HF 209 (LSB 1326HV (2) 91)

HOUSE FILE 209

BY  COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

(SUCCESSOR TO HF 15)

A BILL FOR

An Act creating a rural attorney recruitment assistance program, and making appropriations.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  256.231  Rural attorney recruitment assistance program —— fund.
   1.  Program created.  The college student aid commission shall establish a program to assist rural counties and municipalities in recruiting attorneys.
   2.  Application.  Each interested county or municipality must apply to the college student aid commission to be included in the rural attorney recruitment assistance program. Before making a determination of eligibility, the college student aid commission shall conduct a county or municipality assessment designed to evaluate the county’s or municipality’s need for an attorney and the county’s or municipality’s ability to sustain and support an attorney. The college student aid commission shall maintain a list of counties and municipalities that have been assessed and are eligible for participation in the program. The college student aid commission may revise any county or municipality assessment or conduct a new assessment as necessary to reflect any change in conditions within a county or municipality.
   3.  County or municipality eligible to participate.  A county or municipality is eligible to participate in the program if all of the following are true:
   a.  The county or municipality has a population of less than twenty-six thousand and is located more than twenty miles from a city with a population of at least fifty thousand, based on the 2020 federal decennial census.
   b.  The county or municipality agrees to provide the county’s or municipality’s portion of the incentive payment pursuant to the provisions of this section. Such payments shall be in addition to the advertised salary and benefits of the attorney position.
   c.  The college student aid commission determines the county or municipality is eligible.
   4.  Incentive payment to participating attorneys.  Any attorney who is selected to enter into an agreement and who, in conjunction with the eligible county or municipality, fulfills the requirements of the program is entitled to receive an incentive payment in five equal annual installments, each in an amount equal to ninety percent of the annual university of Iowa college of law resident tuition and fees as determined on July 1, 2026.
   5.  Agreement for payment of recruitment assistance.
   a.  Any agreement for the payment of recruitment assistance pursuant to this section must obligate the rural county or municipality served by the attorney to provide thirty-five percent of the total amount of the incentive payments in five equal annual installments. After the rural county or municipality certifies to the college student aid commission that the county or municipality has paid the attorney the required amount, the college student aid commission shall pay to the attorney the remaining balance. The college student aid commission shall pay the required amount out of moneys appropriated pursuant to this section. A county or municipality may prepay its portion of the incentive payments at any time during the five-year period. The college student aid commission shall only pay upon completion of each annual employment obligation. A county or municipality may include provisions in the agreement that the county or municipality determines are necessary to attract and retain the attorney, including provisions that implement residency requirements.
   b.  The agreement must require the attorney to do all of the following:
   (1)  Become a contract attorney with the office of the state public defender and designate the minimum number of hours that the attorney must provide as a contract attorney during each calendar year during the contract period.
   (2)  Participate in volunteer lawyer projects through nonprofit organizations providing critical legal assistance to low-income and vulnerable Iowans.
   6.  County and municipality funding.  Any eligible county or municipality may appropriate moneys for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this section. An eligible county or municipality may enter an agreement with any county, municipality, school district, or nonprofit entity to assist the county or municipality in carrying out the provisions of this section.
   7.  Filing and approval of recruitment assistance agreement.  A recruitment assistance agreement entered into pursuant to this section is not effective until it is filed with and approved by the college student aid commission. The agreement must provide that the attorney practice law full-time in the eligible county or municipality for at least five years.
   8.  Ineligibility for participation in other programs.  A person shall not participate in the program if the person has previously participated in the program, or any other state or federal scholarship, loan repayment, or tuition reimbursement program that obligates the person to provide attorney services within an underserved area.
   9.  Fund established.  A rural attorney recruitment assistance program fund is created in the state treasury under the control of the college student aid commission. The college Student aid commission may accept gifts, grants, bequests, and other private contributions, as well as state or federal moneys, for deposit in the fund. The college student aid commission shall remit all repayments made pursuant to this section to the fund. All moneys deposited or paid into the fund are appropriated to the college student aid commission to be used for meeting the requirements of this section and increasing the number of attorneys participating in the program. During a fiscal year, up to five percent of the moneys in the fund may be used by the college student aid commission to cover implementation and administration costs associated with this section. Notwithstanding section 8.33, moneys in the fund that remain unencumbered or unobligated at the close of a fiscal year shall not revert but shall remain available for expenditure for the purposes designated. Notwithstanding section 12C.7, subsection 2, interest or earnings on moneys in the fund shall be credited to the fund.
   10.  Rules.  The college student aid commission shall adopt rules to administer this section.
   11.  Limitation.  The program shall not provide assistance for more than five attorneys. This subsection is repealed July 1, 2026.
    Sec. 2.  CODE EDITOR DIRECTIVE.  The Code editor shall designate section 256.231, as enacted in this Act, as a new subpart within chapter 256, subchapter VII, part 4, entitled “rural attorney recruitment assistance program”.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill creates the rural attorney recruitment assistance program. The bill requires the college student aid commission (commission) to establish a program for attorneys to assist rural counties and municipalities in recruiting attorneys. The bill requires each interested county or municipality to apply to the commission. The commission is required to conduct a county or municipality assessment designed to evaluate the county’s or municipality’s need for an attorney and the county’s or municipality’s ability to sustain and support an attorney before admitting a county or municipality into the program. The bill requires the commission to maintain a list of counties and municipalities that have been assessed and are eligible for participation in the program. The commission is allowed to revise any county or municipality assessment or conduct a new assessment as necessary to reflect any change in conditions within a county or municipality.
   The bill provides that a county or municipality is eligible to participate in the program if it has a population of less than 26,000 and is located more than 20 miles from a city with a population of at least 50,000, based on the 2020 federal decennial census.
   The bill provides that any attorney who fulfills the requirements of the program is entitled to receive an incentive payment in five equal annual installments, each in an amount equal to 90 percent of the university of Iowa college of law resident tuition and fees as determined on July 1, 2026. This is in addition to the advertised salary and benefits for the attorney position.
   The bill provides that any agreement for payment under the program shall obligate the county or municipality served by the attorney to pay 35 percent of the total amount of the incentive payments in five equal annual installments. The bill requires the commission, upon certification that the county or municipality has paid the attorney the annual amount to the commission, to pay the attorney the remaining balance. The bill provides that the commission shall pay the required amount out of moneys appropriated from the state. The bill further provides that a county or municipality may prepay its portion of the incentive payment at any time during the five-year period. The bill requires the agreement to require the attorney to become a contract attorney with the office of the state public defender, designate the minimum number of hours that the attorney must provide as a contract attorney, and agree to participate in volunteer lawyer projects.
   The bill allows any rural county or municipality to appropriate moneys for the purpose of funding the program.
   The bill provides that no recruitment assistance agreement entered into is effective until it is filed with and approved by the commission. The agreement shall provide that the attorney practice law full-time in the eligible county or municipality for at least five years.
   The bill provides that no person may participate in the program if the person has previously participated in the program, or any other state or federal scholarship, loan repayment, or tuition reimbursement program that obligates the person to provide attorney services within an underserved area.
   A rural attorney recruitment assistance program fund is created and moneys in the fund are appropriated to the commission to be used for the program and to increase the number of attorneys in the program. The program is limited to five attorneys in the first year.