House Study Bill 518



                                  HOUSE FILE       
                                  BY  (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON
                                       LOCAL GOVERNMENT BILL BY
                                       CHAIRPERSON VAN ENGELENHOVEN)


    Passed House, Date                Passed Senate,  Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to county board of supervisor vacancies.
  2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  3 TLSB 5601HC 81
  4 eg/sh/8

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 331.214, Code 2005, is amended to read
  1  2 as follows:
  1  3    331.214  VACANCY OF SUPERVISOR'S OFFICE.
  1  4    1.  In addition to the The circumstances which constitute a
  1  5 vacancy in office under section 69.2, the absence of a
  1  6 supervisor from the county for sixty consecutive days shall be
  1  7 treated as a resignation of the office.  At its next meeting
  1  8 after the sixty=day absence, the board, by resolution adopted
  1  9 and included in its minutes, shall declare the absent
  1 10 supervisor's seat vacant.
  1 11    2.  If a board determines after a hearing that a supervisor
  1 12 is physically or mentally incapable of performing the duties
  1 13 of office and there is reasonable cause to believe that the
  1 14 supervisor will not be able to perform the duties of office
  1 15 for the remainder of the supervisor's term, the board, by
  1 16 resolution adopted and included in its minutes, shall declare
  1 17 the supervisor's seat vacant.  The board shall comply with the
  1 18 notice and hearing requirements in section 69.2, subsection 2.
  1 19 The board shall appoint two physicians to examine the
  1 20 supervisor and receive the report of the physicians as
  1 21 evidence at the hearing.  The board may only declare the
  1 22 supervisor's seat vacant if both physicians concur that the
  1 23 supervisor is physically or mentally incapable of performing
  1 24 the duties of office and there is reasonable cause to believe
  1 25 that the supervisor will not be able to perform the duties of
  1 26 office for the remainder of the supervisor's term.  If the
  1 27 supervisor refuses or is unavailable for such examination, the
  1 28 board may proceed to declare the supervisor's seat vacant.  A
  1 29 supervisor whose seat has been declared vacant may appeal the
  1 30 board's decision to the district court.
  1 31                           EXPLANATION
  1 32    This bill addresses vacancies that may occur in the county
  1 33 board of supervisors.  The bill makes Code section 331.214
  1 34 specific to a supervisor vacancy consistent with Code section
  1 35 69.2 that applies to any vacancy in public office.  The bill
  2  1 requires that a county board of supervisors declare a
  2  2 supervisor's seat vacant when the board determines that a
  2  3 supervisor is physically or mentally incapable of performing
  2  4 the duties of office.  To declare a vacancy, the board must
  2  5 follow notice and hearing procedures set forth in Code section
  2  6 69.2, appoint two physicians to examine the supervisor, and if
  2  7 the two physicians concur that the supervisor is incapable of
  2  8 performing the duties of office and probably will be incapable
  2  9 for the remainder of the supervisor's term, the board may
  2 10 declare a vacancy.  If a supervisor refuses or is unavailable
  2 11 for examination, the board may proceed to declare the
  2 12 supervisor's seat vacant.  A supervisor may appeal a board's
  2 13 decision to the district court.
  2 14 LSB 5601HC 81
  2 15 eg:rj/sh/8