SF 93 (LSB 1117XS (1) 91)

SENATE FILE 93

BY  REICHMAN

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to qualifications to serve on a county commission of veteran affairs.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 35B.3, Code 2025, is amended to read as follows:
   35B.3  County commission of veteran affairs.
   1.  The county commission of veteran affairs shall consist of either three or five persons, as determined by the board of supervisors, all of whom shall be veterans one of the following: 
   a.  A veteran as defined in section 35.1.
   b.  An Iowa resident who is a current member of the Iowa national guard or an Iowa unit of the reserve forces of the United States, whose service is satisfactory according to a letter of recommendation from the commander of the person’s current unit.
   c.  An Iowa resident who is a former member of the Iowa national guard or an Iowa unit of the reserve forces of the United States and was discharged under honorable conditions as evidenced by the person’s certificate of release or discharge from active duty, commonly referred to as a DD214, or a letter of recommendation from the commander of the person’s last unit.
   2.  If possible, each member of the commission shall be a veteran of have served in a different military branch. However, this qualification does not preclude membership to a veteran who served in more than one branch of the military.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   Under current law, only a veteran as defined in Code section 35.1 can serve on a county commission of veteran affairs. This bill allows an Iowa resident who is a current or former member of the Iowa national guard or an Iowa unit of the reserve forces of the United States whose service is or was satisfactory according to a letter of recommendation from the person’s most recent unit commander or who was discharged under honorable conditions to serve on a county commission of veteran affairs. By operation of law, the bill also allows such persons to serve as an executive director for a county commission of veteran affairs under Code section 35B.6.