H.F. 2371 Section 1. Section 35B.6, subsection 1, paragraphs a and c, 1 Code 2011, are amended to read as follows: 2 a. The members of the commission shall qualify by taking the 3 usual oath of office , and give bond in the sum of five hundred 4 dollars each, conditioned for the faithful discharge of their 5 duties with sureties to be approved by the county auditor . The 6 commission shall organize by the selection of one of their 7 members as chairperson and one as secretary. The commission, 8 subject to the approval of the board of supervisors, shall 9 employ an executive director or administrator and shall have 10 the power to employ other necessary employees when needed, 11 including administrative or clerical assistants, but no member 12 of the commission shall be so employed. The compensation of 13 such employees shall be fixed by the board of supervisors. 14 The state department of veterans affairs shall recognize the 15 executive director or administrator as a county veterans 16 service officer recognized pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 14.628(c) 17 for the purposes of assisting veterans and their dependents in 18 obtaining federal benefits. The commission shall recommend the 19 annual compensation of the executive director or administrator 20 to the board of supervisors. The board of supervisors shall 21 consider the recommendation and shall determine and approve the 22 annual compensation of the executive director or administrator. 23 The executive director must possess the same qualifications as 24 provided in section 35B.3 for commission members. However, 25 this qualification requirement shall not apply to a person 26 employed as an executive director prior to July 1, 1989. 27 c. Upon the employment of an executive director or 28 administrator, the executive director or administrator shall 29 complete a course of certification training provided by the 30 department of veterans affairs pursuant to section 35A.5 . 31 If an executive director or administrator fails to obtain 32 certification within one year of being employed, the executive 33 director or administrator shall be removed from office. A 34 commissioner or other commission employee may also complete 35 -1- LSB 5657HV (2) 84 aw/sc 1/ 8

H.F. 2371 the course of certification training. The department shall 1 issue the executive director, administrator, commissioner, or 2 employee a certificate of training after completion of the 3 certification training course. To maintain certification, the 4 executive director, administrator, commissioner, or employee 5 shall satisfy the continuing education requirements established 6 by the national association of county veteran veterans service 7 officers. Failure of an executive director or administrator 8 to maintain certification shall be cause for removal from 9 office. The expenses of training the executive director or 10 administrator shall be paid from the appropriation authorized 11 in section 35B.14 . 12 Sec. 2. Section 35B.6, subsection 1, paragraph d, Code 2011, 13 is amended by adding the following new subparagraph: 14 NEW SUBPARAGRAPH . (3) Complete and submit all forms 15 required for federal, state, and county benefits. 16 Sec. 3. Section 35B.6, subsection 2, Code 2011, is amended 17 to read as follows: 18 2. a. Two or more boards of supervisors may agree, 19 pursuant to chapter 28E , to share the services of an executive 20 director or administrator. The agreement shall provide for the 21 establishment of a commission of veteran affairs office in each 22 of the counties participating in the agreement. 23 b. It shall be unlawful for any county board of supervisors 24 or any county commission of veteran affairs to place the 25 administration of the duties of the county commission of 26 veteran affairs under any other agency of any county, or to 27 publish the names of the veterans or their families who receive 28 benefits under the provisions of this chapter. 29 Sec. 4. Section 35B.6, subsection 3, Code 2011, is amended 30 by striking the subsection. 31 Sec. 5. Section 35B.6, subsection 4, paragraph a, Code 2011, 32 is amended to read as follows: 33 a. Each county commission of veteran affairs shall maintain 34 an office in a public building owned, operated, or leased by 35 -2- LSB 5657HV (2) 84 aw/sc 2/ 8

H.F. 2371 the county. 1 Sec. 6. Section 35B.7, Code 2011, is amended to read as 2 follows: 3 35B.7 Meetings —— report —— budget. 4 The commission shall meet monthly and at other times as 5 necessary. At the monthly meeting it shall determine who are 6 entitled to county benefits and the probable amount required to 7 be expended. The commission shall meet annually to prepare an 8 estimated budget for all expenditures to be made in the next 9 fiscal year and certify the budget to the board of supervisors. 10 The board may approve or reduce the budget for valid reasons 11 shown and entered of record and the board’s decision is final. 12 Sec. 7. Section 35B.10, Code 2011, is amended to read as 13 follows: 14 35B.10 Disbursements —— inspection of records. 15 1. All claims certified by the commission shall be reviewed 16 by the board of supervisors and the county auditor shall 17 issue warrants in payment of the claims. All applications, 18 investigation reports, and case records are privileged 19 communications and shall be held confidential, subject to use 20 and inspection only by persons authorized by law in connection 21 with their official duties relating to financial audits and the 22 administration of this chapter or as authorized by order of 23 a district court . However, the county commission of veteran 24 affairs shall prepare and file in the office of the county 25 auditor on or before the thirtieth day of each January, April, 26 July, and October a report showing the case numbers of all 27 recipients receiving assistance under this chapter , together 28 with the amount paid to each during the preceding quarter. 29 Each report so filed shall be securely fixed in a record book 30 to be used only for such reports made under this chapter . A 31 person may sign a release to authorize the examination of that 32 person’s applications, reports, or records. 33 The record book shall be and the same is hereby declared 34 to be a public record, open to public inspection at all times 35 -3- LSB 5657HV (2) 84 aw/sc 3/ 8

H.F. 2371 during the regular office hours of the county auditor. Each 1 person who desires to examine said records, other than in 2 pursuance of official duties as hereinbefore provided, shall 3 sign a written request to examine the same, which shall contain 4 an agreement on the part of the signer that the signer will 5 not utilize any information gained therefrom for commercial or 6 political purposes. 7 2. It shall be unlawful for any person, body, association, 8 firm, corporation or any other agency to solicit, disclose, 9 receive, make use of or to authorize, knowingly permit, 10 participate in or acquiesce in the use of any lists, names or 11 other information obtained from the reports above provided for, 12 for commercial or political purposes, and a violation of this 13 provision shall constitute a serious misdemeanor. 14 Sec. 8. Section 35B.14, Code 2011, is amended by adding the 15 following new subsections: 16 NEW SUBSECTION . 3. The commission is responsible for 17 the interment in a suitable cemetery of the body of any 18 veteran, as defined in section 35.1, or the spouse, surviving 19 spouse, or child of the person, if the person has died without 20 leaving sufficient means to defray the funeral expenses. The 21 commission may pay the expenses in a sum not exceeding an 22 amount established by the board of supervisors. 23 NEW SUBSECTION . 4. Burial expenses shall be paid by the 24 county in which the person died. If the person is a resident 25 of a different county at the time of death, the county of 26 residence shall reimburse the county where the person died for 27 the cost of burial. In either case, the board of supervisors 28 of the respective counties shall audit and pay the account from 29 the funds provided for in this chapter in the manner as other 30 claims are audited and paid. 31 Sec. 9. Section 35B.16, Code 2011, is amended to read as 32 follows: 33 35B.16 Markers for graves. 34 The county commission of veteran affairs may furnish a 35 -4- LSB 5657HV (2) 84 aw/sc 4/ 8

H.F. 2371 suitable and appropriate metal marker for the grave of each 1 veteran, as defined in section 35.1 , who is buried within 2 the limits of the county. The marker shall be placed at the 3 individual’s grave to permanently mark and designate the grave 4 for memorial purposes. The expenses shall be paid from any 5 funds raised as provided in this chapter . 6 Sec. 10. Section 35B.17, Code 2011, is amended to read as 7 follows: 8 35B.17 Maintenance of graves. 9 1. The county boards of supervisors shall each year 10 appropriate and pay to the owners of, or to the public board or 11 officers having control of cemeteries within the state in which 12 any such deceased service person is buried, a sum sufficient 13 to pay for the care and maintenance of the lots on which they 14 are buried in all cases in which provision for such care is 15 not otherwise made, or may conclude their responsibility by 16 paying a mutually agreed to fee for perpetual care when the 17 cemetery authority has established a perpetual care fund for 18 the cemetery, to be paid either as a lump sum, or in not to 19 exceed five installments in a manner agreed to by the parties. 20 2. Payment under subsection 1 shall be made at the rate 21 charged for like care and maintenance of other lots of 22 similar size in the same cemetery, upon the affidavit of the 23 superintendent or other person in charge of such cemetery, that 24 the same has not been otherwise paid or provided for. 25 Sec. 11. Section 35B.19, Code 2011, is amended to read as 26 follows: 27 35B.19 Burial records. 28 The county commission of veteran affairs executive director 29 or administrator shall be charged with securing the information 30 requested by the department of veterans affairs of every person 31 having a military service record and buried in that the county. 32 Such information shall be secured from the undertaker in charge 33 of the burial or cremation and shall be transmitted by the 34 undertaker to the commission of county veteran affairs office 35 -5- LSB 5657HV (2) 84 aw/sc 5/ 8

H.F. 2371 of the county where burial or disposition of cremated remains 1 is made. This information shall be recorded alphabetically and 2 by description of location in the cemetery where the veteran is 3 buried or the place of disposition of the cremated remains of 4 the veteran . This recording shall conform to the directives of 5 the department of veterans affairs and shall be kept in a book 6 by the county commission executive director or administrator . 7 Sec. 12. Section 64.11, Code 2011, is amended to read as 8 follows: 9 64.11 Expense of bonds paid by county. 10 If a county treasurer, county attorney, recorder, auditor, 11 sheriff, medical examiner, member of the veterans affairs 12 commission, member of the board of supervisors, engineer, 13 steward, or matron elects to furnish a bond with an association 14 or incorporation as surety as provided in this chapter , the 15 reasonable cost of the bond shall be paid by the county where 16 the bond is filed. 17 Sec. 13. Section 331.381, subsection 6, Code 2011, is 18 amended to read as follows: 19 6. Audit and pay the burial expense for indigent veterans, 20 as provided in section 35B.15 35B.14, subsection 4 . 21 Sec. 14. Section 331.502, subsections 14 and 15, Code 2011, 22 are amended by striking the subsections. 23 Sec. 15. Section 331.508, subsection 5, Code 2011, is 24 amended by striking the subsection. 25 Sec. 16. REPEAL. Sections 35B.8, 35B.9, 35B.12, 35B.13, 26 35B.15, and 35B.18, Code 2011, are repealed. 27 EXPLANATION 28 This bill relates to the duties and responsibilities of the 29 county commissions of veteran affairs. 30 The bill removes a requirement that members of the 31 commission give a bond of $500 and makes conforming changes to 32 Code sections 64.11 and 331.502. 33 The bill requires that the state department of veterans 34 affairs shall recognize the executive director or administrator 35 -6- LSB 5657HV (2) 84 aw/sc 6/ 8

H.F. 2371 as a county veterans service officer recognized by the federal 1 secretary of veterans affairs for purposes of assisting 2 veterans and their dependents in obtaining federal benefits. 3 The bill requires that the annual compensation of an executive 4 director or administrator be recommended by the county 5 commission to the county board of supervisors which shall 6 determine and approve the compensation. Current law requires 7 that the county board of supervisors fix the compensation for 8 the executive director or administrator and other necessary 9 employees. 10 The bill strikes language allowing a county commissioner to 11 complete a course of certification training provided by the 12 department of veterans affairs. 13 The bill requires that the duties of the executive director, 14 administrator, and employees shall include the submission of 15 all forms required for federal, state, and county benefits. 16 The bill also removes language requiring a commission to 17 appoint a deputy county auditor as an administrative assistant 18 to the commission, and requires that a commission office be 19 located in a public building. The bill also specifies that 20 the commission shall only need to determine eligibility of 21 individuals for county benefits at monthly meetings of the 22 commission and removes requirements that the commission submit 23 certain information to the board of supervisors. 24 The bill removes certain reporting, recording, accounting 25 system, and filing requirements and makes certain conforming 26 amendments to Code sections 331.502 and 331.508. The bill 27 permits the examination of an individual’s applications, 28 reports, and records only upon the individual’s authorization. 29 The bill also makes certain changes to provisions related to 30 the provision of grave markers for veterans and the filing and 31 maintenance of certain burial records. 32 The bill repeals Code section 35B.12, relating to 33 confidentiality of benefit information, but the substance 34 of the Code section is transferred to Code section 35B.6, 35 -7- LSB 5657HV (2) 84 aw/sc 7/ 8

H.F. 2371 subsection 2. 1 The bill repeals Code section 35B.13, relating to burial 2 expenses, but the substance of the Code section is transferred 3 to Code section 35B.14, subsection 3. 4 The bill repeals Code section 35B.15, relating to audit 5 and payment of burial expenses, but the substance of the Code 6 section is transferred to Code section 35B.14, subsection 4. 7 The bill repeals Code section 35B.18, relating to care 8 and maintenance of gravesites, but the substance of the Code 9 section is transferred to Code section 35B.17, subsection 2. 10 -8- LSB 5657HV (2) 84 aw/sc 8/ 8