5 32 are subject to retention in office by election. The retention
5 33 election for county assessors shall be every six years at the
5 34 general election held in November of the even=numbered year.
5 35 The retention election for city assessors shall be every six
6 1 years at the regular city election held in November of the
6 2 odd=numbered year.
6 3 The conference board of each county and city, as
6 4 applicable, shall appoint a new assessor if the incumbent
6 5 assessor is not retained at election or if the incumbent
6 6 chooses not to run for retention. An incumbent assessor who
6 7 is not retained at election or who chooses not to run for
6 8 retention is ineligible to be appointed as assessor in the
6 9 county or city where the assessor served for six years after
6 10 the expiration of the assessor's term of office.
6 11 The bill takes effect January 1, 2007, and includes
6 12 transition provisions so that the first retention elections
6 13 can be held in November 2007 for city assessors and November
6 14 2008 for county assessors.
6 15 LSB 1190YH 81
6 16 sc:nh/sh/8