Senate Study Bill 1181 - Introduced SENATE FILE _____ BY (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT BILL BY CHAIRPERSON WILHELM) A BILL FOR An Act relating to the powers and governance of benefited 1 recreational lake districts, water quality districts, and 2 combined recreational lake and water quality districts. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 2726XC (1) 84 md/sc

S.F. _____ Section 1. Section 357E.1, subsection 3, Code 2011, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 3. “District” means a benefited recreational lake district 3 or a water quality district or a combined district incorporated 4 as a public entity and organized pursuant to this chapter . 5 Sec. 2. Section 357E.9, Code 2011, is amended to read as 6 follows: 7 357E.9 Trustees —— term and qualification. 8 1. a. At the election, the names of at least three seven 9 candidates for trustee shall be written in by the voters on 10 blank ballots without formal nomination and the board of 11 supervisors shall appoint three seven from among the five nine 12 receiving the highest number of votes as trustees for the 13 district. One trustee Three trustees shall be appointed to 14 serve for one year, one two for two years, and one two for three 15 years. The trustees shall give bond in the amount required by 16 the board, the premium of which shall be paid by the district. 17 The trustees must be residents of the district or be property 18 owners within the district . Vacancies shall be filled by 19 election, but if there are no candidates for a trustee office, 20 the vacancy may be filled by appointment by the board. The 21 terms of the succeeding trustees are for three years. 22 b. For districts in existence on July 1, 2011, the number 23 of trustees, other than those appointed under subsection 2, 24 shall be increased from three trustees to seven trustees. For 25 the initial seven-member board under this paragraph, the board 26 of supervisors shall appoint four trustees. One trustee shall 27 be appointed to serve for one year, one for two years, and two 28 for three years. The term of each trustee appointed under this 29 paragraph shall expire on the same date as the term of the 30 current trustee whose term expires during the same year. 31 2. If the state owns at least four hundred acres of land 32 contiguous to a lake within the district, the natural resource 33 commission shall appoint two members of the board of trustees 34 in addition to the three seven members provided in this 35 -1- LSB 2726XC (1) 84 md/sc 1/ 4

S.F. _____ section . The additional two members must be citizens of the 1 state, not less than eighteen years of age, and property owners 2 within the district. The two additional members have voting 3 and other authority equal to the other members of the board and 4 hold office at the pleasure of the natural resource commission. 5 Sec. 3. Section 357E.11, Code 2011, is amended by striking 6 the section and inserting in lieu thereof the following: 7 357E.11 Bonds and indebtedness. 8 1. A district may borrow money for its corporate purposes, 9 but shall not become indebted in any manner or for any purpose 10 to an amount in the aggregate exceeding five percent on the 11 value of the taxable property within the district, to be 12 ascertained by the last state and county tax lists previous to 13 the incurring of the indebtedness. Indebtedness within this 14 limit shall not include the indebtedness of any other municipal 15 corporation located wholly or partly within the boundaries of 16 the district. 17 2. A district shall have the same powers to issue bonds, 18 including both general obligation and revenue bonds, that 19 cities have under the laws of this state, including but not 20 limited to chapter 76, section 384.4, and sections 384.23 21 through 384.94. The bonds shall be made payable at the place 22 and be of the form as the board of trustees shall by resolution 23 designate. In the application of the laws to this chapter, the 24 words used in the laws referring to municipal corporations or 25 to cities shall be held to include districts organized under 26 this chapter; the words “council” or “city council” shall be 27 held to include the board of trustees of a district; the words 28 “mayor” and “clerk” shall be held to include the president and 29 clerk of a board of trustees; and like construction shall be 30 given to any other words in the laws where required to permit 31 the exercise of the powers by districts under this section. 32 3. An indebtedness shall not be incurred under this section 33 until authorized by an election. The election shall be held 34 and notice given in the same manner as provided in section 35 -2- LSB 2726XC (1) 84 md/sc 2/ 4

S.F. _____ 357E.8, except that a proposition to authorize indebtedness is 1 approved if sixty percent of those voting on the proposition 2 vote in favor of the proposition. A proposition for the 3 authorization of indebtedness may be submitted to the voters at 4 the same election as the election under section 357E.8. 5 EXPLANATION 6 This bill makes changes to Code chapter 357E relating to 7 benefited recreational lake districts, water quality districts, 8 and combined recreational lake and water quality districts. 9 The bill specifies that districts under Code chapter 357E 10 are incorporated as public entities. 11 The bill increases from three to seven the number of trustees 12 on the board governing a benefited recreational lake district, 13 water quality district, or combined recreational lake and 14 water quality district, other than the two trustees who may 15 be appointed by the natural resource commission if the state 16 owns a certain amount of land contiguous to a lake within the 17 district. The bill makes corresponding changes to the trustee 18 selection procedure for newly established districts. 19 The bill also provides that for districts in existence on 20 July 1, 2011, the board of supervisors is required to appoint 21 four additional trustees. One trustee shall be appointed to 22 serve for one year, one for two years, and two for three years. 23 Following expiration of those initial appointments, vacancies 24 are filled by election. 25 Current law requires trustees to be residents of the 26 district. The bill would also allow property owners within the 27 district to serve as trustees. 28 The bill strikes and replaces Code section 357E.11, relating 29 to a district’s authority to issue bonds in anticipation of 30 revenue. New Code section 357E.11 authorizes a district to 31 issue bonds, including both general obligation and revenue 32 bonds, in the same manner as cities. The bill provides that 33 the bonds must be payable at the place and be of the form 34 designated by the board of trustees. The bill provides, 35 -3- LSB 2726XC (1) 84 md/sc 3/ 4

S.F. _____ however, that a district may not incur an indebtedness until 1 authorized by an election where 60 percent of those voting on 2 the proposition vote in favor of the proposition. 3 -4- LSB 2726XC (1) 84 md/sc 4/ 4