H.F. _____ Section 1. Section 35B.4, Code 2011, is amended to read as 1 follows: 2 35B.4 Appointment —— vacancies. 3 1. Members of the commission of veteran affairs shall 4 be appointed by the board of supervisors , as recommended by 5 the current commission members and the executive director 6 or administrator, to staggered three-year terms at the 7 regular meeting in June. However, a member shall serve until 8 a successor has been appointed and qualifies. The board 9 may remove an appointee at any time for neglect of duty or 10 maladministration. A vacancy on the commission shall be filled 11 for the unexpired portion of the regular term in the same 12 manner as regular appointments are made. 13 2. If the board of supervisors increases the commission 14 of veteran affairs membership to five members, the initial 15 terms of the two new members shall be two and three years 16 respectively. However, the new members shall serve until their 17 successors are appointed and qualify. 18 Sec. 2. Section 35B.6, subsection 1, paragraphs a and c, 19 Code 2011, are amended to read as follows: 20 a. The members of the commission shall qualify by taking the 21 usual oath of office , and give bond in the sum of five hundred 22 dollars each, conditioned for the faithful discharge of their 23 duties with sureties to be approved by the county auditor . The 24 commission shall organize by the selection of one of their 25 members as chairperson and one as secretary. The commission, 26 subject to the approval of the board of supervisors, shall 27 employ an executive director or administrator and shall have 28 the power to employ other necessary employees when needed, 29 including administrative or clerical assistants, but no member 30 of the commission shall be so employed. The compensation of 31 such employees shall be fixed by the board of supervisors. 32 The state department of veterans affairs shall recognize the 33 executive director or administrator as a county veterans 34 service officer of a local veterans’ service organization 35 -1- LSB 5657YC (6) 84 aw/sc 1/ 8

H.F. _____ recognized pursuant to 38 C.F.R. 14.628(c) for the purposes 1 of assisting veterans and their dependents in obtaining 2 federal benefits. The commission shall recommend the annual 3 compensation of the executive director or administrator to the 4 board of supervisors. The board of supervisors shall consider 5 the recommendation and shall determine and approve the annual 6 compensation of the executive director or administrator. The 7 executive director must possess the same qualifications as 8 provided in section 35B.3 for commission members. However, 9 this qualification requirement shall not apply to a person 10 employed as an executive director prior to July 1, 1989. 11 c. Upon the employment of an executive director or 12 administrator, the executive director or administrator shall 13 complete a course of certification training provided by the 14 department of veterans affairs pursuant to section 35A.5 . 15 If an executive director or administrator fails to obtain 16 certification within one year of being employed, the executive 17 director or administrator shall be removed from office. A 18 commissioner or other commission employee may also complete 19 the course of certification training. The department shall 20 issue the executive director , or administrator , commissioner, 21 or employee a certificate of training after completion of the 22 certification training course. To maintain certification, the 23 executive director , or administrator , commissioner, or employee 24 shall satisfy the continuing education requirements established 25 by the national association of county veteran veterans service 26 officers. Failure of an executive director or administrator 27 to maintain certification shall be cause for removal from 28 office. The expenses of training the executive director or 29 administrator shall be paid from the appropriation authorized 30 in section 35B.14 . 31 Sec. 3. Section 35B.6, subsection 1, paragraph d, Code 2011, 32 is amended by adding the following new subparagraph: 33 NEW SUBPARAGRAPH . (3) Complete and submit all forms 34 required for federal, state, and county benefits. 35 -2- LSB 5657YC (6) 84 aw/sc 2/ 8

H.F. _____ Sec. 4. Section 35B.6, subsection 2, Code 2011, is amended 1 to read as follows: 2 2. a. Two or more boards of supervisors may agree, 3 pursuant to chapter 28E , to share the services of an executive 4 director or administrator. The agreement shall provide for the 5 establishment of a commission of veteran affairs office in each 6 of the counties participating in the agreement. 7 b. It shall be unlawful for any county board of supervisors 8 or any county commission of veteran affairs to place the 9 administration of the duties of the county commission of 10 veteran affairs under any other agency of any county, or to 11 publish the names of the veterans or their families who receive 12 benefits under the provisions of this chapter. 13 Sec. 5. Section 35B.6, subsection 3, Code 2011, is amended 14 by striking the subsection. 15 Sec. 6. Section 35B.6, subsection 4, paragraph a, Code 2011, 16 is amended to read as follows: 17 a. Each county commission of veteran affairs shall maintain 18 an office in a public building owned, operated, or leased by 19 the county. 20 Sec. 7. Section 35B.7, Code 2011, is amended to read as 21 follows: 22 35B.7 Meetings —— report —— budget. 23 The commission shall meet monthly and at other times as 24 necessary. At the monthly meeting it shall determine who are 25 entitled to county benefits and the probable amount required to 26 be expended. The commission shall meet annually to prepare an 27 estimated budget for all expenditures to be made in the next 28 fiscal year and certify the budget to the board of supervisors. 29 The board may approve or reduce the budget for valid reasons 30 shown and entered of record and the board’s decision is final. 31 Sec. 8. Section 35B.10, Code 2011, is amended to read as 32 follows: 33 35B.10 Disbursements —— inspection of records. 34 1. All claims certified by the commission shall be reviewed 35 -3- LSB 5657YC (6) 84 aw/sc 3/ 8

H.F. _____ by the board of supervisors and the county auditor shall 1 issue warrants in payment of the claims. All applications, 2 investigation reports, and case records are privileged 3 communications and shall be held confidential, subject to use 4 and inspection only by persons authorized by law in connection 5 with their official duties relating to financial audits and the 6 administration of this chapter or as authorized by order of 7 a district court . However, the county commission of veteran 8 affairs shall prepare and file in the office of the county 9 auditor on or before the thirtieth day of each January, April, 10 July, and October a report showing the case numbers of all 11 recipients receiving assistance under this chapter , together 12 with the amount paid to each during the preceding quarter. 13 Each report so filed shall be securely fixed in a record book 14 to be used only for such reports made under this chapter . A 15 person may sign a release to authorize the examination of that 16 person’s applications, reports, or records. 17 The record book shall be and the same is hereby declared 18 to be a public record, open to public inspection at all times 19 during the regular office hours of the county auditor. Each 20 person who desires to examine said records, other than in 21 pursuance of official duties as hereinbefore provided, shall 22 sign a written request to examine the same, which shall contain 23 an agreement on the part of the signer that the signer will 24 not utilize any information gained therefrom for commercial or 25 political purposes. 26 2. It shall be unlawful for any person, body, association, 27 firm, corporation or any other agency to solicit, disclose, 28 receive, make use of or to authorize, knowingly permit, 29 participate in or acquiesce in the use of any lists, names or 30 other information obtained from the reports above provided for, 31 for commercial or political purposes, and a violation of this 32 provision shall constitute a serious misdemeanor. 33 Sec. 9. Section 35B.14, Code 2011, is amended by adding the 34 following new subsections: 35 -4- LSB 5657YC (6) 84 aw/sc 4/ 8

H.F. _____ NEW SUBSECTION . 3. The commission is responsible for 1 the interment in a suitable cemetery of the body of any 2 veteran, as defined in section 35.1, or the spouse, surviving 3 spouse, or child of the person, if the person has died without 4 leaving sufficient means to defray the funeral expenses. The 5 commission may pay the expenses in a sum not exceeding an 6 amount established by the board of supervisors. 7 NEW SUBSECTION . 4. Burial expenses shall be paid by the 8 county in which the person died. If the person is a resident 9 of a different county at the time of death, the county of 10 residence shall reimburse the county where the person died for 11 the cost of burial. In either case, the board of supervisors 12 of the respective counties shall audit and pay the account from 13 the funds provided for in this chapter in the manner as other 14 claims are audited and paid. 15 Sec. 10. Section 35B.16, Code 2011, is amended to read as 16 follows: 17 35B.16 Markers for graves. 18 The county commission of veteran affairs may furnish a 19 suitable and appropriate metal marker for the grave of each 20 veteran, as defined in section 35.1 , who is buried within 21 the limits of the county. The marker shall be placed at the 22 individual’s grave to permanently mark and designate the grave 23 for memorial purposes. The expenses shall be paid from any 24 funds raised as provided in this chapter . 25 Sec. 11. Section 35B.17, Code 2011, is amended to read as 26 follows: 27 35B.17 Maintenance of graves. 28 1. The county boards of supervisors shall each year 29 appropriate and pay to the owners of, or to the public board or 30 officers having control of cemeteries within the state in which 31 any such deceased service person is buried, a sum sufficient 32 to pay for the care and maintenance of the lots on which they 33 are buried in all cases in which provision for such care is 34 not otherwise made, or may conclude their responsibility by 35 -5- LSB 5657YC (6) 84 aw/sc 5/ 8

H.F. _____ paying a mutually agreed to fee for perpetual care when the 1 cemetery authority has established a perpetual care fund for 2 the cemetery, to be paid either as a lump sum, or in not to 3 exceed five installments in a manner agreed to by the parties. 4 2. Payment under subsection 1 shall be made at the rate 5 charged for like care and maintenance of other lots of 6 similar size in the same cemetery, upon the affidavit of the 7 superintendent or other person in charge of such cemetery, that 8 the same has not been otherwise paid or provided for. 9 Sec. 12. Section 35B.19, Code 2011, is amended to read as 10 follows: 11 35B.19 Burial records. 12 The county commission of veteran affairs executive director 13 or administrator shall be charged with securing the information 14 requested by the department of veterans affairs of every person 15 having a military service record and buried in that the county. 16 Such information shall be secured from the undertaker in charge 17 of the burial or cremation and shall be transmitted by the 18 undertaker to the commission of county veteran affairs office 19 of the county where burial or disposition of cremated remains 20 is made. This information shall be recorded alphabetically and 21 by description of location in the cemetery where the veteran is 22 buried or the place of disposition of the cremated remains of 23 the veteran . This recording shall conform to the directives of 24 the department of veterans affairs and shall be kept in a book 25 by the county commission executive director or administrator . 26 Sec. 13. Section 64.11, Code 2011, is amended to read as 27 follows: 28 64.11 Expense of bonds paid by county. 29 If a county treasurer, county attorney, recorder, auditor, 30 sheriff, medical examiner, member of the veterans affairs 31 commission, member of the board of supervisors, engineer, 32 steward, or matron elects to furnish a bond with an association 33 or incorporation as surety as provided in this chapter , the 34 reasonable cost of the bond shall be paid by the county where 35 -6- LSB 5657YC (6) 84 aw/sc 6/ 8

H.F. _____ the bond is filed. 1 Sec. 14. Section 331.381, subsection 6, Code 2011, is 2 amended to read as follows: 3 6. Audit and pay the burial expense for indigent veterans, 4 as provided in section 35B.15 35B.14, subsection 4 . 5 Sec. 15. Section 331.502, subsections 14 and 15, Code 2011, 6 are amended by striking the subsections. 7 Sec. 16. Section 331.508, subsection 5, Code 2011, is 8 amended by striking the subsection. 9 Sec. 17. REPEAL. Sections 35B.8, 35B.9, 35B.12, 35B.13, 10 35B.15, and 35B.18, Code 2011, are repealed. 11 EXPLANATION 12 This bill relates to the duties and responsibilities of the 13 county commissions of veteran affairs. 14 The bill requires that the members of a county commission of 15 veteran affairs be appointed by the board of supervisors upon 16 the recommendation of the current members of the commission 17 and the executive director or administrator. The bill removes 18 a requirement that members of the commission give a bond of 19 $500 and makes conforming changes to Code sections 64.11 and 20 331.502. 21 The bill requires that the state department of veterans 22 affairs shall recognize the executive director or administrator 23 as a county veterans service officer of a local veterans’ 24 service organization recognized by the federal secretary of 25 veterans affairs for purposes of assisting veterans and their 26 dependents in obtaining federal benefits. The bill requires 27 that the annual compensation of an executive director or 28 administrator be recommended by the county commission to the 29 county board of supervisors which shall determine and approve 30 the compensation. Current law requires that the county board 31 of supervisors fix the compensation for the executive director 32 or administrator and other necessary employees. 33 The bill strikes language allowing a county commissioner 34 and certain commission employees to complete a course of 35 -7- LSB 5657YC (6) 84 aw/sc 7/ 8

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